A circle of friends connected by gootouchi! The “FIST BUMP” corner of the radio program “GRAND MARQUEE” features people who live and enjoy Tokyo in a relay format.
This week, we will be presenting the circle of friends connected by Yakult fans prior to the “Mynavi Swallows Summer Night Festival,” a public live broadcast to be held in the front area of Jingu Stadium.
On August 15, nonfiction writer Shoichi Hasegawa appeared with Tokyo Yakult Swallows alumnus Ryota Igarashi to talk about what he has learned from joining all 12 teams’ fan clubs and how he enjoys watching baseball games by himself.
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What I noticed after joining the fan clubs of all 12 teams
Celeina (MC): Let me start with a profile. Shoichi Hasegawa was born in 1970 and joined a publishing company after graduating from Waseda University. He was involved in editing fashion magazines and became a freelancer in 2003. As a “Yakult-loving 12-team Fan Club Critic®,” he has published various baseball-related books, with a focus on the Yakult Swallows.
Takano (MC): What does it mean to be a “12-team fan club critic”?
Hasegawa: I have been a member of the fan clubs of the 12 baseball teams since 2005, and this year is my 19th year, and next year will be my 20th year.
Takano: That’s amazing.
Celeina: Why did you decide to join the fan clubs of all 12 teams?
Hasegawa: In 2004, the year before I joined the fan clubs, there was an event called the baseball world reorganization riots, and each team started saying that fan service was very important.
I have been a member of the Yakult fan club for 43 years, so I know it well, but I didn’t know about other fan clubs, so I decided to join other fan clubs so that I could make comparisons and learn about fan service.
Celeina: Did you discover anything with it? Differences, attractions, and so on?
Hasegawa: They are totally different. Each team has its own personality, and since it has been almost 20 years since 2005, the level of each fan club has improved and is really getting better.
Celeina: What kind of benefits does the current Yakult fan club offer?
Hasegawa: Yes, they do. First of all, just like the fan clubs of celebrities, idols, and big-name musicians, the benefit is that it is easy to get tickets.
Celeina: So it all comes down to that.
Hasegawa: All 12 teams have ticket privileges. We also try to differentiate ourselves in other ways, such as whether there are perks for those who come several times, or whether they can get goods when they join the club.
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My commitment as a nonfiction writer who can only see you once in a while
Takano: I understand that you once interviewed Mr. Igarashi, an alumnus of the Yakult Swallows, who is also with us today. As a non-fiction writer, from what perspective do you usually cover baseball?
Hasegawa: Yes, I do. I am not in the position of a newspaper reporter or a watchdog who is always with the players, so I really only meet them occasionally.
So I leave the real-time information to newspapers, radio, and TV, and try to dig deeper by asking questions that I can only ask when I have time, such as, “How was that scene in the game?
Takano: I see. I guess that’s because we don’t see each other every day.
Now, here, I asked Mr. Hasegawa to choose a song that he would like everyone to listen to together on the radio at this time.
Hasegawa: I chose the song I wanted to listen to, but I chose “From the ceiling with love,” the debut song by a band called ANGIE, which broke through in Fukuoka in the 1980s and 1990s.
Takano: Why did you choose this song?
Hasegawa: I really liked the lyrics of the main vocalist of ANGIE, Kanosuke Mito, and I wanted to be someone who could write lyrics like that.
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How to enjoy watching baseball games alone
Celeina: You are wearing a uniform today, but whose uniform is it?
Hasegawa: Today’s uniform is the commemorative uniform of Tetsuto Yamada’s triple-three game.
Igarashi: It is very rare. I buy them whenever I see them, and I definitely get them when they are handed out at events, so I have uniforms of many different players. In the past, uniforms were given out on Ladies’ Day and other limited editions, so men couldn’t get them. But Mr. Hasegawa even buys them himself.
Hasegawa: I made sure to ask, “I’m a male, can I buy one?
Takano: How much merchandise do you have at home?
Hasegawa: I have been a member of the fan clubs of 12 teams for 19 years, so I have enough goods for one team x 12 teams x 19 years.
Takano: I would love to visit and interview you.
Celeina: I understand that you are particular about going to baseball games alone.
Takano: What do you find attractive or enjoyable about going alone?
Hasegawa: I can watch the game at my own leisure. I drink a lot, but I can drink at my own pace.
Celeina: You can drink when you want and concentrate when you want.
Hasegawa: Also, I don’t have to worry about whether I should stop drinking if my friends I’m going with aren’t drinking, or whether I should order something with them if they are empty.
Celeina: That ‘s the kindness of Mr. Hasegawa.
Igarashi: There are fans who decide to buy beer from one vendor, but Hasegawa-san is very considerate and buys from many different people.
Hasegawa: I don’t like the fact that if I decide on one person, I feel like I have to buy something every time that person passes by.
Celeina: Your reasoning is very kind.
Hasegawa: Because I want to drink at my own pace.
Celeina: When I went to watch the game last week, there were five or six of us with the staff, and one of us was very vocal. So I wanted to ask you, Hasegawa-san, when you go alone, do you speak up?
Hasegawa: Only a little bit, really.
Takano: I even heard how you enjoy it.
Celeina: “FIST BUMP” today we welcome nonfiction writer Shoichi Hasegawa. Thank you very much.
Hasegawa: Thank you very much.
GRAND MARQUEE
J-WAVE (81.3FM) Mon-Thu 16:00 – 18:50
Navigator: Shinya Takano, Celeina Ann
