Saki and Sushi?

by **Sackett58** on Tue Mar 25, 2008 8:19 am

Baseball season has begun and opening day is in Japan. American tradition has been Pearled Harbored.

by **tzor** on Tue Mar 25, 2008 9:01 am

The fact is that outside of the United States, baseball is really hot in Japan, more so than in South America which also used to be a big supporter of the sport. They have a number of leagues in Japan. More importantly starting with a few who entered the American leagues, there has been a rapidly growing interest in American Baseball. This means that if they want to watch an American baseball game they have to do so at odd hours of the day ... and they do that in increasing numbers. The major leagues sees Japan as their biggest potential for expanding fans who will buy merchandise. Therefore having the opening game in Japan is sort of like giving a free nothing to their biggest and fastest growing fan base.

(And now for the nasty jab to the American ego - it's ok I'm an American.) You do know that the main ingreedient of Budweiser, the so called "King" of beers - who made him king anyway - is rice. That's right, Americans at ball games have been drinking watered down sake for years and calling it beer.

My American ego would insist that simple sushi isn't right for a ballpark, you need a manly hand roll (temaki sushi).

by **lord voldemort** on Tue Mar 25, 2008 9:30 am

annnoying thing is that i dont get it on cable til about a week before all star weekend.
so i have to watch it streamed off the net til then. though after that i get at least a game a day

by **DaGip** on Tue Mar 25, 2008 9:58 am

GO TWINS!

by **Neoteny** on Tue Mar 25, 2008 11:38 am

Mmmm... sake...

by **Sentinel XIV** on Tue Mar 25, 2008 1:12 pm

I honestly think that Japan, by bringing the opening series of MLB games to Japan, is selling their own leagues short. Some great baseball is played over there, and two of baseballs greatest players, Sadaharu Oh and Ichiro Suzuki, hail from Japan. I suppose it's a business move, and the fact that players like Ichiro! are MLB players make American baseball big over there.

by **Anarkistsdream** on Tue Mar 25, 2008 4:41 pm

I want sushi.

by **Nobunaga** on Thu Mar 27, 2008 8:07 pm

... The sad thing for MLB fans in Japan is that you cannot see any games unless at least one of the teams on the field has a famous Japanese import. This is why you can see every game the Mariners play, or the Yankees, but not many more. The RedSox got that hot young Japanese pitcher so I imagine those games will start to be shown, and you'll start to see Japanese walking around with Boston logos on shirts, etc..

... An Indians fan myself, I felt left out.

... (once the playoffs begin, however, all the games are on TV, regardless)

...