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Head to Jingu Stadium on Saturday, June 1st and Sunday, June 2nd!

In the 2023 fall Tokyo Big 6 Baseball League, the Waseda University baseball team lost the Waseda-Keio game, a match in which both schools were at stake for the league championship, and was left disappointed to see their rival Keio University celebrating. The 2024 spring league has begun in an attempt to get revenge. The team is in a good position to aim for their first league championship in seven seasons since the fall of 2020. This time, we asked captain Taichi Inde and vice captain Tsubasa Yoshino, who are both from the same strong baseball school in Aichi Prefecture, about their enthusiasm for winning the league championship. We also interviewed Minami Fujita, the first female manager in the history of the Waseda University baseball team, about her thoughts on the Waseda-Keio game. Come to Jingu Stadium to support the much-anticipated Waseda-Keio game!

*The interview was conducted on May 2, 2024.

Breaking out of their shells, Waseda-Keio match aims for victory

Taichi Inde, 4th year student School of Sport Sciences captain and catcher, graduated from Chukyo University Chukyo High School
Tsubasa Yoshino, 4th year School of Sport Sciences vice captain and outfielder, graduated from Toho High School

--What are the team's colours and characteristics this season?

Inde: Many of the members who played in the league last season are still here, so we have a lot of experience. I think that this year's strength is that the team as a whole has "tenacity" by using that experience as a weapon.

Yoshino: If I had to add one thing, there would be "unity." In a good sense, there is no hierarchy, and communication is possible regardless of grade. I think that unity also creates tenacity in the team.

--In fact, in the early stages of the league, you managed to win against Rikkyo University and Meiji University, even though the games were close until the third game. This was your first win against Meiji University in five seasons.

Inde: Indeed, after a 1-1 draw, Waseda's recent challenge has been to "win the third game firmly," and they have been struggling to win for a long time. But this year, they finally broke out of their shell. I think it was a big step forward, even more than just gaining points.

How about your own performance and condition?

Inde: I've been assigned the number 4 position this season, but I'm still in a position where I have to produce results. In that sense, I'm not yet satisfied with my current situation. I want to aim higher so that I can reach my peak in the Waseda-Keio game.

Yoshino: I wasn't able to bat as I wanted until the third game against Meiji University, and I keep thinking, "If I had hit more, the team could have won more easily." As a main hitter at Waseda, I have a sense of mission to produce results. I don't want to see it as pressure, but rather I want to approach it with the feeling that I'm happy to have this experience.

-How do you evaluate each other's characteristics and leadership?

Inde: Yoshino's charm is Yoshino's  batting.  Yoshino's  passion for batting and  Yoshino's  attitude towards practice are inspiring not only  Yoshino's  peers but also  Yoshino's  juniors, and I think  Yoshino is the type of leader who shows  Yoshino's  worth through  Yoshino's  actions.

Yoshino: Inde, of course, is the captain and brings the team together, but at the same time, as the catcher, Inde is also in a position to pull the pitchers along. Inde is more attentive to various things than the one who is always pushing forward with a "me, me" mentality, so the burden must be greater. In order for Inde to focus on leading, I want to broaden my perspective and look at the situation of the team so that Inde doesn't have to worry about the team. I think this is an area where I need to grow as an individual.

Inde (left), who hit a grand slam in the second round against the University of Tokyo in the 2024 Spring League, and Yoshino (right), who pumps his fist in celebration after hitting a single in the third round against Meiji University (Photo courtesy of Waseda Sports Newspaper Club)

--The pitchers are doing a great job, but how do you feel now that you're leading the team?

Inde: Although only a third-year student this year, Ito Tatsuki (School of Sport Sciences) wears Waseda's ace number "11".  Ito has a track record of pitching in league games since he entered the school, but even when he is catching the ball as a catcher, you can feel Tatsuki's determination this year. In particular, in the 11-inning, 147-pitch shutout win against Meiji University, Tatsuki's pitching showed his determination. The underclassmen have worked so hard that we can't lose as fourth-years! I feel that way.

Yoshino: Tatsuki 's good pitching tempo also leads to the rhythm of the offense. He makes the game well, so all that's left is for the fielders to do their best.

--Among the fielders, first batter Yudai Oze (3rd year School of Sport Sciences) and second batter Hide Yamagata (4th year, School of Commerce) are in good form and competing for the batting title. What is the condition of the fielders?

Inde: Ose and Yamagata are proactively getting on base, which leads to scoring. I'm confident that there will be more opportunities for me and Yoshino, who are batting third and fourth, to do the work.

Yoshino: I think that a team that can have 3 or 4 players selected as Best Nine is the strongest. In that sense, I'm happy with Ose and Yamagata's performance, but I don't want to lose to Ose and Yamagata in terms of batting performance, so I'll do my best to overtake them.

Ose (left) and Yamagata (right) each hit a hit and created a chance during the 2024 Spring League match against the University of Tokyo (Photo courtesy of Waseda University Baseball Club)

--The final week of the league is the Waseda-Keio match. What are your thoughts on that?

Inde: The Waseda-Keio game is a special one after all. The atmosphere, where the stadium splits in half with one out or one hit, is something you can only experience at the Waseda-Keio game. I really feel that being able to play in such an environment is not something to be taken for granted.

Yoshino: As Inde said, the attention paid to each play and the atmosphere of the stadium are things I have never experienced in my baseball career. That is why the disappointment when we lose is so great. This year, I am filled with the desire to beat Keio and win the championship.

Inde: Our generation has yet to win a championship. I want to leave the juniors with the experience of winning a championship before I graduate, so as a senior and captain, I want to do whatever it takes to pull the team up.

--Please give a message to the Waseda students who will be coming to the stadium to support you.

Inde: I think the Waseda-Keio game is the best event to feel like "I'm a Waseda student." I want people to experience the clash of Waseda and Keio pride at Jingu Stadium.

Yoshino: There are only nine of us playing in the game, but the 25 members on the bench and the baseball team members in the stands are all fighting together. If all the students could join us in the form of "support," there's nothing more encouraging and encouraging than that. Please come to Jingu Stadium!

I want to support the victory of the Waseda-Keio game through stadium announcements as well

Minami Fujita, 4th year School of Human Sciences Manager, Kaichi High School graduate

--When you were a freshman, you made headlines by becoming the first female manager in the 120-year history of Waseda University's baseball club, and now you're in your final year.

I've been able to get this far thanks to the support of not only the current members of the baseball club, but also many of my seniors, and recently they've been asking me in surprise, "Are you already a fourth-year student?" I'm grateful for their concern, and I also feel like time has flown by.

--As a manager, what kind of work do you do to support the baseball club?

The manager's job is mainly divided into accounting and public relations, and I'm in charge of public relations. I also handle interviews and manage various social media accounts. When I first joined the team, the baseball club had about 5,000 followers on Instagram, but by increasing the number of videos and other content, we've recently reached 10,000. I've been getting more and more people to say, "I saw that post," and I feel like there are more opportunities for people to learn about the baseball club.

I also serve as the stadium announcer for Tokyo Big Six University Baseball games. The manager of the team batting first is in charge, so I will be in charge of the second game of the spring Waseda-Keio game. I hope to be able to support the players through my announcements, and I would like to call out the players' names with the feeling of "do your best."

In last fall's Waseda-Keio game, I was in charge of the stadium announcements for the game where if Waseda won, they would have won the championship. If they had won, I would have been in charge of the announcements at the closing ceremony as well, but in the end they lost to Keio, and we ended up letting them win the championship. I would be very happy if I could be the stadium announcer for both the championship game and the closing ceremony at this year's Waseda-Keio game.

--The spring Waseda-Keio game is finally upon you in your final year.

As someone who chose Waseda, my goal is to win the Waseda-Keio game and become the best university in Japan. When I was 6 or 7 years old, my grandfather, who graduated from Waseda, took me to watch the Waseda-Keio game at Jingu Stadium for the first time, and that's when my admiration for the game began. Even when I was in high school, I was hesitant about whether it would be possible to play in the game as a member of the Waseda baseball team, but I kept working hard, thinking that there was meaning in aiming for it. That's why I'm so moved that I've finally come this far.

When I was a freshman, I had to come to the ground two hours before practice started to prepare for practice, so I remember getting up at 4am every day was very hard. It is a tradition in the Waseda baseball team that everyone, whether they were general admissions, sports recommendation admissions, or future managers, do the same work at first. Naturally, we spend a lot of time together with our classmates, so I think that is what has led to our current unity.

I've seen not only their hard work, but also their serious attitude during practice, the difficulties they face during independent training, and their funny, everyday faces, so I hope that all of their efforts will be rewarded and they will win.

Interview and text: Naoto Oguma (2002 graduate School of Letters, Arts and Sciences II)
X: @oguman1977
Photo: Seiji Ishigaki

[Waseda University Baseball Club]
Website: http://www.wasedabbc.org/
・X: @wasedabbc1901
・Instagram: @waseda_baseball

[Tokyo Big Six Baseball League]
・Website: http://www.big6.gr.jp/index.php
・Waseda University Baseball Club Blog: http://tokyo6s.com/blog/waseda/

[Official student club "Waseda Sports Newspaper Club"]
Founded in 1959. A pioneering student sports newspaper that reports on the activities of all 44 Waseda University athletic clubs. All reporting, photography, writing, and editing are done by students. The newspaper is published free of charge 12 times a year (plus special editions), and game articles are updated daily on the website.
X: @waseda_sports
Instagram: @wasedasports

 

[Next Focus Preview] "Career Special" to be released on Monday, June 3rd