On Wednesday, I woke up at 8:20, because the group was leaving at 9. To start off the day we had a meeting with MLB Japan. This office controlled everything related to MLB actions in Japan, and plenty of us were excited for their presentation and the chance to ask questions afterward. We got there 30 minutes before our meeting at 10:30, because of how important it is to be punctual in Japanese culture. After checking out a local convenience store, we headed up to the meeting where we were greeted and led to the meeting room. During this meeting they talked about expanding the MLB in an already mature baseball market, dealing with different time zones, and their relationship with NPB.
After the meeting we headed to a mall to get lunch. We ate at a hibachi restaurant, which was different from typical hibachi in the states as they did not cook in front of f you, however the steak was exceptional. We were given some time to look around the mall, before going back to the same building to meet with PGA Japan, for a meeting that was added to the schedule about an hour prior. The mall contained numerous amounts of luxury stores, so I only looked around the golf shops for a little while before heading to the meeting. Due to short notice, PGA Japan did not have anything planned, but they were able to give valuable insight into my project group about having a tournament in Asia and operating in that market.
The last thing on the schedule for Wednesday was the NPB game between the Yomiuri Giants and the Softbank Hawks. In the hour and a half, before we entered the gates, I was able to buy plenty of Giants merchandise, including a Masahiro Tanaka jersey. A group of us were also able to a get some Shake Shack for dinner before we walked in the stadium and found our seats. For the first inning, I watched from the third base line at our regular seats, however I wanted to explore the stadium a little bit more and ended up athe right foul pole for an inning, and the left foul pole for the rest of the time I was at the game. The environment felt like a mix of the high energy crowds of the KBO, while also keeping a heavy focus on the baseball that was being played. For the league typically being played with a dead ball, we got to see plenty of action, as there wasconsistently base runners in every inning, and the Giants even put up five in the fourth. Eventually, a group of us went back around the end of the seventh inning and headed back to the hotel.
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