Saturday, June 13, 2009
There is No "I" in Team (but there is an "I" in Nippon)
That was the strangest ending to a baseball game I've ever seen in my life, and that applies to the post-game coverage as much as the incredible on-field blooper!
I'm with my in-laws again, sitting next to Mako on their couch and wondering when our son will grace us all with his presence. Much to my delight, NHK decided to show us the first Yankees-Mets game of the year this morning. Their coverage of the Yankees has decreased substantially in recent years, partly because the Yankees don't have the same luster they once did but mostly because there are so many more Japanese players in the major leagues at this point. NHK doesn't need to count on the Yankees or the Mariners to deliver Japanese players to their viewers anymore, and that's more or less the only standard they use when selecting which games to air. The significance of the game is moot so long as there's one or two Japanese players involved. I don't think NHK has shown a single Dodgers game this year, just occasional highlights when their lone Japanese player takes the mound.
While the Mets only have one Japanese guy in the bullpen, the Yankees still have Hideki Matsui and he's still a big deal over here. It just so happens that yesterday/today/June 12th is his birthday and I honestly believe that was a factor in airing the game this morning. He hit a grand slam on his birthday last year, actually, so maybe they were hoping for another heroic home run? As it turned out he did hit another homer, this time a 3-run shot that gave the Yankees a 7-6 lead late in the game. It didn't keep though; the Mets later tied the score at 7 and took their own lead in the eighth off of Mariano Rivera.
It was 8-7 Mets in the bottom of the ninth when things got nuts. Jeter got a one-out hit and stole second as Damon struck out. With first base open, Teixeira received a semi-intentional walk to bring up A-Rod with two on and two out. He only managed a pop-up that barely left the infield, but despite having all the time in the world to get under it, Mets second baseman Luis Castillo dropped the ball. Jeter had been running the whole way and scored easily, but the only reason Teixeira scored was because Castillo picked up the ball and threw to second rather than home. The relay was late, the game was over. In a matter of seconds A-Rod went from goat to hero as players congratulated him for merely putting the ball into play.
In all the years I've watched baseball, I've seen plenty of easy pop-ups dropped and I've seen all kinds of walk-off wins resulting from hits, bunts, steals, errors, walks, even balks. But I've never seen a team win a game by scoring two runs in the bottom of the ninth on a single error. We've all heard of the infamous Bill Buckner gaffe that ended Game Six of the 1986 World Series, but even that play came when the Mets had already tied the game (a fact few people remember).
So after seeing the wildest finish to a ballgame I can recall, how did NHK handle the wrap-up? They had a fifteen second interview with Matsui that was nothing more than a happy birthday/congratulations fluffer, followed by a thirty second recap of his home run (featuring replays from multiple angles). They showed the final line score and panned around the emptying stadium for less than a minute, had a newsbreak and then rushed away to Colorado to show us a Mariners/Rockies game. The only replay of the stunning final play was second hand: while their camera lingered on the outfield I watched the stadium scoreboard show the monumental error one more time.
I know having Japanese players in the major leagues in a big deal, and I love birthdays as much as the next guy, but how on Earth can they justify summarizing the game with glowing replays of a three-run home run that wasn't even the deciding score? It's as if the outcome of these games is secondary to the individual performance of a familiar participant. Runs counter to the values you expect Japan to hold dear, doesn't it?
I'm with my in-laws again, sitting next to Mako on their couch and wondering when our son will grace us all with his presence. Much to my delight, NHK decided to show us the first Yankees-Mets game of the year this morning. Their coverage of the Yankees has decreased substantially in recent years, partly because the Yankees don't have the same luster they once did but mostly because there are so many more Japanese players in the major leagues at this point. NHK doesn't need to count on the Yankees or the Mariners to deliver Japanese players to their viewers anymore, and that's more or less the only standard they use when selecting which games to air. The significance of the game is moot so long as there's one or two Japanese players involved. I don't think NHK has shown a single Dodgers game this year, just occasional highlights when their lone Japanese player takes the mound.
While the Mets only have one Japanese guy in the bullpen, the Yankees still have Hideki Matsui and he's still a big deal over here. It just so happens that yesterday/today/June 12th is his birthday and I honestly believe that was a factor in airing the game this morning. He hit a grand slam on his birthday last year, actually, so maybe they were hoping for another heroic home run? As it turned out he did hit another homer, this time a 3-run shot that gave the Yankees a 7-6 lead late in the game. It didn't keep though; the Mets later tied the score at 7 and took their own lead in the eighth off of Mariano Rivera.
It was 8-7 Mets in the bottom of the ninth when things got nuts. Jeter got a one-out hit and stole second as Damon struck out. With first base open, Teixeira received a semi-intentional walk to bring up A-Rod with two on and two out. He only managed a pop-up that barely left the infield, but despite having all the time in the world to get under it, Mets second baseman Luis Castillo dropped the ball. Jeter had been running the whole way and scored easily, but the only reason Teixeira scored was because Castillo picked up the ball and threw to second rather than home. The relay was late, the game was over. In a matter of seconds A-Rod went from goat to hero as players congratulated him for merely putting the ball into play.
In all the years I've watched baseball, I've seen plenty of easy pop-ups dropped and I've seen all kinds of walk-off wins resulting from hits, bunts, steals, errors, walks, even balks. But I've never seen a team win a game by scoring two runs in the bottom of the ninth on a single error. We've all heard of the infamous Bill Buckner gaffe that ended Game Six of the 1986 World Series, but even that play came when the Mets had already tied the game (a fact few people remember).
So after seeing the wildest finish to a ballgame I can recall, how did NHK handle the wrap-up? They had a fifteen second interview with Matsui that was nothing more than a happy birthday/congratulations fluffer, followed by a thirty second recap of his home run (featuring replays from multiple angles). They showed the final line score and panned around the emptying stadium for less than a minute, had a newsbreak and then rushed away to Colorado to show us a Mariners/Rockies game. The only replay of the stunning final play was second hand: while their camera lingered on the outfield I watched the stadium scoreboard show the monumental error one more time.
I know having Japanese players in the major leagues in a big deal, and I love birthdays as much as the next guy, but how on Earth can they justify summarizing the game with glowing replays of a three-run home run that wasn't even the deciding score? It's as if the outcome of these games is secondary to the individual performance of a familiar participant. Runs counter to the values you expect Japan to hold dear, doesn't it?
Labels: baseball, Japan, television, Yankees
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