A FAIRY TALE — free as the sky

“Baseball is writing its script to a perfect fairy tale ending” is a fitting phrase to describe the latest feat of Shohei Otani. The baseball god was smiling if there was ever one. Otani dinged 40 homers while nabbing 40 stolen bases in a Major League season to join five other, all hall-of-fame and hall-of-fame-bound players. He did it with a grand style by hitting a walk-off grand slam in the bottom of the ninth with two outs and scores tied. His flair is his signature smile, waving his hands like a kid while running around the bases. Joining the 40/40 club is an amazing accomplishment; it requires a rare combination of power and speed. It is a fairy tale because, before superstardom, Otani was once a wide-eyed kid with big aspirations.

As incredible as Otani’s record-setting accomplishment was, Otani’s feat was overshadowed by a high school baseball team across the Pacific Ocean in Japan, only hours earlier. Kyoto International School was founded in 1947 as Kyoto Chosen Junior High School to educate Koreans living in Japan. The school’s baseball team was installed in 1999 as it tried to navigate through its low student enrollment. Additionally, the school enlarged its enrollment net by accepting non-Koreans by the early 2000s, thus changing the name to Kyoto International School. Currently, out of 138 high school student body, about 60 are in the baseball program. However, in its founding years, the program was a laugher after accepting baseball players who were rejected or unwanted by other baseball teams in Kyoto (which was not a powerhouse city to begin with). Against all odds, several years ago (2021), they not only made it to the tournament but they reached all the way to the semi-final game.

I have read that the school is beyond any reasonable bus or train ride. Even after the nearest bus station, students must walk about 30 minutes uphill to the school. The baseball field is a joke as the entire field is the size of an infield. Naturally, they can only practice infield defense interspersed with lots of running. Their faces are as dark as any dark-skinned athletes I see on TV. At one point, they were playing with a ragged baseball all busted at its seams only to be taped several times over. A professional baseball team in Korea heard about the news and donated 1,000 baseballs to the program. As poor and inadequate as the conditions are, the program persisted. Their recruiting strategy mainly was to recruit players with character, endurance, and dedication over talent.

Out of 60 players, only 3 have Korean roots. Even with the name change, the school decidedly and unapologetically boasts its Korean heritage by requiring all students to take Korean history, culture, etc. The school’s anthem is in Korean. Embedded in the anthem is the phrase, crossing “Donghae” as opposed to The Sea of Japan.

The setting of the tournament is Koshien stadium, celebrating its 100th anniversary, considered to be hallowed grounds by the Japanese and also home to “Summer Koshien” welcoming 49 teams having their respective regions/areas out of approximately 3,700 teams all over Japan. As the Koshien is one of Japan's most-watched sporting events, simply making it to the annual Koshien tournament would bring the highest honor to any high school. On August 23, the perennial underdog, Kyoto International School, won the whole thing by knocking out powerhouses one after another. The championship game brimmed with its nail-biting moments as it went into the extra inning. Ultimately the Kyoto International team survived the score of 2 to 1 after prolific pitching and outstanding defense from both teams. After winning each tournament game, one of the grand traditions is to play the school’s anthem, broadcasting the event to the entire Japan.

Aside from any history-charged cultural and political takes, I found myself glued to my iPhone, following the championship game score and cheering for the underdog. The underdog in me was cheering for the underdog in them. The accomplishment was nothing short of a provincial sandlot team winning against a much more talented and sophisticated baseball team from the big city. On a side but related note, it turned out that Otani also played in the Koshien tournament while flashing his 100-mph fastball as a prodigious high school kid.

The baseball god was cheering for the drama and the lives represented on both teams, capturing the hearts and imaginations of many in Japan and beyond.

God is cheering for the underdog, the rejects but full of unrealized potential in all of us.

God also is cheering for the character, endurance, and dedication in all of us.