To the Stage of Dreams
Shinnosuke Ogasawara will be transferring from the Chunichi Dragons to the MLB's Washington Nationals using the posting system. It came right down to the wire on the negotiation deadline. It was truly a "buzzer-beater." I believed it would happen, so whenever fans around me asked, I always answered, "It's going to happen!" The Major League stage was Ogasawara's dream. He kept his word and brilliantly opened the door to his dream. It is sad that my favorite player is leaving the Dragons, but congratulations, Shin-chan!
He was the winning pitcher of the 2015 summer Koshien tournament. And he was the first-round draft pick that same year. He earned his first professional win on September 4, 2016, against the Giants (at Tokyo Dome). I have fond memories of serving as the representative interviewer that day. In the off-season, he would take the press with him to Komeda's Coffee (that Komeda's also closed at the end of February... how sad). People naturally gathered around Ogasawara's bright smile.
On the other hand, this is a story he told me when we had a meal in the off-season of 2018. That year, he served as the Opening Day starter, but his left shoulder was not in good condition. One day, it was during a game against DeNA at Yokohama Stadium. His left shoulder was hurting so much. But he was the Opening Day starter, and he had been given six days of rest for his start. The option of not pitching "did not exist for me." He barely played catch even before the game and headed to the mound. And he pitched well. When I brought this up to Ogasawara a few years later, he laughed and said, "If I thought about my body, I might have skipped it now," but he is a man who possesses both a smile and a passionate heart.
The ability to conduct himself appropriately for the situation is one of the reasons I am drawn to him. During spring training when Ogasawara was still 18, there was an event at an elementary school in Yomitan Village where he enjoyed a school lunch with the students. I have covered this event many times, but I have never seen a rookie who could smile, actively talk to children, and interact with them as much as Ogasawara. Many players feel shy or struggle with how to interact, but Ogasawara was enjoying it right along with them. Of course, having a younger sister ten years his junior is a big factor, but even so, his demeanor was enough to make me feel his "star quality."
The stories are endless. Yuya Gunji, who played against Ogasawara in the summer Koshien final during their high school days, later ended up wearing the same uniform with the Dragons. He struggled to find playing time with Chunichi, and his transfer to the Nippon-Ham Fighters was decided in June 2023. It happened during practice that day. Ogasawara and I ended up talking for about an hour on the foul ground on the first-base side. Since I like Gunji, I was in a very complicated state of mind, so I talked to Ogasawara, who is the same age as him. The reason we started talking was my question: "Shin-chan, was Gunji-kun tough as a catcher? Was his arm really weak?" Since his Keio University days, he had been evaluated as having a "weak arm," and fans saw him that way, and even in video games today, he is often rated "Arm: D." I don't know the truth. So, I asked Ogasawara, who had formed a battery with him. The conversation, which started with "Osawa-san, that's a fantastic question," lasted about an hour. I can't write down every detail, but Ogasawara said, "His arm might be average, sure. But by practicing his ball transfer and catching, the possibility of stopping stolen bases should increase indefinitely. But he didn't have the chance to pursue that to the end, and he played infield and outfield to make the most of his hitting. Gunji can catch. And if you use him, he will definitely hit." He gave me a professional's perspective. Also, what I remember well is his comment: "Once you are viewed with a preconceived notion, it is incredibly difficult to overturn it." In that sense, Gunji truly seized the opportunity of his transfer.
And in 2024, during the interleague games, he ended up proving that opinion that "Gunji will hit" with his own pitching (laughs).
The Major Leagues he has always admired. He steadily took one step at a time with his own feet, and finally opened the door to that dream with his own hands. 1 percent sadness, 99 percent support. Good luck, BIG-COWBOY.
Oh, I wanted to see a home run~!