Professional Baseball Exists Because of the Fans [Shigeo Nagashima #FamousQuoteNote44]

The famous quote I would like to introduce this time is here!

Who said it

What kind of person is he?

Shigeo Nagashima is a national hero and legend in the Japanese professional baseball world, known as "Mr. Professional Baseball" and "Mr. Giants." Throughout his life, as a player, manager, and baseball figure, he has provided many achievements and moving moments to Japanese fans.

Shigeo Nagashima was not just a baseball player or manager; with his charisma and bright personality, he was truly a "national star" who continued to give dreams and hope to post-war Japan.

Personality and nicknames:

• He is affectionately known by many nicknames, such as "Mr. Professional Baseball," "Mr. Giants," "Mr.," "Cho-san," and "The Burning Man."

• With a bright and passionate personality, his play and words always captivated many people.

• Together with Sadaharu Oh, he led the Yomiuri Giants during the V9 era as the "ON Cannon."

Main career and achievements (as a player):

• Born in Chiba Prefecture on February 20, 1936.

• He demonstrated his talent from his time at Rikkyo University and was called the "Star of Jingu."

• Joined the Yomiuri Giants in 1958. From his rookie year, he won the home run king and RBI king titles, and received the Rookie of the Year award.

• He spent his entire 17-year playing career with the Giants and won numerous titles.

  • Batting Champion: 6 times

  • Home Run King: 2 times

  • RBI King: 5 times

  • Most Hits: 10 times (Professional baseball record)

  • Most Valuable Player (MVP): 5 times

  • Best Nine: 17 times (The only player in history to win it every season from joining to retirement)

  • Japan Series MVP: 4 times (All-time record)

• Career stats: 2,186 games, 2,471 hits, 444 home runs, 1,522 RBIs, .305 batting average.

• Retired in 1974. His famous quote, "My beloved Giants will live forever," is deeply etched into the history of Japanese baseball.

Major Career and Achievements (As Manager):

• Served as manager of the Yomiuri Giants twice, from 1975 to 1980 and from 1993 to 2001, leading the team to five league championships and two Japan Series titles.

• He was highly praised for his leadership, such as coining the term "Make Drama" to inspire the team and leading the Giants to a V-shaped recovery during a slump.

Other:

• Received the People's Honor Award in 2013.

• Became the first person in the professional baseball world to receive the Order of Culture in 2021.

• Passed away on June 3, 2025, due to pneumonia. He was 89 years old.

What is Professional Baseball?

"Professional baseball exists because of the fans". While this phrase certainly refers to professional baseball and its fans, I feel it carries a nuance that captures something deeper—the very essence of society as a whole.

For example, why are professional baseball players professional baseball players?

• Because they are good enough at baseball to be scouted by a professional team?

• Because they possess the skills and experience to beat other teams?

Certainly, these factors are essential to becoming a professional baseball player. But there is something more fundamental that we must not forget. That is

“Because there are people in the world who are not professional baseball players”

This is a fact. It is impossible, but let's assume that everyone in the world is a professional baseball player. If that were to happen, could you really call them "professional baseball players"?

Even if you use the word "baseball," you can categorize it as much as you want: professional baseball's first and second teams, corporate baseball, amateur, university baseball, high school baseball, sandlot baseball, and so on.

Among the many types of "baseball," only those "players playing in professional baseball" are called "professional baseball players." You wouldn't call players playing in university, high school, youth baseball, or sandlot baseball professional baseball players, would you?

Furthermore, beyond those "baseball players," there are many people in the world who "do not play baseball at all." Even though the number of people who play baseball is large, when you look at humanity as a whole, those who play baseball are definitely in the minority.

When viewed from the perspective of humanity as a whole, it is clear that those called 'professional baseball players' are a very small minority.

And I believe the definition of a professional is, after all, 'whether or not you are being paid'.

The reason professional baseball players can make a living by playing baseball is that they get paid to play, but if you ask where that money comes from, it is obvious that it comes from the 'fans'. (Although in reality, organizations like advertising companies and baseball clubs are sandwiched between the fans and the players...)

And 'professional baseball' can also be interpreted as a 'collection of professional baseball players'. After looking at the whole picture from this perspective, if we return to the phrase 'Professional baseball exists because of the fans' , doesn't it sound like it has a very different meaning?

A leader exists because of the members

This is not limited to professional baseball. The same can be said for business in general.

The same applies to a 'leader' in an organization. Whether it is a team leader, a chief, a section chief, or a department manager, the very fact that the position exists is because the company exists, and it is a business that is sustained because there are customers who pay for the company's services.

And, although it is an impossible situation, if everyone were to become a 'leader', then paradoxically, there would be no 'leader' in that organization. It is clear that a leader is a leader because there are people who are not leaders (team members, subordinates, and customers who pay for services).

A phrase filled with Shigeo Nagashima's philosophy

Shigeo Nagashima was a famous baseball player who gained such popularity that he was called 'Mr. Professional Baseball', 'Mr. Giants', and a 'national star'.

Looking at this from the outside, many people might think, 'It must be nice to have that kind of talent,' but I imagine that he must have carried a considerable amount of pressure for many years.

It is difficult to maintain as broad a perspective as possible in a situation where it would not be strange to become arrogant from being praised. This is especially true in the harsh environment of a professional baseball player, where every move in a baseball game is evaluated. In the tough world of baseball, where winning and losing is everything, it is of course important to maintain your own condition and improve your skills, so I think it is unavoidable that your consciousness will turn toward 'yourself', no matter how careful you are.

Even so, he always viewed his situation from a bird's-eye view, grasped what was required of him at that moment, and provided the best performance he could... Isn't the phrase 'Professional baseball exists because of the fans' a condensation of that professional philosophy or essence?

Decomposing 'baseball' as a 'phenomenon'

I will confess, I usually do not watch professional baseball at all. To put it bluntly, among the various forms of entertainment in the world, 'watching baseball' belongs to the category that I have the least interest in.

When I moved from elementary school to junior high school, I joined the baseball team simply because my close friend decided to join, but I couldn't find any fun in it at all, so I transferred to another club after half a year.

I am in my late 30s, and in terms of the values of that time, quitting a club you had joined was quite a big deal, and while I was enrolled in junior high school, I never heard of anyone other than myself quitting the baseball team and moving to another club.

Surely there must have been other members on the baseball team who thought, 'I want to quit' or 'This is tough,' but even so, everyone other than me finished the three years.

In the first place, it was an era where the idea of quitting a club activity didn't really exist, and I think everyone liked baseball to some extent, even if there were individual differences. However, I quit. What I want to say is that I have had no interest in baseball then or now to that extent.

I have strayed quite a bit from the topic. Even for someone like me, Shigeo Nagashima's phrase 'Professional baseball exists because of the fans' was something that really struck me. I think it is because it captures an essential part of the world, not just professional baseball.

I have absolutely no interest in watching or playing baseball, but this is actually the third article about baseball on this blog.

There were two articles about pitcher Kuroda, and this is the third, about Shigeo Nagashima. After all, words left behind by someone who has mastered their craft often have a quality that sharply captures the essence of not just that field, but the world itself, which frequently takes me by surprise.

That's when I realized it's interesting to view baseball not as a sport, but as a 'phenomenon.' This is limited to 'Yakyu' (Japanese baseball) as played in Japan, not 'Baseball' in the general sense. I immediately started looking for books, videos, or other information that could teach me about the history and background of baseball, and...

I found it. It was spot on!

It has the intense subtitle 'Baseball clubs are crap,' but it seems that was forced upon the author to help sell the book. In reality, the author is a former baseball player who was deeply involved in a baseball club during his student days. It is by no means a book that criticizes baseball from the outside with a high-handed attitude.

By the way, I learned about this book through this video. For those who don't have time to read the book, I recommend watching this video as it covers the overview quite well.

In this book,

• Why are baseball clubs the only ones given special treatment in schools?
  (e.g., the brass band club having to go support the Koshien tournament even if it means withdrawing from their own competition)

• Why is it taken for granted that baseball players have shaved heads?

• Why are baseball clubs so strict about seniority and so loud?

It explains with clear reasons that these stereotypes—like 'baseball clubs are just like this'—are actually values created by adults after the war.

It unravels how the 'traditions' unique to baseball, which we living in the modern age accept as a matter of course, have been 'remodeled' into their current form through various transitions since baseball first arrived in Japan.

To give a little spoiler, it develops a theory that in post-WWII Japan, 'baseball' took on the role of a substitute for 'war,' and 'baseball players' inherited the role of 'symbol of Japan's strength' that was once held by the image of 'Japanese soldiers.' It was a very interesting read.

Summary

The quote I introduced this time was!

I believe Nagashima-san was someone who, with a full understanding of this history, perfectly performed the 'professional baseball player image' required at each stage: during his playing days, as a manager, and after his retirement.

📢Announcement

Thank you for reading to the end. 'Likes' and 'Follows' are very welcome! It encourages my activities on Note!

Click here for my self-introduction and the main topic! ▼

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I also dream of publishing a book someday! ▼