The seats inside the Tokyo Dome were empty, but the Giants鈥� dugout was full of smiles when Gerardo Parra walked to the plate.
Like he did with the Washington Nationals, Parra is still using 鈥淏aby Shark鈥� as his walk-up song, and it is still working.
Parra has collected five hits in his first three games with the Giants.
The old clich茅 is “there is no crying in baseball,” and maybe no coincidences either.
Parra鈥檚 first hit with the Giants was in their first game and exactly a year to the date when Parra decided to switch to 鈥淏aby Shark鈥� as his walk-up song with the Nationals.
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Parra had been stuck in an 0-for-22 slump when on June 19, 2019, he changed his tune to 鈥淏aby Shark鈥� because it was a favorite of his two-year-old daughter, Aaliyah.
With the help of a home run and double from Parra, the Nationals beat the Phillies that day, and the catchy children鈥檚 song would become a rallying cry as the team went on to win the World Series.
Fans in Tokyo are hoping there is something to the 鈥淏aby Shark鈥� mystique and more than just the shark gloves and finger puppets the Giants are now selling.
The 鈥淏aby Shark鈥� crossover to Japan! 鈥檚 first at bat with the Yomiuri Giants
鈥� Marly Rivera (@MarlyRiveraESPN)
The Giants are the oldest team in Japan dating back to 1934 and have won 37 Central League titles and 22 Japan Series championships 鈥� the equivalent of Major League Baseball鈥檚 World Series.
鈥淭hey are essentially the Yankees of Japan, the face, the marquee team,鈥� said John E. Gibson, the sports editor of The Japan 草莓传媒 and co-host of the .聽 鈥淭hey are the team with the most money, that spends the most money, gets the best players and is expected to win every year.鈥�
Whether the Giants and the other 11 teams in the NPB would compete for a title was previously in doubt.
Concern over the coronavirus has dealt professional sports competitions around the world unprecedented challenges, and in Japan, the country had to employ a different approach in dealing with the pandemic.
鈥淚t’s unconstitutional to actually have a lockdown in Japan, but what they did was declare a state of emergency,鈥� said Gibson. 鈥淚n a state of emergency, the Japanese government requested that the citizens not go outside and leave home, and work from home as much as possible.鈥�
Since the shutdown in March, the NPB had set several tentative startup dates, and that left Gibson and other observers to wonder if games would really begin last Friday.
Even last Wednesday, the Giants said two players tested positive for COVID-19.
The players, shortstop Hayato Sakamoto and catcher Takumi Ohshiro, showed no symptoms of the disease and have tested negative twice since the announcement.
The NPB has since announced that every player, manager and coach on all 12 teams have tested negative for the virus.
The goal now is for each team to play 120 games. The NPB is made up of the Central and Pacific Leagues, and there will be no interleague play or All-Star game.
The Japan Series will be played in November.
There will be regular coronavirus testing for the players and coaches, and the plan to deal with potential positive tests is as fluid as the pandemic itself.
鈥淚f somebody tests positive, I would naturally assume they would be removed from the team,鈥� said Gibson. 鈥淎nd I imagine if it gets to a situation where there are numerous players that test positive and a team can’t put out a lineup that really has a chance to win, then we’ll see some changes.鈥�
For now, baseball is back in Japan, and that is big deal.
Baseball is called 鈥淎merica鈥檚 Pastime,鈥� but passion for the game is on another level in Japan.
When there are fans in the stadiums, there is cheering and music from first pitch to last out, and for many fans, there is no such thing as meaningless game.
鈥淚’ve seen fans here with their heads down and in tears, maybe even sitting on the ground after a regular season loss,鈥� said Gibson.
鈥淲e are not talking after a playoff loss or a game that dooms playoff hopes. Maybe it鈥檚 just a regular season game, but they just watched their team blow a lead and I鈥檝e seen just total emotional devastation from fans. So if you can, imagine that the type of passion a lot of people in this country bring to the game of baseball.鈥�
