Japanese-style baseball
Japanese-style baseball or rubber-ball baseball is a game that was created in Japan and is derived from baseball. It uses a hard rubber ball instead of a regular baseball made of leather. It has been rendered in English in a variety of ways, including nankyu baseball, nanshiki baseball and rubber baseball.
In a narrow sense, Japanese-style baseball is a game that uses a hollow rubber ball, and in a broad sense, it includes a semi-hard baseball where a hard ball's outer coating is replaced with rubber. In contrast, the ball used in softball is most often leather but is larger than a regular baseball.
Other than the use of a different ball, the rules of Japanese-style baseball and regular baseball are the same. However, the difference in the ball has a distinctive effect on the playing style and equipment, and also changes the way the players use their body.
It is played by both children and adults, men and women.
History
During the Meiji era, baseball introduced from the United States became established in Japan in national competitions for secondary schools, high schools, and colleges, and children enjoyed playing baseball using hard tennis balls. However, tennis balls had the drawback of being difficult to use due to problems with their durability and speed, and the number of people playing the sport gradually declined.In 1919, Toshin Rubber, a company based in Kobe, sold the world's first rubber baseball.
In July 1919, at Kyoto Municipal Seitoku Elementary School in Shimogyo-ku in the city of Kyoto, a Japanese-style baseball tournament was held for the first time in the world. There is a bronze statue in Takaragaike Park Youth Sports Park in Kyoto, marking it as the birthplace of nanshiki baseball.
This triggered an increase in the population of young people playing baseball again, and the following year, in 1920, the Japan Association of Youth Baseball was established in Kobe, and a full-fledged national tournament of youth baseball was held.
The ball for general use in Japanese-style baseball was first sold in 1922. At that time, a man named Sakae Suzuka, the inventor of the ball used in Japanese-style baseball, named it the "softball", and the baseball played with this ball "softball baseball".
Later in 1925, a man called Haruno Yokoi formed a youth baseball association in Tokyo.
Ball types
The ball has undergone a number of revisions, but the current dimensions were set out in December 2016 by the Japan Rubber Baseball Association and the Baseball Ball Manufacturers Association.Two types are specified: type M and type J. Type M has a diameter of. Meanwhile, type J has a diameter of.
In comparison, a regulation leather baseball is in diameter. An 11-inch ball used in softball has a diameter of about.
Bat types
bats are used in regular baseball; however, the bats used in Japanese-style baseball are metal or carbon ones that can handle rubber balls.Major competitions in Japan
A large number of competitions are played in Japan, including:General public
- All Japan Baseball Tournament
- Emperor's Cup All-Japan Baseball Tournament
- Takamatsu Miyagi Cup All-Japan Baseball Tournament
- All-Japan Women's Nanshiki Championship
- National Sports Festival
- All Japan University Baseball Championship
- All Japan University Women's Nanshiki Baseball Championship
- All Japan Vocational School Nanshiki Championship
- All Japan High School Baseball Championship
Global popularity
Japanese-style baseball is often played by university teams, and there is a World University Japanese-style Baseball Tournament that sometimes is held in Japan and sometimes in places such as the United States, Guam and Taiwan. It was held in Guam in 2019 and most recently, in Taiwan in 2024.
In addition, the International Boys Nankyu Baseball World Championship, an international tourney for players under the age of 12, takes place annually. Organized by the International Boys Nankyu Baseball Association Japan, it is held in Tokyo, Japan, usually in July. Recent tournaments have been held in Edogawa Baseball Stadium. In 2023, a total of 12 teams participated; four from Japan, two from the Philippines, and one each from Australia, Brazil, China, Paraguay, Singapore, and Taiwan.
| Champion | Wins |
| Chinese Taipei | 13 |
| Japan | 10 |
| China | 8 |
| Mexico | 6 |
| Brazil | 1 |
| Philippines | 1 |
Shown in alphabetical order in the event of a tie.