Friendship Tour
CRANBERRY TWP — A group of 35 Japanese baseball players wrapped up their PONY International series of games with a doubleheader Sunday in Graham Park.
PONY, which stands for Protect Our Nation's Youth, has eight age brackets. The players in the Friendship Series are in the Pony division and ages 14 and 15.
This year's event was the 42nd, and the Japanese competitors started their tour in Los Angeles, before playing games in Ohio and Pennsylvania. They played two games against Bradmar-Pine, four in Mars and made their final stop at Graham Park.
Cranberry Township's Seth Baic had two RBIs on a stand-up double for the go-ahead runs in a 4-2 win in the first game
“I felt like it clinched the win for us,” he said.
In the second game, Japan won 7-2 against the 2016 U.S. PONY team, made up of mostly Mars players.
The Japanese team finished with a record of 16-2, losing only once to a Bradmar-Pine and once to Cranberry Township.
The results and winning weren't really important anyway, at least not this for this game, according to Seth.
He said it was about the experience of playing someone from a different country.
“This was a really cool experience,” he said. “I enjoyed it, and I hope the other team enjoyed it too.”
He said the two teams didn't share many words until after the game, but once they shook hands, they got along well.
“At the end of the game, we were getting along with the other team and joking around with one another,” he said. “I don't think it was hard getting along with the other team.”
Cranberry Township's coach Matt Baic, who is Seth's father, said the two teams competed strongly. He was pleased with his team's defense and hitting, although they left some runners in scoring position.
Baic said he appreciated the skills of the other team too, but also their style.
“Their skills were good, but what I'll always remember is the way these guys warm up,” he said.Before touching a baseball, all 35 Japanese players jogged the length of the outfield a few times while shouting a cadence and with their legs pumping in unison, almost like a fast-paced marching.“It's a different approach than we take,” Matt Baic said.The Japanese players also showed a great deal of sportsmanship, according to Matt Baic.“They would say hello and bow,” he said. “I didn't detect any ego or anything.”During the roster announcements, the American players stepped to the third base line. Some looked to their parents in the stands or to their teammates.But on the Japanese team, every player and coach bowed to the umpire before taking their place on the first base line.“They're a very respectful team,” Matt Baic said. “It was just awesome.”As much as the series is about friendship and camaraderie, it's also about strong competitors showcasing their talents, according to John Evans, the host chairman of the series.He and Takeharu Natsu, the Japanese chairman of the series and executive secretary general of the Japan PONY Baseball Association, were in charge of this year's event.“(Takeharu) Nasu and I talk in the offseason each year about strengthening competition,” Evans said. “They had some strong pitching this year.”Some of their players are good enough to be invited to high schools, which function like American private and preparatory schools, famous for competing annually in the Kohshien Tournament.That tournament is a nationally renowned annual event that high schools across Japan try to qualify for. It's the March Madness of Japanese baseball.Nasu said competitions like this can really showcase the talent of their players, who are one or two years removed from their high school playing days.He said these games also give the players lifelong memories and friendships with their competitors and the host families that house them throughout their stay.“Every time we come to the U.S. for the Friendship Series, we are very impressed by the American host families,” he said. “We hope to do the same when they come to Japan.”The location alternates each year, so next year the U.S. will take its turn to build a roster and take their talent to Japan.Nasu said he hopes the friendship and love for the game will continue indefinitely.“Coaches and players in Japan like baseball very much, so we would like to continue this event forever,” Nasu said.
