Sunday, October 18, 2009

yesterday at the ballpark

It's Waseda U vs Hosei U, and at last I finally got to watch Saito Yuki on the mound! He's been really popular since he debuted at Koshien in 2006 with his pitching skills, his good looks and his habit of using a blue handkerchief (a towelette, really) his mom gave him, to wipe the sweat off his brow before he throws a pitch. Hence, the media dubbed him with this cheesy moniker, "The Handkerchief Prince". A buying frenzy for that blue handkerchief soon after made sales for a towel company really booming and a loyal following of devoted middle-aged women could be seen at every game where Yuki is pitching. I saw a gaggle of them yesterday, toting mini-binoculars and digital cameras and happily cheering for their prince.



Two hits by the "handkechief prince" made for 2 home runs, plus a great play added another point at the 5th!

We brought sandwiches and warm drinks to the ballgame and had draft beer afterwards. Looking around at what people are usually eating, there was one munching on a home-made rice ball, one tucking into his obento, there was also curry and rice, hotdog on a stick, and hard-boiled egg (with salt)! The fare was very Asian, which made me think about bringing a Pinoy obento next time.

Hosei rallied on the 7th, caught up with Waseda and our handkerchief prince had to replaced at the pinch. The game was extended to 3 more innings and ended up in a draw at 3-3.


We visited a dear friend in hospital afterwards, and then it's happy-hour at a yakitori nearby. That's grilled chicken with ume paste and wasabi. Kanpai!

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