Niigata City’s Niigata Crown participates in the prefectural tournament for the first time with half-day practice only on Saturdays, Sundays, and holidays
There is no need to play baseball with sacrifices. Niigata City’s junior high school rubber baseball team “Niigata Crown” recommends spending time with family and friends, as well as taking part in extracurricular activities. We are seeking results in limited practice time, and have a policy of enriching other than baseball.
Now in its fourth year, Niigata Crown practices only on Saturdays, Sundays, and holidays, with a maximum of four hours per day. Even so, this spring, he won the district qualifier for the “Daiyon Hokuetsu Bank Cup Niigata Prefecture Boys’ Baseball Tournament” in which club teams and junior high school baseball teams participate, and participated in the prefectural tournament for the first time.
Manager Taiga Eto, who founded the team, has a policy of not sacrificing anything else by playing baseball. If there is no competition during Golden Week and Obon, practice is off. “Play with your family and friends,” he tells players and parents.
“I think it would be better to spend more time practicing, considering only the results of the tournament. However, I feel uncomfortable not having time to study, not being able to go on family trips, and not being able to hang out with friends until I retire from baseball.”
Of course, since I play baseball, I teach the players the joy of improving and the joy of winning. In order to make effective use of the limited practice time, we measure the speed and angle of the batted ball, and learn the swing trajectory to fly the ideal batted ball. Eto, who was originally a coach at a baseball school for elementary and junior high school students, has a wealth of guidance that suits individual players.
