Japanese baseball scandal 2013

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Official baseball for the 2013 season of Nippon Professional Baseball

The Japanese baseball scandal is a scandal about the flight characteristics of the balls in Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB) or in the two professional leagues Central League and Pacific League . The balls were made to allow more home runs .

prehistory

There was already an increase in home runs in the late 1990s and early 2000s. At that time the balls were also suspected and the production was checked. However, nothing unusual could be found on the balls and these home runs were explained with the use of steroids by the athletes.

In the Japanese baseball leagues there was no regulation on the properties of the balls until 2011, and so each team had its own balls. This fact made it particularly easy to manipulate the games. So some teams had several ball suppliers and changed them depending on the opportunity. In addition, it had an impact on the national team, which did not do so well in international comparison, because a standardized US ball is used on the international level. The new standardized ball that was introduced in the 2011 season initially resulted in home runs becoming 40% less frequent. Then the NPB chairman Ryōzō Katō approached the sporting goods manufacturer Mizuno with the request to make the ball for the 2013 season lighter and smaller. This had an effect on the flight characteristics of the balls, which then flew further and with which more home runs were achieved as a result. On April 30, 2013, Tony Blanco of Yokohama DeNA BayStars set a new record with his 14th home run in a month, and it was suspected that something was wrong. The NBP was asked whether the balls had been changed, but such a process was denied.

Exposure

On June 11, 2013, the NPB admitted that the balls had been secretly altered. It was stated that if the change was publicly communicated it would create confusion. After criticism and calls for resignation, especially from the fans, Ryōzō Katō then had to apologize for the decision on June 14, 2013. However, the season is played to the end with the new ball, as you cannot just change the guidelines. However, promises were made that such changes would be better communicated in the future. Other participants, such as players and team managers, said they hadn't known about it, except that they noticed that the ball suddenly made different noises. However, these statements were classified as untrustworthy, because players who achieve a home run receive additional remuneration.

Individual evidence

  1. ^ A b Eleanor Warnock: In Japan, Change-Up Sent Balls Flying, but Now Fans Cry Foul. Baseball Commissioner Says Nobody Told Him; Home-Run Rally Will Last a While. In: Wall Street Journal. December 6, 2013, accessed July 4, 2013 .
  2. ↑ a b BRAD Lefton: Japan's Standardized Baseballs Are Popular With Pitchers. In: New York Times. October 22, 2011, accessed July 4, 2013 .
  3. ↑ a b c Felix Lill: Japan rages over counterfeit balls. In: Zeit Online. Zeit Online GmbH, June 25, 2013, accessed on June 25, 2013 .
  4. ↑ Jay Jaffe: A juiced baseball scandal in Japan. (No longer available online.) In: The Strike Zone. June 12, 2013, archived from the original on June 18, 2013 ; accessed on June 25, 2013 .
  5. ↑ Faith Aquino: Japanese professional baseball finally admits to secretly changing ball design for 'excitement'. (No longer available online.) In: The Japan Daily Press. Ewdison Then on June 12, 2013, archived from the original on October 13, 2014 ; accessed on June 25, 2013 .
  6. ↑ Faith Aquino: Japanese commissioner Kato apologizes to baseball community for changing ball design in secret. (No longer available online.) In: The Japan Daily Press. Ewdison Then on June 14, 2013, archived from the original on December 18, 2016 ; accessed on June 25, 2013 .