The National High School Baseball Championship
The official logo of The Competition
SportBaseball
Founded1915 (1915)
No. of teams49 (56 in special editions)
Country Japan
Venue(s)Hanshin Koshien Stadium
Most recent
champion(s)		Keio (105th - 2023)
Most titlesChukyōdai Chukyō (7 titles)
TV partner(s)NHK, ABC
Streaming partner(s)SportsBull, Yahoo JP, Abema
Related
competitions		The National High School Baseball Invitational Tournament
Official websitehttps://vk.sportsbull.jp/koshien/
https://baseball.yahoo.co.jp/hsb_vk/
1st National High School Baseball Championship Ceremonial First Pitch, August 18, 1915
The opening ceremony of 89th National High School Baseball Championship, 2006

The National High School Baseball Championship (全国高等学校野球選手権大会, Zenkoku Kōtō Gakkō Yakyū Senshuken Taikai) of Japan, commonly known as "Summer Koshien" (夏の甲子園, Natsu no Kōshien), is an annual nationwide high school baseball tournament. It is the largest scale amateur sport event in Japan.

The tournament, organized by the Japan High School Baseball Federation and Asahi Shimbun, takes place during the summer school vacation period, culminating in a two-week final tournament stage with 49 teams in August at Hanshin Koshien Stadium (阪神甲子園球場, Hanshin Kōshien Kyūjō) in the Koshien district of Nishinomiya City, Hyōgo, Japan.

Background

In the past teams from overseas have participated in the tournament. Korea fielded teams from 1921 to 1940; both Taiwan and Manchuria had teams participate from 1923 to 1940.

The 49 schools taking part in the final tourney represent regional champions of each of the prefectures of Japan (with two from Hokkaidō and Tokyo). From mid-June until July, regional tournaments are held to decide who is sent to Koshien.[1]

The rules are the same as in the National High School Baseball Invitational Tournament. It is a single elimination tournament with nine inning games. Games are declared official after seven complete innings in the case of suspension (due to weather, et cetera), except for the championship game which must be played to completion. For the regional tournaments, games are ended if one team leads by at least ten runs after five innings or seven runs after seven innings, except in the championship games. Designated hitters are not used. Four umpires are used, except for night games in which two outfield line umpires are added.

The first round pairings and byes are decided by lottery. 34 teams meet in the first round, and 15 teams with byes join at the second round (32 teams play in the second round). Therefore, it takes either five or six wins for a team to win the championship. Until 2002, the four quarter finals were played in one day, but this was changed to two a day over two days to give the players time off. If rainouts continue for more than three days, four games are played in one day. This occurred in 2003, so the first time the quarter finals were played over two days was actually 2004. To accommodate the extra day, the long tradition of starting the tournament on August 8 was changed to start a day or two early.

Up to four games are played each day until the quarter finals. The starting times of each day's games is shown below. Following games are begun about 30 minutes after the previous game ends. Due to the fast pace of the pitching, four games in one day are usually completed before sunset.

Day of the tournament 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 A 12
Round 1st 1st 1st 1st 1st/2nd 2nd 2nd 2nd 2nd 3rd 3rd Rest Quarter
Games

Start time

Rest Days

 3

10:20

 4

8:00

 4

8:00

 4

8:00

 3

9:00

 4

8:00

 4

8:00

 4

8:00

 3

9:00

 4

8:00

 4

8:00

 1st

Rest Day

 4

8:00

Day of the tournament B 13 C 14
Round Rest Semis Rest Final
Games

Start time

Rest Days

 2nd

Rest Day

 2

9:00

 3rd

Rest Day

 1

14:00 2:00PM

Extra innings

For tournaments previous to 1958 there were no extra inning limits for a game tied after nine innings of play. In 1933, Masao Yoshida had pitched a complete game during a 25 inning shutout in the semifinal, an all-time record. Yoshida had thrown 336 pitches during that game.

In 1958, games were limited to 18 innings, with a full replay required after that on a future day. The first pitcher to pitch a complete game 18 innings was Eiji Bando in a 1958 quarterfinal game. Daisuke Matsuzaka became the last pitcher to pitch a complete game over 15 innings (17 innings in 250 pitches, 1998).

From 2000 to 2017, games were capped at 15 innings with a full replay required on a future day. In 2006, the replay rule was implemented after a 15 inning tie in the final.

In 2018, the Japan High School Baseball Federation capped regular play to 12 innings (except in the championship final), but games will continue with the World Baseball Softball Confederation baseball tiebreaker with runners on first and second base (the previous two players relative to the current player in the batting order) starting with in the 13th inning.

  • If the game is suspended because of inclement weather or curfew while the game is in the tiebreaker, the game is declared a tie and a replay will be implemented at the earliest possible date.
  • Pitchers are limited to fifteen innings.
  • There is a 15 inning limit in the championship final. A championship final replay will be scheduled in the next possible day.
  • The championship final replay will use the tiebreaker at the 13th inning.

Traditions

The tournament theme song is "The Laurels of Victory Shine on You" (Japanese: 栄冠（えいかん）は君（きみ）に輝（かがや）く, Hepburn: eikan wa kimi ni kagayaku).

Usually air sirens are used to signal the start and the end of the games, the earlier registers of this tradition are from 1936. Its origins are unknown, but considering the time of its origin, before the advent of mass communication, it is considered that its use was the same as it is nowadays; to signal the start and the finish of a match for spectators and stadium workforce.[2]

Every five years, the tournament celebrates the anniversary of the founding of the tournament, and a deep crimson is used for the championship flag for commemorative purposes. Also, on those editions, the number of participants on the final part of the tournament also grows.

For third year students, a loss at the tournament signifies an end to their high school baseball career, as there are no other major tournaments for the rest of their academic career. It is common for players to cry in sorrow after tight games and/or their losses.

Players collecting Koshien infield dirt during the 87th Tournament (2007)

Another common tradition after games is the act of collect the soil from the Koshien Stadium infield as a souvenir. The dirt collected by the chosen players is shared among the baseball club members of the schools. The dirt is kept as memoriblia for the third year players and shared between first and second years as a way to motivate them to reach the Koshien spot once again, but sometimes, first and second years refuse to receive the soil as a way to motivate them to return to Koshien.

Some teams also decide take part of the soil and throw the soil into the infield of their training practice as a way to bring good luck for them into the next year's tournament.

An interesting exception to this tradition happened in 1958. At the time, Okinawa was under U.S. rule. In that year, Okinawa's Shuri baseball team participated for the first time in both spring and summer. After losing to Tsuruga (from Fukui) in the first round of the summer tournament, they decided to pick up the infield soil after the game. However, they were not allowed to bring the dirt back to Okinawa, having to discard it at the port as the soil was considered "foreign soil".[3] Volunteer flight attendants from Japan Airlines learned of the story and decided picked up stones from the coast of Nishinomiya and donated them to Shuri. The stones are still displayed in the school yard as a monument called Monument of Friendship (友愛の碑, Yūai no ishibumi), celebrating the team's first appearance at the Koshien.[4]

Finals

(R) Replay
* Match went to Extra innings

List of champions

List of champions
Number Year Champion Runner-up Final Score Notes
1 1915 Kyoto Dai-ni ChugakuAkita Chugaku2–1
2 1916 Keio University High SchoolIchioka Central6–2
3 1917 Aichi Dai-Ichi ChugakuKwansei Gakuin Chugaku0–1
(R) Aichi Dai-Ichi CentralKansai Gakuin Central1–0The first game was rained out after 3 innings
1918 The tournament was cancelled due to the Rice riots of 1918.
4 1919 Kobe Dai-Ichi ChugakuNagano Shihan7–4
5 1920 Kansai Gakuin CentralKeio Futsubu17–0
6 1921 Wakayama CentralKyoto Dai-Ichi16–4
7 1922 Wakayama Central (2)Kobe8–4
8 1923 Kouyou ChugakuWakayama Central5–2
9 1924 HiroshimaMatsumoto3–0
10 1925 TakamatsuWaseda Jitsugyō5–3
11 1926 Shizuoka CentralTairen2–1Tairen was the only team from Manchuria to make it to the finals when they participated in the tournament from 1923 to 1940
12 1927 Takamatsu (2)Kouryo Central5–1
13 1928 MatsumotoHeian3–1
14 1929 Hiroshima (2)Kaisou Central3–0
15 1930 Hiroshima (3)Suwa Sanshi8–2
16 1931 Chukyōdai ChukyōKagi Nōrin (Agriculture) High School4–1Kagi Nōrin was the only team from Taiwan to make it to the finals when they participated in the tournament from 1923 to 1940
17 1932 Chukyōdai Chukyō (2)Matsuyama4–3
18 1933 Chukyōdai Chukyō (3)Heian2–1
19 1934 Gokou CentralKumamoto Kougyou2–0
20 1935 MatsuyamaIkuei6–1
21 1936 GifuHeian9–1
22 1937 Chukyōdai Chukyō (4)Kumamoto Kougyou3–1
23 1938 HeianGifu2–1
24 1939 Kaisou CentralShimonoseki5–0Seiichi Shima threw the first no-hitter in the finals.
25 1940 Kaisou Central (2)Shimada2–1
1942–45 From 1942 to 1945 the tournament was not held due to World War II
26 1946 NaniwaKyoto Dai-ni Central2–0
27 1947 Kokura CentralGifu6–3
28 1948 KokuraTouin1–0
29 1949 ShounanGifu5–3
30 1950 Matsuyama HigashiNaruto12–8
31 1951 HeianKumagai7–4
32 1952 AshiyaYatsuo4–1
33 1953 MatsuyamaTosa3–2
34 1954 Chukyōdai Chukyō (5)Shizuoka3–0
35 1955 YokkaichiSakaide4–1
36 1956 HeianGifu3–2
37 1957 HiroshimaHosei Dai-ni3–1
38 1958 YanaiTokushima7–0
39 1959 SaijoUtsunomiya Kougyou8–2
40 1960 Hosei Dai-niShizuoka3–0
41 1961 NamiTouin1–0
42 1962 Sakushin GakuinKurume1–0
43 1963 MyojoShimonoseki2–1
44 1964 KochiHayatomo2–0
45 1965 Miike KougyouChoshi2–0
46 1966 Chukyōdai Chukyō (6)Matsuyama3–1
47 1967 NarashinoKouryo7–1
48 1968 KokokuShizuoka1–0
49 1969* MatsuyamaMisawa0–0 (18)Game capped at 18 innings limit.
(R) Matsuyama (2)Misawa4–2Koji Ohta pitched every inning and then appeared again the next day.
50 1970 Tōkaidai SagamiPL Gakuen10–6
51 1971 Tōin GakuenIwaki1–0
52 1972 TsukumiYanai3–1
53 1973 HiroshimaShizuoka3–2
54 1974 Choshi ShogyoHofu7–0
55 1975 NarashinoNiihama5–4
56 1976 ObirinPL Gakuen4–3
57 1977 Toyodai HimejiHigashikuni4–1The game was won with a three-run walk-off home run in the bottom of the tenth inning.
58 1978 PL GakuenKōchi Shōgyō3–2
59 1979 MinoshimaIkeda4–3
60 1980 YokohamaWaseda Jitsugyō6–4
61 1981 Hōtoku GakuenKyōto Shōgyō2–0
62 1982 IkedaHiroshima Shōgyō12–2
63 1983 PL Gakuen (2)Yokohama Shōgyō3–0
64 1984 Toride Dai-niPL Gakuen8–4
65 1985 PL GakuenUbe Shōgyō4–3PL Gakuen, led by "K-K Combi" (Masumi Kuwata and Kazuhiro Kiyohara), has returned to the championship.
66 1986 TenriMatsuyama Shōgyō3–2
67 1987 PL Gakuen (3)Jōsō Gakuin5–2
68 1988 Hiroshima ShōgyōFukuoka Dai-ichi1–0
69 1989 TeikyōSendai Ikuei2–0
70 1990 TenriOkinawa Suisan8–4
71 1991 Osaka TōinOkinawa Suisan13–8Ichiro Suzuki's Aikodai Meiden lost in the first round.
72 1992 Nishi Nihon Tandai FuzokuTakudai Kōryō1–0Hideki Matsui got five consecutive intentional walks at one game.
73 1993 IkueiKasukabe Kyōei3–2
74 1994 Saga ShōgyōShōnan8–4
75 1995 Teikyō (2)Seiryō3–1
76 1996 Matsuyama ShōgyōKumamoto Kōgyō6–3
77 1997 Chiben WakayamaHeian6–3
78 1998 YokohamaKyōto Seishō3–0Daisuke Matsuzaka threw the second no-hitter in the finals.[5]
79 1999 Kiryu Dai-ichiOkayama Ridai Fuzoku14–4
80 2000 Chiben WakayamaTōkaidai Urayasu11–6
81 2001 Nichidai-sanōhmi5–2
82 2002 Meitoku GijukuChiben Wakayama7–2
83 2003 Jōsō GakuinTōhoku4–2Yu Darvish's Tōhoku lost the final game.
84 2004 Komadai TomakomaiSaibi13–10
85 2005 Komadai Tomakomai (2)Kyōto Gaidai Nishi5–3
86 2006* Waseda JitsugyōKomadai Tomakomai1–1
(R) Waseda JitsugyōKomadai Tomakomai4–3Waseda Jitsugyo's Yuki Saito threw 6 complete games, 69 innings, and 948 pitches over the 2-week span, including 4 complete games, 43 innings and 553 pitches, in the final 4 days of the tournament.
87 2007 Saga KitaKōryō5–4Kouryou took a 4–0 lead lead by their ace pitcher, Nomura. In the bottom of the 8th, Nomura gives up a bases loaded walk followed by a grand slam home run by Soejima which lifts Saga Kita to the title.
88 2008 Osaka Tōin (2)Tokoha Kikugawa17–0Okumura hits a grand slam home run to open the first inning as Osaka Tōin's offensive juggernaut overwhelmed Tokoha Kikugawa. Osaka Toin's ace Fukushima Yuuto pitches a complete game 5-hit shutout for the win.
89 2009 Chukyōdai Chukyō (6)Nihon Bunri10–9Chukyo holds a 10–4 lead into the 9th inning. Their ace Doubayashi Shouta goes back on the mound for the final inning. But with 2 outs Nihon Bunri comes back with a comeback for the ages, forcing Doubayashi off the mound and scoring 5 runs. The tying runner stood on 3rd base when Wakabayashi lines out to 3rd base to end the game. Nihon Bunri would have been the first team from Niigata to win the title had they completed the comeback.
90 2010 KōnanTōkaidai Sagami13–1Shimabukuro Yousuke and Kounan dominate the field, giving the first ever Summer Koshien champion to an Okinawan school.
91 2011 Nichidai-sanKōsei Gakuin11–0Kentaro Yoshinaga throws a 5-hitter, while Shun Takayama hits a 3-run homer in this rout of a match
92 2012 Osaka Tōin (3)Kōsei Gakuin3–0Shintaro Fujinami fans 14 batters in a 2-hitter to wrap up the title, as Osaka Tōin becomes the 6th school to win the spring and summer Koshiens in the same year.
93 2013 Maebashi IkueiNobeoka Gakuen4–3Kona Takahashi allows his first runs in six games this tournament but still gets the win. Kaito Arai drives in the winning hit in the 7th inning.
94 2014 Osaka Tōin (4)Mie4–3Kosuke Fukushima goes the distance for the win while Makoto Nakamura's 2-run, 2-out single in the bottom of the 7th inning is the winning hit.
95 2015 Tōkaidai SagamiSendai Ikuei10–6
96 2016 Sakushin Gakuin Hokkai 7–1
97 2017 Hanasaki Tokuharu Kōryō 14–4
98 2018 Osaka Tōin (5) Kanaashi Nogyo 13–2 Kanaashi Nogyo was the first time a team from Akita (and the Tohoku region) to reach the finals in a 103 years, the previous time being 1915.
99 2019 Risei-sha Seiryo 5–3
2020 - - - Not held because of COVID-19 pandemic.[6][7] Instead, exhibition matches featuring the spring tournament teams were held during the time.
100 2021 Chiben Gakuen Wakayama Chiben Gakuen Nara 9–2 This was the first time in the tournament's history that both finalist teams were from the same academic institution.
101 2022 Sendai IkueiShimonoseki Kokusai8–1This was the first time a team from Tohoku region won the tournament.
102 2023 Keio Sendai Ikuei 8–2 First time in 18 years that a Big 6 affiliated school wins Summer Koshien (2006 with Keio's Main Rival, Waseda). Also, was the first title of the school in 107 years (last being in 1916).[8]

Some of the most famous appearances of the Japanese High School Baseball Championship in popular culture are in the manga and anime series Touch, H2 and Cross Game by Mitsuru Adachi, Ace of Diamond by Yūji Terajima, and Major by Takuya Mitsuda. Those series follow the struggles of different high school teams' bids to make it to the Kōshien tournament.

The 2014 hit Taiwanese film Kano is based on the true story of a high school baseball team from the Kagi Nōrin (Agriculture) High School (now known as National Chiayi University) team in Kagi (now known as Chiayi), Taiwan who qualified for the tournament for the first time in 1931 after never having won a game in its first three seasons. The team was made up of ethnic Japanese, Han Chinese and Taiwanese aborigines. The team won three games to make it to the championship game before losing 4–0 to Chukyō Shōgyō from Nagoya. This was the first of four appearances at the tournament for the Kano team, who later qualified in 1933, 1935 and 1936.

The Summer Koshien Tournament has a longstanding tradition of launching the careers of many famous players, many of whom get drafted to the NPB and eventually make their way to the MLB. Names include 2001 AL Rookie of the Year and Most Valuable Player Ichiro Suzuki,[9] 2006 World Baseball Classic MVP and 2007 World Series Champion Daisuke Matsuzaka,[10] as well Yu Darvish,[11] a five-time MLB All-Star, and Shohei Ohtani,[12] who won the 2018 AL Rookie of the Year, 2021 and 2023 AL Most Valuable Player.

See also

Notes

  1. ↑ Takahara, Kanako, "Japan baseball stars first shine bright at Koshien", Japan Times, July 24, 2007, p. 2.
  2. ↑ "甲子園に鳴り響くサイレン、いったい何のため？" [What is the purpose of the sirens sounding at Koshien?]. J-CAST News (in Japanese). August 10, 2019. Retrieved July 4, 2023.
  3. ↑ "〈甲子園アルバム１１〉港で捨てた「外国の土」" [Memories of Koshien 11: "Foreign Soil" was discarded at the Port] (in Japanese). Asahi Shimbun. July 25, 2008. Archived from the original on July 25, 2008. Retrieved July 4, 2023.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)
  4. ↑ "高校野球１００年のものがたり: 海に捨てられた思い出は「友愛の碑」に" [100 Years of High School Baseball in Japan: Memories Discarded at Sea Become a "Monument of Friendship"]. Sanspo (in Japanese). Sankei Shimbun. August 16, 2015. Retrieved July 4, 2023.
  5. ↑ "Beware of The Monster". ESPN. November 22, 2006. Retrieved July 2, 2008.
  6. ↑ "The Latest: Tottenham looking into another breach by Aurier". AP NEWS. May 20, 2020. Retrieved May 20, 2020.
  7. ↑ "Japan's nat'l high school baseball meet canceled over virus". Kyodo News. May 20, 2020. Retrieved May 20, 2020.
  8. ↑ "Kanagawa's Keio ends 107-year drought with Koshien triumph". The Japan Times. August 23, 2023. Retrieved August 23, 2023.
  9. ↑ "Dispatch #1: A handful of dirt". sinkhole. Retrieved November 1, 2022.
  10. ↑ Curry, Jack (February 11, 2007). "Matsuzaka Masterpiece: Glimpses of Greatness in Arm of Teenager". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved November 1, 2022.
  11. ↑ Barclay, Shane (February 8, 2022). ""It was unbelievable." Bob Fontaine Jr. Scouts Yu Darvish at Koshien". JapanBall. Retrieved November 1, 2022.
  12. ↑ "Shohei Ohtani is 'Made In Japan' with American adaptations". AP NEWS. July 18, 2022. Retrieved November 1, 2022.
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