Takeshi Magori: As a One-of-a-Kind Presence in the Region

In April 2005, the Shikoku Island League (now Shikoku Island League plus), an independent baseball league for which the author currently serves as representative, was born. Since then, it has operated based on three pillars: "human resource development," "expanding the base of the sports world, including baseball," and "regional revitalization and contribution," and is now entering its 19th season. To date, more than 1,000 players have graduated from the league, and 77 players have stepped up to the 12 NPB teams, Japan's top league. Current active players from this league include pitchers Katsuki Matayoshi and Koya Fujii of the Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks, Katsuya Kakunaka of the Chiba Lotte Marines, pitcher Daichi Ishii of the Hanshin Tigers, and pitcher Satoshi Miyamori of the Tohoku Rakuten Golden Eagles. Also noteworthy is Atsumasa Chano of the Orix Buffaloes; despite being the 4th development draft pick last autumn, he maintained strong performance from the exhibition games to make the opening day starting lineup, subsequently established himself as a regular, and is now a candidate for Rookie of the Year. Last year, he was with the Tokushima Indigo Socks of our league, but at the start of the season, he was a reserve player who gradually rose to prominence to become the leading hitter. He carved out his own path through performances such as hitting a home run in an interleague game against the Orix second team.

Players with various backgrounds gather from all over the country to join this league. The reasons are diverse: their school did not have a baseball club, they couldn't gather enough members, they couldn't continue baseball due to family circumstances, or they simply couldn't give up on baseball. Although the salary is not sufficient, they are welcomed into the community as professional baseball players, training under managers, coaches, and staff, and playing with all their might to catch the eye of NPB scouts while competing with one another. While some players enter the NPB as star candidates after success in high school or university baseball, we discover and develop talent that has been buried due to a lack of favorable environments or coaching. This contribution to human resource development in the baseball world is one of our major pillars.

In addition, the role required by the region is growing every year. According to the 2005 census, the total population of the four prefectures in Shikoku was 4.09 million, but it decreased to 3.70 million in the latest 2020 survey. Since the Shikoku Island League was founded, the population has decreased by more than 10%, compounded by the impact of a shrinking productive population due to a declining birthrate and aging society. If nothing is done, regional vitality will decline. Supported by local sponsors, the Shikoku Island League plus and its member teams gather more than 100 young players from across the country to Shikoku every year, signing them as professional baseball players. While honing their minds and bodies through league games, they also play a role in regional revitalization through activities such as children's baseball clinics, participation in local events and festivals, and PR activities for local products.

Only about 5% of players step up to the NPB. The remaining 95% choose a second career path, but many of them settle in the four prefectures of Shikoku and remain active as valuable young local talent. This season, it also became a topic of interest when a second-generation player, whose father was a former player for the same team, joined the Ehime Mandarin Pirates.

We often receive comments that "attendance is low despite claiming regional revitalization." In the case of our league, we play approximately 140 games a year, and the total attendance for all games before the COVID-19 pandemic was 60,000 (we expect around 60,000 this season as well), which is small in scale compared to the NPB. However, to put it another way, as an organization that holds 140 events in the Shikoku region attracting an average of 400 to 500 people, we are a unique presence in Shikoku. Furthermore, we are featured daily by NHK, commercial broadcasters, and local newspapers, and we believe we are playing a part in revitalizing the region.

Each team is supported by local companies and influential figures in each prefecture and is managed in cooperation with prefectures and municipalities. Stadium operations are supported by local volunteers and student interns. On holidays, the stadiums are used as venues for performances by junior dance and cheerleading teams, and the role of ball boy has become a rite of passage for boys aiming to become professional baseball players in the future.

On the other hand, on weekdays when there are no games, we actively give back to the community through activities such as conveying the joy of throwing a ball at kindergartens and nursery schools within the prefecture (Tokushima Prefecture) and school commute monitoring activities (Ehime Prefecture). It can be said that the league and teams are operated by consolidating all kinds of regional resources. Although there have been some fluctuations after overcoming the difficult COVID-19 pandemic, basically both the league and the team management corporations have balanced budgets, and after 19 years since our founding, we have evolved into a sustainable management model.

Since last year, we have begun measuring qualitative and quantitative data under the title "Social Value Created by the League" to verify the economic and social impacts created by the existence of the Shikoku Island League plus. We will look at medium- to long-term transitions in how the "fostering of local communities" affects the construction of social capital and civic pride, and how the activities of the Shikoku Island League plus function. The goal is to quantify non-financial value that does not appear on financial statements and create new value indicators.

I believe the current challenge is "how to scale while maintaining a sustainable form." The population decline, falling birthrate, and aging society cannot be stopped. Through the media of the region and baseball, we want to continue searching for clues to solve the issues facing Japan as a microcosm 50 years from now.