In 2022, the professional baseball interleague games will begin on May 24 and continue until June 12. Since the teams from the two leagues that do not usually play each other will meet, many fans will be excited to see the games, which are different from pennant races.
Seibu Travel’s “Legend Express Tour” was planned to further boost the excitement of the exchange game between the Saitama Seibu Lions and the Yomiuri Giants, and will be held for three days from June 7 to 9, coinciding with the game. The highlight of the tour is that the tour participants can enjoy a one-hour ride from Seibu Ikebukuro Station to Seibu Stadium Station, where the game will be held at Belluna Dome, while interacting with the tour participants on board a chartered train.
The Legend alumni participating in the tour consisted of a total of 11 people who were active mainly from the 1970s to 2010s. 9 people (5 people from each of the two teams) will board each assigned car of the Series 40000 train (10 cars) each day. Tourists were able to sign up by specifying their preferred car number. Participating on the first day were Ken Hirano, Hirohisa Matsunuma, Hironori Ishige, and Yukihiro Nishizaki on the Seibu side, and Yoshitaka Katori, Shoji Sadaoka, Hiroki Makihara, Shinichi Murata, and Yohei Kado on the Giants’ side.
The tour itinerary includes a talk show by legendary alumni, photo opportunities with legendary alumni, etc. When the train arrives at Seibu Stadium Station, each car will have a group photo opportunity with all the legendary alumni participating on that day (available for purchase online after the event). In addition, a muffler towel and a piece of colored paper signed by legendary alumni of the train will be available as a souvenir of the ride. The price of the tour is 12,000 yen per person.
In an interview representing Legend alumni, Hironori Ishige and Yohei Kaku shared their impressions of the tour.
–How was today’s Legends Express Tour?
Ishige: I am thankful that it has been a long time since I was allowed to send out a live voice in front of my fans and feel good about it. I received many questions. I am grateful to be a baseball fan. I hope that I was able to create a time that made those fans as happy as possible. I really had a good day and a good time. Thank you very much.
Kaku: Anyway, I was wondering if I could give a little support to the current professional baseball. Legends collaborated to make this kind of thing happen, and we had a very enjoyable day.
–How do you see the outlook for the three-round series?
Kaku: It is not an exaggeration to say that whoever wins the interleague tournament wins the pennant. I think the Seibu Lions have little chance (laughs). We (the Giants) are in a good position right now, so I think we have to win three games in a row this time to catch up with the first-place Yakult. Please do your best. Please do your best, Manager Hara.
Ishige: The Seibu Lions have had a lot of injuries, so it has been difficult to field a full team, but with the emergence of Wakabayashi, I think the team is improving one by one. I hope that manager Tsuji and the Lions will show their underlying strength in the game against the Giants.
–I think it’s rare to hold an event inside a car.
Ishige: Well, it was the first time, wasn’t it? After all, there was a distance between the ground and the stands, wasn’t there? At my age, it was great to be able to talk about various things in close proximity. Although I am a little older now, I have my own view of the baseball world and its history, so I was able to deepen exchanges about what kind of baseball world I want to see in the past and now in the future.
Kaku: For my part, I was also involved in the planning stage, but I just want to support the current professional baseball. I wanted to help make today’s professional baseball even better by bringing fans closer together with the help of legends. This was my first attempt, but I am glad I took on the challenge.
The first day of the Legend Express Tour was attended by about 80 fans. The participants were all smiling as they got off the train, and their enjoyment of the ride was evident. As they left the station, they asked the staff, “Is this just for this year? Will you do it next year? If you do, I’ll definitely sign up again.
© Source travel watch
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