Gender In Sports: A Big Issue

In high schools and junior high schools across the country the importance of interscholastic sports competitions is  strongly demonstrated to the students.  They see the rewards and accolades given to the accomplished athletes,  not only at these levels, but at the collegiate and professional levels as well.   While  most of these teams are formed and exist for both men and women, it is interesting how different each team tends to be treated.  At High school football games, for example, the students and faculty show up in record numbers to prove their loyalty to the team and to the school itself.  This football team is always comprised of men who use the sport to demonstrate their masculinity through the smashing and bashing of each other's skulls.  Occasionally, one may find a select number of women who had to fight their way onto the team only to sit on the sidelines and watch.  It is quite probable that such girls are only able to get onto the teams on the basis that most schools simply do not have a football team dedicated solely to the women football athletes.   This lack of recognition for female athletes only becomes more frequent  as one progresses through the levels of competition in virtually any sport.  The games of women's teams, where they do exist, tend to draw only limited crowds at most levels of competition, scholastic or otherwise. In the realm of athletic activities, the American society has chosen not to offer the same opportunities to its women as it traditionally has to its men.

For centuries, it seems, it has generally been accepted that  sports and other activities relying upon physical performance have been left for the men to participate in and enjoy.  The women were generally left with the "traditional" duties of managing the household for their amusement.   Just as many things have come to be drastically altered over the course of the last century or so, so has this old fashioned idea.  Women have shown an interest of their own when it comes to sports.  They have demonstrated that they, too, want to be able to prove their physical ability and talent through competition in a variety of athletic activities.  While most of these activities are adapted versions of the same sports that were originally played by the men, women have shown that they can play them just as hard and as dirty against each other as the men have been doing for as long as one can recall.  They have shown that they can be conditioned and up to the physical challenge that most sports demand, despite their being female and traditionally seen as "delicate creatures" by society.  With few exceptions, women have proven that they really are no different than men when it comes to their abilities to participate in activities that used to be reserved for the masculine and the "strong" as opposed to the feminine and the "weak."

Only recently have activities, such as football, begun to present themselves as attractive sports for young girls wishing to participate in something athletic.  Previously, the participation of the "weaker sex"  in such a "harsh game" has been discouraged for a variety of reasons.  Some site the "frailty" of women as the exclusion factor, relying on the assumption  that all members of the female sex possess this inhibiting characteristic This idea can be  proven wrong by any young girl who has had to grow up surrounded either by a group of  rowdy, older brothers or has lived in a neighborhood consisting primarily of  male companions.  In this environment, especially, she has been forced to identify with those around her by taking part in the same activities and play as roughly as any one of the guys do with each other.  She has demonstrated that she does not let her sex dictate who she is or who she wants to be.    It is in part for this reason , perhaps, that girls have started to come out of their traditional roles as demure  females and desire to step onto the playing fields with those with whom  they may have grown up.  Where teams do not exist specifically for women in some sports, some have taken it upon themselves to try and play with the guys.  These girls tend to find opposition to this type of change within their schools and communities. Why should society tell her that she may not  participate because it is not a sport designed for her?   Since all  women do not possess this assumed quality of innate frailty any more than all  men possess the ability to fix cars and belch,  they should not be treated as if they do.

Since professional sports teams were first developed years ago, women have not received  their share of recognition for athletic ability by the establishment of  leagues and teams  within which  they may play professionally.  What makes a man playing a sport  more interesting to watch than a woman playing the same game?    Perhaps it is due to the fact that women's sports aren't as popular at the high school and collegiate levels as the men's sports tend to be.  For this reason, the owners and developers of  professional sports leagues may not feel that there is a need for these types of leagues.  At the same time, a sort of circular idea emerges in that it could also be the case that these sports are not as popular at the high school level simply because teams do not exist at a professional level for female athletes to use as a goal or role model.  For example, many spectators watch the football, baseball, and basketball games eagerly in high school because they know that the possibility exists that  the  strongest athletes  may be talented enough to go on to compete at  the higher levels.  On the other hand, most  women do not have this opportunity to go on to achieve such glorious recognition, so why should the spectators be as interested in their playing of a mere game in any sport?

      Growing up in the American society, young girls and women are not given the same opportunities as their male counterparts in the ways of athletic competition and sports in general.  From the time children begin to walk and run, our culture has led us to point the little boys in the direction of various athletic activities, while sending the little girls off to play "school" and "house."  This has, over time, been enlarged to be the general idea where sports are concerned.  At the scholastic levels of competition, high school and college alike, while teams have been created for women, the best resources and ideas are usually reserved for the players on the men's teams.  They are the primary reason that the new stadium is erected or the new facilities have been designed to accommodate.  These institutions only contribute to the sense of  inequality among the sexes in their blatant separation and mismatched treatment of the sports teams of men an women.   The crowds often flock to the men's games, while only the diehard fans come to watch the women's teams hard at work.  All of this is only enhanced by the lack of any professional sports leagues in which women may participate and form careers.  The  idea that women cannot handle the world of sports is ridiculous because general assumptions of that magnitude cannot be accurately made by anyone.  Women are as capable of playing athletics in the respected arena as any  man is and it is time that action be taken to observe the truth of this statement.

Explanation And Examination Of Hit And Run Play In Baseball

Baseball is a game of individuals and confrontations between individuals. At that moment when the pitcher stares into the catcher's mitt, scratches himself, gets into his windup, and fires the pitch home, it's all between him and the batter. There may

fielders in set and ready position on the field, baserunners languishing off their bases, and teammates and coaches watching anxiously from the dugout, but during those few nanoseconds of drama, baseball becomes a two player game. Likewise, on virtuall

any play - a flyball, a grounder, a popup etc. - all attention focuses only on the fielder and perhaps the runner that he will attempt to throw out. All plays that is, except for the hit-and-run.

Simply put, a hit and run is a play in which a runner on any base (usually first) takes off as soon as the pitcher releases the ball, and the batter at the plate attempts to make contact no matter what kind of pitch he gets and wherever it's thrown. Wi

the exception of a double steal, the hit and run is the only play in which two players on the offensive team work in conjunction with one another. The coach or manager who makes the call must take care to select an instance in which the runner can get

decent jump and the pitcher throws a good pitch to hit. The batter must make every attempt to put the ball in play, or if he cannot, do anything he can to "protect the runner"; meaning he must time and place his swing accurately enough to block the catc

r's ability to see the fielder covering second and throw accurately. Obviously, the hitter and runner both have to be aware that they will be attempting to execute a hit and run and the pitcher has to be careful to both hold the runner and throw a good

tch, making a hit-and-run one of the few instances in which the action and confrontation expand past the usual one-on-one format.

As with all risky actions in life, the hit-and-run can yield great dividends or cause great losses for the team attempting to execute it. The advantages of a successful hit and run include allowing the baserunner to take an extra base on a base hit or

eak up a double play on a groundball. The disadvantages include minimizing the effectiveness of a good hitter (since he's forced to swing, no matter what comes at him), or worse, causing a strike-em-out-throw-em-out double play if the batter is unsucces

ul at making contact. That can totally destroy a potentially big inning. As a result, the-hit-and-run is generally executed only when there's a good runner on base and an above average hitter at the plate. One would not, for example, expect to see Luis

jo executing the "hit" part of a hit-and-run with Cecil Fielder on the basepaths. As a matter of fact, you wouldn't likely see the free-swinging and oft-missing Fielder involved in a hit-and-run play from either vantage point. But, to use another exampl

from the 1996 World Champions, two current Yankees who might have a higher likelihood of implementing a successful hit-and-run together are Wade Boggs, who despite being 169 years old remains one of the purest hitters in the game and can consistently be

elied upon to put the ball in play, and Bernie Williams, one of the fastest runners on the team. Their combined contact ability and swiftness make them perhaps the quintessential example of a model hit-and-run duo.

It should be noted however, that speed is not the only skill required for the player attempting the tail end of the hit-and-run to be successful. Since the runner is flying down the basepaths at full speed with all of his adrenaline flowing, he must be

ble to make a lightning quick shift of gears and go back to his original base, against his momentum, if the situation should call for it (i.e. linedrive or popup). Therefore, in addition to speed, he must also be a smart baserunner, able to make instan

neous decisions and act on them rapidly. That decision alone, whether to take another base, stand at the current one, or backtrack to the previous one, can in some cases be the deciding factor in determining the outcome of a play, an inning, or an entir

game. And that is what makes Williams, with his five years of big-league experience, a better hit-and-runner (with emphasis on the "runner") than rookies Derek Jeter and Andy Fox, who may have more speed, but lack baserunning smarts.

A manager must consider a myriad of other factors besides the hitter and runner(s) involved when determining whether or not to call for a hit-and-run. "Who do I have due up next? What hitters do I have on the bench? How good is the opposition's pitcher

and of what quality are the arms available in their bullpen? What's the score? How many outs are there? How late in the game is it? What is the morale of my team/ability to come back from behind?" A good manager will consider all of these questions and

re before deciding to call for a hit-and-run.. If he sees that he has a bunch of solid contact hitters due up, he may not want to increase the chance of an out by calling for a hit and run. On the other hand, with two outs and the bottom of the order co

ng up, he may want to call for the risky play even with a runner of only average speed on the base paths. A tie or one run game in the late innings may prompt a manager to risk going for the extra base as well. So clearly, the hit-and-run is not a play

at should be called for haphazardly without considering all seemingly extraneous factors, which in reality are crucial and fundamental in determining the sensibility of calling for a hit-and-run. Knowing how to understand and take advantage of them to t

utmost, vis-à-vis the hit and run and other strategies, separates a Joe Torre, a World Series championship manager who is confident in his ability to gauge potential hit-and-run situations and capitalize on them, from a Buck Showalter, a much more cons

vative manager, who, perhaps because he didn't know how and when to use the hit-and-run effectively, rarely called for it, and eventually lost his job.

All in all, the excitement of a hit-and-run is pretty much unparalleled in baseball. For those who complain that it's a boring sport, the hit-and-run provides running, hitting, pitching, defensive maneuvering, and throwing all on one play. It can also

as climacteric as it is dramatic; successful or unsuccessful implementation of the hit-and-run can often be the difference between triumphant victory or crushing defeat. It may well be the most strategy oriented, thought provoking element of the game.

e hit-and-run expands baseball beyond the one-on-one confrontations that some people may perhaps find unappealing about the game, and keeps everyone on his toes.

Baseball and Japan: The Old Ball Game

An American dream can be defined through an examination of the American lifestyle, and by picking out the most common themes. The most common themes Americans associate with are the basics: graduating at the top of the class, finding a high-paying job, settling down with the perfect spouse, a house in the suburbs with a white picket fence, two children running through the yard chasing the dog and of course apple pie and baseball.

Yes, baseball is considered by many to be part of the American dream. It is through baseball that many can relive their childhood. It has been the one daily and constant event that the American society depends on to be there during every summer night. The annual fall classic, the World Series, catches the attention of the entire country. Like the New York Yankees, baseball has become a part of America.

After World War II, many countries were completely demolished physically and mentally. Among these countries was Japan. Countless numbers of Japanese people were dead, and land, buildings, and entire cities were destroyed. For the first time in Japan's history, their "God" had spoken to the public destroying his immortal reputation. During the postwar years, Japan looked to the major powers of the world to develop a foundation for a new country. Included in this foundation was a need for new ideas and dreams. Of course Japan did not completely erase thousands of years of tradition and culture, but Japan did take many international ideas and transformed them into her own. In the Movie Mr. Baseball, a Japanese woman describes Japan's borrowing techniques. "Japan takes the best from all over the world and makes it Hers" (Welles). Included in the world powers of the time was America; therefore, Japan borrowed several ideas from the United States. One such idea just happened to be America's National pastime, baseball.

The history of Japanese baseball dates back to the middle 1800's. They "adopted baseball from the U.S. as early as 1873" (Constable 23), but the spark for baseball ignited during the post war occupational years. A foreign student from Japan explains, "The thousands of American troops stationed in Japan after the war kindled the passion for baseball that was lacking before the war" (Akutsu). The American soldiers showed the Japanese the American ways of baseball, and the popularity of Japanese baseball has skyrocketed from that time on. Baseball in Japan has reached the top level with its professional standings. Many other countries throughout the world have tried to establish the American sport of baseball but "Japan is the only country in

the world to have developed a real enthusiasm for baseball outside the context of American culture and political domination" (Tasker 30).

Why would the Japanese be searching for a new "pastime" or dream to take over their country? George Constable, a critic of baseball in Japan, explains, "The Japanese are finding increasing time to participate in a variety of leisure activities, including several sports from the United States. Among the most popular is baseball" (24). The people of Japan are swallowing up this new obsession. If they are not playing the game professionally, they are finding ways to become a part of baseball. Constable says, "Today the game has so many players that public playing fields must be booked a month or two in advance. Baseball is also Japan's leading spectator sport with 15 million people a year attending professional games" (23).

Japan has taken the American dream and shaped it to fit their basic mold. The Japanese are known throughout the world for being extremely dedicated to their work. This dedication has spread to their baseball. Where Americans look at baseball as fun and entertainment the Japanese think of baseball as work. It is expected that with the birth of a new "pastime", excitement and interest will follow. No one in the U.S. expects a new trend, especially in the form of recreation, to be effected by the work ethic, but Japanese standards expect the most out of every activity including recreation. Even when baseball was center stage in the United States, it was in no way related to the work place; almost the direct opposite. The Japanese have "transformed America's pastime into a game that mirrors their obsession with hard work and harmony. The consequences are often alarming" (Whiting 76). Whiting is implying that Japan's work ethic combined with America's dream of baseball could overrun the American version. Baseball is taken so seriously in Japan that even the corporations owning the teams enforce the relationship between baseball and work. "Japanese teams assume the names of the corporation that own them, rather them the cities where they play" (Fimrite 65). Dialogue taken from Welles's movie, Mr. Baseball, relates American baseball to Japanese baseball by showing the two different sides. An American baseball player is forced to play within the Japanese system. The different styles and beliefs between the two countries causes tension between him and the Japanese coach.

"Baseball is work, not fun," says the Japanese coach. "Baseball is grown men getting paid to play a game. When you were a little kid I bet you didn't pick up a bat and ball cause you were dying to work?" answers the American player (Welles). Americans tend to think of baseball as fun and pleasurable while the Japanese consider it to be actual work, sometimes causing them to miss the fun that the American dream provides.

Since Japan shaped their baseball from the U.S., there are many similarities between the two. On the other hand, Japan is vastly different from the U.S. which explains the many differences. "Japanese professional baseball is molded closely on the U.S. system where two separate leagues are maintained" (Tasker 31). American baseball is divided into two leagues: the American League and the National League. Japan also breaks down into two leagues: the Central League and the Pacific League. Japan even copies team mascots by "having names like the Buffaloes, Braves, and Tigers" (30). In each case the rules remain the same, but that is where the major similarities end. Playing style differs the greatest. American baseball is known for big ball parks, grass infields, aggressive play, home plate collisions, small strike zones, battling pitchers, and homerun hitting all-stars. According to Ron Fimrite, the Japanese systems runs a little different:

Their ball parks are considerably smaller, in some parks the infields are entirely dirt, the aggressive doubleplay breakup had to be introduced by an American, the strike zone is the size of a big screen television, constant hooking of troubled pitchers, and homerun hitters sacrificing runners along to abide to basic strategy. (64)

Although Japanese baseball is well established, it can still

use some help from the United States. Some Americans travel to Japan to play baseball either because they are not good enough to play in the states, or because a Japanese team needs the American experience. Once the Americans arrive in Japan, they are greeted with a mixture of feelings and expectations. "Americans must perform well enough to keep their teams afloat, but must be careful not to eclipse the local heroes" (Tasker 31). It is important for the Americans to play well and win games for their teams, but if they come close to breaking Japanese records, they are immediately taking out of the spotlight. "Ray Bass, who hit 220 homers in the U.S. minor leagues, looks absolutely Ruthian at the plate in Japan, also with three triple crowns, the most prestigious award in all of baseball" (Nefk 72). Ray Bass was on pace to tie and possibly beat the Japanese record for most homeruns in a season until pitchers started intentionally walking him to keep the record in Japanese hands. Some Japanese people feel "it is time for them to play America's game without the Americans" (Fimrite 66). One Japanese manager said, "I think it is better to have only Japanese players on the teams" (qtd. 66). Even though the Japanese have taken an American tradition, some are not fully willing to share it with the rest of the world, namely its founders.

Japan is also beginning to challenge America's love for the game. American baseball fans can find their identification to the sport through the "American" team, the New York Yankees. Japan also has a New York Yankees of their own. "A visitor would find many Japanese as passionate about the Yomiuri Giants as any baseball fan in the U.S." (Constable 24). Peter Tasker explains the significance of the Giants, "The Giants is not just a baseball club, it's an institution through which Japanese people can reassure themselves of their essential fellowships" (31). These Giants are much like the American Yankees in that they are both ambassadors for the sport. Like the New York Yankees of the U.S., the Yomiuri Giants of Japan have become a national symbol representing a new dream and also the American dream.

There is no question that Japan has taken a great part of the American dream and plugged it into their way of life. The many similarities and differences between the two countries capture a wonderful part of the American spirit which is rapidly becoming the new Japanese spirit. Japan has looked to America to develop several of their dreams.

Works Cited

Akutsu, Daisuke. Personal Interview. 17 Nov. 1995.

Constable, George. Japan. Alexandria, Virginia: Time Life Books, 1985.

Fimrite, Ron. "Land of the Rising Fastball." Sports Illustrated

9 Sept. 1985: 62.

Mr. Baseball. Dir. Orson Welles. Perf. Tom Selleck. Universal

City Studios, Inc., 1992.

Nefk, Craig. "The Hottest American Import in Japan." Sports

Illustrated 23 March 1987: 74.

Tasker, Peter. The Japanese. New York: Truman Talley Books,

1987.

Whiting, Robert. "The Pain of Perfection." Sports Illustrated

5 may 1989, 76.

BaseBall

I never did like the taste of dirt, but I had a mouthful of it from diving head first into second after smacking a line drive down the right field line. Sweat was trickling down my face and stinging my eyes as I wearily got up and wiped the dust off of my uniform. It was the top of the last inning and we were up 9-8. We had to win this game to finish above .500. I looked down at the third base coach, which seemed like a mile, and he gave me the signal to run on this pitch, but I saw the catcher was keeping his eye on me, like a predator hunting it's prey. I didn't run and my coach looked at me as if to say: "why didn't you run?" On the next pitch he gave me the signal to stay, but I knew I could catch the catcher off guard, so I ran. The catcher threw a bullet to third and it was a perfect throw, with the ball getting there just before my foot. "What are you doing?" screamed my coach. I just got up, discouraged and tired, and ran to the bench, got my glove and took my position in left field.

Everybody dreaded playing left field at this field, because you're staring straight into the eye of the evening sun, but I was always put there because I was the best outfielder. The bases were loaded like a gun waiting to go off and there were two outs. On the first pitch the batter lofted the ball into left field towards me, but of course the sun blinded me, causing me to lose track of it. I really despised the sun at that moment. When I saw the ball again, it was going to go over my head, but I started back-pedalling and then I leaped into the air, but the ball bounced straight up into the air off of the top of my glove. I landed on my back and when I opened my eyes, the ball was headed directly for my face, like a meteor hurtling towards earth. I instinctively put my glove over my face to shield it from the ball and the next thing I knew, the ball was resting safely in my glove. I was ecstatic. I couldn't believe I had just won the game and made up for my baserunning blunder.