Behind the Legendary Controversial Call in the Japan Series, Revealed by NPB’s First Chief Umpire

Former professional baseball umpire Osamu Ino, who officiated 2,902 games and served as the first NPB chief umpire, candidly discusses his career in his latest book “Professional Baseball: 90% is Umpires—Legendary Battles Seen Through the Mask” (published by Gento-sha), now available.

Professional Baseball is 90% Umpiring: Legendary Offenses and Defenses Seen Through the Mask ” (Gentosha) is now on sale.

In the current “Professional Baseball: 90% is Umpires—Legendary Battles Seen Through the Mask” (Gento-sha), a book gaining attention, we delve into a legendary call that shaped the Japan Series, as we aim to deepen the enjoyment of the heated 2024 Japan Series between the Yokohama DeNA BayStars and the Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks. This excerpt, re-edited from the book, highlights the iconic judgment. (The expressions and wording are based on the book’s content.)

 

The Legendary Call from the Japan Series that is still talked about today.

 

The Japan Series, which began in 1950 with the division of the two leagues, has been held 74 times up until 2023. Let’s take a look at some legendary calls.

First, there is umpire Mitsuru Enjoji (born in 1908, with 21 years of umpire experience and 2,373 games officiated).

In the 1961 Japan Series, Game 4 between the Giants and Nankai (at Korakuen Stadium). With the Giants leading 2-1 and trailing by one run, with two outs and the bases loaded in the bottom of the 9th inning, pitcher Joe Stanka threw a low, inside pitch to Tetsuo Miyamoto, who was already down two strikes. The pitch was a close call, but Enjoji, as the umpire behind the plate, called it a ball.

Despite protests from catcher Katsuya Nomura and manager Isao Tsuruoka, the call stood. After the game resumed, Miyamoto hit a walk-off, game-winning single to right field. At that moment, Stanka appeared to charge at Enjoji, as though he were backing up home plate, and collided with him. After the game, the Nankai players vigorously protested against Enjoji. Ultimately, the Giants reclaimed the championship for the first time in six years.

“Enjoji, was that a ball? The autumn sky.” (Unknown poet)

“It was a close pitch that could have been called either a strike or a ball. I think Enjoji may have felt regret after that, as he had to retire from umpiring due to health problems.” (Tsuruoka)

Enjoji passed away in 1983 at the age of 75. In 1990, exactly 30 years after that Japan Series, a baseball reporter asked then-manager Nomura (of Yakult) about that play.

“I thought we had won the game when I saw the pitch, and I slightly lifted my rear. It was a close call, but if I had caught it with more authority, maybe Enjoji would have called it a strike. It was 0.1 seconds too early. I regret it.”

If Enjoji had heard those words, he would have surely been pleased. For umpires, it is considered a compliment when no one notices them. Only when a controversial call is made does an umpire’s name come up. It is a job that wears on the nerves.