This year marks 15 years since the Great East Japan Earthquake that occurred on March 11, 2011. Tohoku Rakuten Golden Eagles, whose name includes "Tohoku," have been supporting reconstruction efforts and working to ensure the disaster doesn't fade from memory since that year, with players and team staff donating relief funds, providing relief supplies, visiting disaster-stricken areas, and even playing to cheer up the people of Tohoku.

Ginji and Takero Okajima who have been with Rakuten Eagles since their retirement and are now team ambassadors, have been fighting for Tohoku ever since. We asked them to look back on the past 15 years.

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On the day the earthquake struck Tohoku, Rakuten Eagles' first team was playing an exhibition game against Chiba Lotte Marines Marines in Akashi, Hyogo Prefecture. Ginji, who was in his sixth year as a professional at the time, was playing in that game. After the bottom of the seventh inning, a team staff member told him that a large earthquake had occurred in Tohoku and that he should contact his family. Immediately after the earthquake, the lines were jammed with calls from so many people calling at once, making it difficult to get through, but Ginji said, "Luckily, my parents got through on the first try and told me, 'It's okay over here,'" and was able to quickly confirm their safety.

However, he said he had not yet realized the seriousness of the situation at the time. On the way back to the lodgings from the stadium, he was left speechless when he saw the video playing on the bus.

"In the footage taken from above Sendai Airport, I saw a black wave rushing in. I wondered if this was really happening in real life. I was speechless, and no one on the team said anything on the bus."

After that, Rakuten Eagles traveled around the country, mainly in the Kanto region, playing practice games and practicing. They returned to Sendai about a month later. Before the start of the season, Ginji visited an evacuation center in Onagawa Town, Oshika County, Miyagi Prefecture, with his teammates and team members. Upon seeing the city reduced to piles of rubble and the heartbroken expressions of the victims, he thought, "This is no time to be playing baseball. There's no way we'll be able to start the season this year."

The fighting leader's words united the team

Amidst the struggles, it was the words of then-manager Senichi Hoshino that inspired the team. "He told us, 'baseball is all we have, so let's make everyone smile with baseball,' and we knew we had no choice but to do it. From that point on, we all came together and fought. Manager Hoshino's words had the biggest impact on us," says Ginji.

Hoshino's message, "Let's make everyone smile through baseball," was filled with the hopes of the disaster victims. When he visited an evacuation center, he was told, "Win the championship for Tohoku," and the fighting general made a strong decision, saying, "I have to win for these people."

At the draft meeting held in October of the same year, Okajima was selected by Rakuten Eagles in the fourth round, and he said he was fired up and thought, "Okay, let's do it."

"After joining the team, I visited the disaster-stricken areas as a rookie player, but even after about a year, reconstruction had still not progressed. I never imagined the situation would be like this. As Manager Hoshino said, baseball was all I had, so I took on the challenge in my first year with the desire to do something for Tohoku. That desire grew stronger with each passing day."

At the victory parade, what I heard was "Thank you" instead of "Congratulations."

The moment of joy came to Tohoku two years later, in 2013. Rakuten Eagles had been performing well since the interleague games in mid-May, and on July 4th they tied for first place. They maintained that position until the end of the season, and finally won the league championship for the first time in the team's history on September 26th against the Saitama Seibu Lions. They then went on to play a fierce battle against The Giants in the Japan Series, which ended in a 3-3 draw until the seventh game, and captured the glory of becoming Japan's best team.

That year, Ginji recorded a batting average of .317, fourth in the league, RBI. In the Japan Series, he tied for the team's highest number of RBI with 5, earning him the Most Valuable Player Award. Okajima, who established himself as the leadoff hitter and right fielder in the second half of the season, performed well as the leadoff hitter, with a batting average of .323 and an on-base percentage of .405. In Game 7 of the Japan Series, he hit a timely doble that added a valuable extra point.

The two, who made a major contribution to achieving their long-cherished dream, rubbed their arms and said, "Just remembering (that moment) still gives me goosebumps." "I was happy, and I felt that we had finally brought smiles to the disaster-stricken areas. It would be nice if they could smile even a little, so I'm glad we were able to do that," said Ginji.

Okajima emphasizes that they were able to win thanks to the support of fans in Tohoku.

"When you enter the second half of the season in a high position, the stadium is always full for every game. It was a first for me as I was in my second year at the time. I think we were able to win thanks to the support of everyone who always fills the stadium and cheers us on."

On November 24th, exactly three weeks after becoming number one in Japan, a victory parade was held in Sendai city. 214,000 fans gathered along the approximately 1.5km road. Rather than congratulations, the crowd of fans expressed their gratitude.

"They kept saying 'thank you' to me.' It was a moment when I realized just how much Rakuten Eagles' victory meant to the people of Tohoku, who were living with so many different emotions," said Okajima.

"I was really happy when he said 'thank you'... I felt glad that I played baseball," said Ginji.

What prompted you to decide to become a team ambassador?

After that, as the players continued to visit the disaster area, local residents expressed their gratitude one after another. "They hold my hand and say, 'Thank you so much,' and even though I'm just visiting, they say that, and I think, 'Thank you very much,'" says Okajima.

Ginji, who still frequently travels to various parts of Tohoku, also narrowed his eyes, saying, "I stay at inns, buy souvenirs, and eat delicious food, especially since I retired, and I'm happy to be able to say, 'Thank you for coming.'" And he revealed that his appointment as a club ambassador was also determined by the voices of Tohoku fans.

"I had a period of about a month to think about whether to retire or continue baseball, and during that period, I was traveling around the disaster area and meeting and talking with various people. Among them, I was often told, 'Gin-chan, stay in Sendai after all, don't leave.' That's why I decided to stay in Sendai. I would like to continue to be close to Tohoku in the future."

Mr. Okajima, who retired at the end of last season, will also contribute to Tohoku with his "two-legged straw".

"Originally, I wanted to go to graduate school. Still, the team adjusted the content of my work so that I could balance my studies, so I decided to become an ambassador for Tohoku.

In graduate school, you will study training and sports. In the future, I would like to develop Tohoku athletes who will play at the top level. With the goal of monopolizing the 1st to 3rd place in the national tournament, I would like to gain a solid training knowledge. I want to give back various knowledge and skills to students in Tohoku."

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"Good luck Tohoku". With the slogan that has been raised since 2011 in mind, the two of them have completed their active lives. Even after retiring, he became the club's ambassador and enlivened Tohoku from a different angle. In the second part of the interview, we asked them to tell us about the gourmet food and sightseeing spots in Tohoku that they recommend.

[Part 2] "If you want to go to Tohoku Takero Okajima, this is here!

Interview and text by Yuna Takahashi