The National Garden is a beautiful park that is definitely worth a visit if you have a couple of hours and you want to relax in a peaceful urban setting. Shinjuku Gyoen National Garden is in the area as well. It is only three stops from the ever-popular Shibuya area and two stops on the Oedo line from Shinjuku. Meiji Jingu Stadium is located in West Tokyo. After all, it is rumored that the owner of the team is a huge Giants fan so why would he pay for good players to compete against his favorite team? I can’t verify that rumor, but it does make it easier to understand the performance of the on-field product at times. Maybe the saddest aspect of being a Swallows fan is knowing that the owner of the team is never going to really try to field a consistently competitive team. If I ever go to a bullfight in Spain, I will be cheering on the bull. Besides, it is fun rooting for the underdog. Cheering for rich teams who can buy the best players goes against the whole ethos of sport. Rooting for the Giants is like being a Yankees, Real Madrid, or Golden State supporter. Just thinking about that makes my skin crawl a little bit. Even before I made the decision to put my support behind the Swallows, I knew there was no way the Giants would be my team. They are the sad, sometimes pathetic, often beaten little brother of the Yomiuri Giants.

The Swallows are basically the Japanese equivalent of the New York Mets.

If I had only known what I was getting myself into. I decided the Swallows would be my team solely on the reason that they were the first team I saw play in person.

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