ABSTRACT
This chapter describes the financial troubles of parent company Daiei that led to peril for the Fukuoka Daiei Hawks even as they celebrated their Japan Series championship. An aborted attempt to sell the “naming rights” for the Osaka Kintetsu Buffaloes indicates serious difficulties for them. The Orix BlueWave's own unsustainable losses prompts merger talks between Kintetsu and Orix. When the news breaks, players and fans are stunned, but the general attitude is one of resignation. However, Furuta Atsuya of the Nippon Professional Baseball Players Association is determined to resist and requests a postponement. He is stonewalled by the owners. Using email and the internet, fans throughout the nation form groups such as the Buffaloes, BlueWave Preservation Society and mount a petition campaign to halt the merger.
