i'll be in japan end of march/early april and want to see a baseball game. Anybody know where i can buy tickets on the web? can't seem to find much info (in english)? i found japanball.com , has anybody purchased from them/know they are legit? Seems a bit hefty $59 as a "ticket purchase fee/delivery", but i guess i'll pay it if thats what i need to do.

I've purchased Giants tickets online - http://www.e-tix.jp/ticket_giants/en..._en_index.html the past couple of summers

after watching youtube videos of the (psycho) fans, i am looking to go to a tigers game. Tried replacing giants with tigers in that link, no luck

If you wanted to go to a specific team at a specific stadium, you need to say that from the beginning.

e-tix only has contracts from some 5-10 sports teams; the Tigers aren't one of them. There is no way to buy Tigers tickets directly in English and with an overseas address. You'll need to go through a broker like japanball.com, arrange to have the concierge at your hotel get it for you, or wait till you get to Japan and have the tourist office do it for you.

There are ways to get the tickets over the internet or on the ground, but they all involve knowledge of Japanese. Be warned that on certain days, such as games at Koshien against the Giants, all tickets are sold out way in advance.

Aw. Don't be such a spoilsport.

My first Japanese baseball experience was mind blowing.

Don't remember who won, don't remember one little thing about the game however I have a vivid recollection of the drummer. The seats we purchased, (I didn't know at the time) was in the visitors fan zone. They were insane and loud and it was great fun.

You are going to have a good time.

Depending on the game and teams involved, it is very possible to walk up and buy a ticket for the game on that day. With the Tigers that could a bit harder. Probably the easiest method is the hotel concierge route. They should be able to arrange it pretty easy for you.

I'm doing my own research and found this thread so thought I'd bump it instead of starting a whole new one.

That fee does seem hefty and is almost double what moderate tickets are. e-tix however will let me walk through and price games well in advance with decent seats behind home plate for JPY2,300 without extra fees or charges and overseas CC & addresses are accepted so think I'll go that route instead.

When would the 2013 season go on sale?

The AmEx Plainum Concierge got me a ticket to a game in Tokyo last year at face value, with free delivery to my hotel. If you have an AmEx Platinum card or will be attending with someone who has one, I'd recommend enlisting the services of the Concierge.

Thanks for the note but alas I am without an Amex of any flavor.

My trip isn't until end March 2013 so loads of time but was just doing some FT research and thought I'd bump this thread.

You might be out of luck then, as the World Baseball Classic will be held in 2013. The last time this tournament was held in 2009, the start of the JPB season was postponed until mid-April.

Edit: On the other hand, you might be able to take in a spring training game, which would likely be cheaper while providing nearly the same atmosphere.

I can assure you that buying a ticket for a game at the gate is a 100% sure thing for the Swallows or Yokohama against any opponent, especially in early season. The same is true for Chiba and Saitama. I also you discourage you from going to the sterile Tokyo Dome to see the hated Giants.

You can check attendance at the NPB website to get an idea if Giants or Tigers actually sell out. Also, weekday games tend to be poorly attended because of the 6 pm start. The attendance numbers reflect tickets sold rather than people passing through the gates. I know this because I went to a Swallows game where the official attendance was 6000 and I assure you that there was around 1000 people in the stadium.

Regarding tickets in general (I would not bother for baseball), I found a place called Ticketport (a PIA outlet) that offers over-the-counter ticket sales to all events. I use the shop in the 109 building in Shibuya. It's on 2F in the tower facing the corner and you access from the outside. The key advantage here is that you can select specific seats in a seating section. If you buy online or at 7-11 then you cannot control the specific seat that you get. They also accept any credit card. The ticketing fee for two tickets is only 210 yen. (I think it's a flat fee but not sure.) For J-League (soccer) the tickets are typically discounted 500 yen if you buy in advance. I speak remedial Japanese, but the clerks at Ticketport also speak some very basic English unlike your typical convenience store clerk.

p.s. Note that the baseball teams also have box offices open during the day. For the Swallows and Giants this is not out of the way for most visitors.

Which team has 2,300 yen tickets behind home plate?? These tickets typically run 5,000+ yen.

Sorry as I didn't mean to imply they were directly behind home plate low in the stands but higher up on the top tier of Tokyo Dome but still behind home plate rather than down the lines or in LF or RF stands. Section E27 had some individual seats for that price when I checked for some games in Sept.

TBH I recall going up to the Tokyo Dome on the day of a game, and a national holiday and got a standing ticket, albeit up the top of the stadium for a very reasonable price.

Apologies though for not being able to remember the price exactly, but was in March/April.