Meet me at the Nagoya Dome

I'm not really heading to Nagoya, unfortunately. I wish!
Saturday marks the opening of the 2007 JAPAN SERIES, and the match-up is every bit as intriguing as anything Major League Baseball can provide.
The Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters feature a gaijin manager, American Trey Hillman, and a former Japanese big-leaguer, outfielder Tsuyoshi Shinjo, who will retire after the series. "The Spaceman," as he is called, played for the New York Mets and my BELOVED SAN FRANCISCO GIANTS over here.
Americans have accused Japanese baseball of lacking personality. Not Shinjo!
He insists that his name be displayed in only romaji characters (i.e. not Japanese), he takes the field on a Harley-Davidson motorcycle and he wears a Halloween-style face mask during warm-ups. Shinjo is a true original in any country.
When the Fighters moved to Sapporo in 2003, Hokkaido fans gave the team scant attention. That definitely changed this year, when the Fighters won the Pacific League.
Now, the Fighters aim to become the first Japan Series champion crowned from the northern Island of Hokkaido in the 56-year history of Japan's two-league pro baseball system.
Their opponents and the hosts for the series opener, the Nagoya-based Chunichi Dragons, aim to make history of their own.
The Dragons have not won a Japan Series since 1954 -- the longest drought among existing teams. That year, ace Shigeru Sugishita pitched the Dragons to a four-games-to-three victory over the Nishitetsu Lions.
Who will win Japan's biggest baseball prize this year? Stay tuned...