Do high school kids need a buzz cut? “Because it is a tradition” “Dedicated to baseball” Free schools are still few | Kahoku Shimpo Online News / ONLINE NEWS

June 29, 2021 06:00

“My son, a high school student, wants to continue playing baseball but is worried because he feels resistance to buzz cut.” A reader from Miyagino-ku, Sendai City sent a letter to the “Special Press Room with Readers”. Will the buzz cut continue to be a symbol of high school baseball players? We interviewed the leaders in Miyagi prefecture and the Takano Ren in the prefecture to find out about the hair situation.

Implicit rules

Shibata (Shibata Town), who participated in the selected high school baseball tournament for the first time this spring, has an implicit rule of buzz cut in principle. Director Makoto Hiratsuka (48) said, “I can devote myself to high school baseball for a limited time of two and a half years. I want you to concentrate on baseball without worrying about your hairstyle.”
When I asked the leaders of several high schools who are cutting the ball, they answered, “Tradition,” “I want you to concentrate on baseball,” and “It’s easier to cut the ball when playing a game.” However, no leader believed that hairstyles would affect baseball skills.
In principle, Furukawa Gakuen (Osaki City) also cuts round. Director Ryo Yonekura (37) said, “It’s a matter of thinking including attitude toward baseball,” and points out that “there is a judgment for each school, and students have the freedom to choose a school.”
The “Japan Student Baseball Charter,” which sets out the principles and policies of student baseball, does not have any provisions regarding hair. The prefectural Takano Ren entrusts the judgment to each school, but at present, in principle, buzz cut is common. However, the number of schools with free hair in the baseball club is increasing.
Sanuma (Tome City) abolished the tradition of buzz cut in the fall of 2019. The opportunity was that the members who saw the short hair of the opponent in the practice game told Yasuhiro Matsui (48) that he wanted to stop cutting the buzz cut.
There is no special rule on the length of the hair. Discussions were held among the members, and the minimum rules such as “two blocks are prohibited” and “bangs should be put in a hat” were confirmed.
“The students seem to be confident by voluntarily quitting the buzz cut,” said Matsui. When he was in elementary school, he hated buzz cut and sometimes cried and shaved his hair. “I thought I couldn’t play baseball without a buzz cut. Maybe some students have the same feelings.”
As of May this year, other than Sanuma, Sendai Ichi, Sendai Ni, and Furukawa Reimei (Osaki City) have free hair. The instructor explains, “There is a voice from parents saying,’How about a buzz cut?'” “If you don’t like buzz cut and don’t play baseball, you should stop buzz cut.”

Powerhouses considering liberalization

Sendai Ikuei, one of the most powerful schools in Japan, has been based on the principle of buzz cut, but has begun to consider liberalization. It is said that there are some students who are reluctant to join the club because of their resistance to hairstyles, and director Sue Ko (38) said, “The disadvantage of unifying with a buzz cut is increasing.
Hairstyles are an old and new theme. Kaji Matsumoto, president of the Prefectural High School Baseball Federation, said, “I’m not thinking about deciding anything as the Takano Ren. There is no need to cut the ball, and each school can decide.”
(Sachiri Kitamura)