Strike threatens Japan baseball

Fans are also angered by the planned merger

Japan's professional baseball players are threatening to go on strike for the first time since the game was introduced from the US 70 years ago.

Players are angry about a proposed merger between two clubs, Orix Bluewave and Kintetsu Buffaloes, which could lead to up to 100 job losses.

The clubs' owners say a merger is the only way to keep the teams in business.

Baseball is keenly followed by fans and TV audiences in Japan, despite suffering a recent drop in popularity.

The players' union is particularly worried that if the merger goes ahead, it could prompt the owners of other loss-making teams to follow suit.

It could also force the restructuring of Japan's current arrangement whereby teams compete in two leagues of six-teams each.

"If they (the teams' owners) decide to reduce the baseball teams, we will conduct a strike," said Atsuya Furuta, catcher for the Swallows team and head of the Japan Baseball Players Association.

"Fans are opposed to one league or a team merger, and if we don't make a stand, we would disappoint them," he said.

Players are threatening to strike every weekend in September unless officials agree to shelve the merger by Friday.

But Central League President Hajime Toyokura said the owners could take action against the players too.

"If the players strike, we are considering suing the players to seek compensation for damages," he said.

On Monday, a Tokyo court rejected a union appeal for an injunction against the merger, which reflects the growing financial pressures on some clubs.

Attendance at baseball games and ratings of televised games have been dropping in Japan in recent years, as football has become more popular.

Stars such as Ichiro Suzuki and Hideki Matsui have also moved to the US.