Japan's Kojima, with its proud Jeans Street, draws fans of vintage, deep-blue denim

KOJIMA, Japan (AP) — Denim, that All-American fabric, is all about being Japanese in the town of Kojima, where the main road is named Jeans Street, with real pairs of pants flapping like flags overhead.

Some would call this spot in southwestern seaside Okayama Prefecture a mecca of jeans, where fans from around the world make pilgrimage. The soda vending machines at the train station are plastered with the image of jeans. The roads are painted blue, with the lines at the edges pink and white, the trademark of Kojima jeans’ seams.

With some 40 jeans manufacturers and stores, including denim-themed cafes, the area draws about 100,000 visitors a year, according to the Japan National Tourism Organization.

Japanese jeans tend to be high-end, dark and durable. Although a tiny part of the global jeans market, they have carved out a niche with a reputation for craftsmanship. Kojima gave birth to popular brands like Big John, with roots dating to the 1940s, and now supplies international fashion brands, including Gucci.

“The Japanese industry has established a way of looking at denim from a much more connoisseurship and collecting approach” than a mass marketing one, says Emma McClendon, assistant professor of fashion studies at St. John’s University in New York.

In Kojima, you might be in for a disappointment if you expect the glamour of a fashion center. Jeans Street is quaint and uncrowded. Each company in the region is relatively small, hiring about 100 people.

What you will find are people taking pride in “monozukuri,” or “making things,” connoting a devoted, laborious attention to detail. It’s an ethic entrenched throughout Japan, from big carmakers to the local tofu store.

“More like making a kimono” is the way Yoshiharu Okamoto, a dyeing craftsman at Kojima-based manufacturer Momotaro Jeans, puts it.

His hands and nails are tinged blue from dipping threads of Zimbabwean cotton into a big pail of dye.

He knows by smell and feel the right state of the indigo, which he compares to a living thing. He swears it’s a 365-days-a-year job, as the dye has to be checked and mixed every day.

“It’s not that easy to get this special color,” Okamoto told The Associated Press during a recent tour of the production facilities. “It’s my life.”

The dark indigo hue of Made-in-Japan denim, much of it hailing from Kojima, is so distinctive it has earned the name “Japan blue,” also known as “tokuno blue,” which translates to “especially concentrated blue.”

Jeans made here aren’t cheap, ranging in price from a relatively affordable 33,000 yen ($230) per pair to those made by top craftsmen, which go for 200,000 yen ($1,400) or more.

Thomas Stege Bojer, founder of Denimhunters, an online site devoted to denim, says Japanese brands use “raw denim” that ages well and lasts a long time. He echoed the “ slow clothing” movement that has arisen in reaction to cheaper, mass-produced clothes.

“We just make too many clothes. The cycle is too fast, I think, and we need to slow down,” Bojer said from his home near Copenhagen, Denmark, where the walls are decorated with jeans.

As McClendon, the fashion professor, put it, the Japanese industry is "shifting the conversation around jeans to be about heritage elements, about educating consumers on historical details as a form of quality.”

Momotaro Jeans, for instance, come with a lifetime warranty: Tears and other problems get fixed for free, within reason. Japan Blue Co., which runs Momotaro, a brand that debuted in 2006, said annual sales totaled about 1.6 billion yen ($11 million) for the latest year. About 40% of sales come from outside Japan.

Like craftsman Okamoto, Shigeru Uchida, a loom specialist, and Naomi Takebayashi, who works at a sewing machine, believe they have special skills they must guard and hand to the next generation. They spoke while leading a group of younger sewers.

The two say they have a special relationship with their machines. They listen to the machines' sounds to make daily adjustments.

The clattering power looms are vintage Toyodas, from the weaving company that preceded automaker Toyota. Spare parts are hard to find. There is one loom operated by hand, used for products that the company says boast a unique texture.

Masataka Suzuki, president and chief operating officer at Japan Blue, says the industrial history of the region is a source of strength, centered around sewing heavy fabrics, including military clothes and obi sashes for kimonos, as well as the cotton and indigo-dyeing native to the area.

That’s why the jeans are for life, Suzuki said, fading and creasing, depending on how they’re worn and how the wearer lives.

“We want to create a product that is a testament to a person’s life,” he said.

Yuri Kageyama is on X: https://x.com/yurikageyama

The Momotaro Jeans shop is pictured in Tokyo, on Sept. 18, 2024. (AP Photo/Eugene Hoshiko)

Shop clarks work at Momotaro Jeans shop in Tokyo, on Sept. 18, 2024. (AP Photo/Eugene Hoshiko)

Shop clerk Yuta Akagi displays the jeans at Momotaro Jeans shop in Tokyo, on Sept. 18, 2024. (AP Photo/Eugene Hoshiko)

Shop clerk Yuta Akagi displays the jeans at Momotaro Jeans shop in Tokyo, on Sept. 18, 2024. (AP Photo/Eugene Hoshiko)

Japan Blue Co. President and Chief Operating Officer Masataka Suzuki shows some of the jeans products from Momotaro Jeans at headquarters in Kojima, southwestern Japan. Taken Sept. 4, 2024. (AP Photo/Yuri Kageyama)

This shows a closeup of the vintage looms that weave the denim in Kojima, Okayama prefecture, Japan, on Sept. 4, 2024. (AP Photo/Yuri Kageyama)

Pairs of jeans flap over Jeans Street in Kojima, Okayama prefecture, Japan, on Sept. 4, 2024. (AP Photo/Yuri Kageyama)

A seamstress works on denim trousers at Momotaro Jeans using a vintage sewing machine in Kojima, Okayama prefecture, western Japan, on Sept. 4, 2024. (AP Photo/Ayaka McGill)

A weaver operates a handloom at Momotaro Jeans in Kojima, Okayama prefecture, western Japan, on Sept. 4, 2024. (AP Photo/Ayaka McGill)

Naomi Takebayashi, a seamstress at Momotaro Jeans, hand-stiches a pair of jeans in Kojima, Okayama prefecture, western Japan, on Sept. 4, 2024. (AP Photo/Ayaka McGill)

Naomi Takebayashi, a seamstress at Momotaro Jeans, sewing a pair of jeans in Kojima, Okayama prefecture, western Japan, on Sept. 4, 2024. (AP Photo/Ayaka McGill)

Naomi Takebayashi, a seamstress at Momotaro Jeans, works on pairs of jeans in Kojima, Okayama prefecture, western Japan, on Sept. 4, 2024. (AP Photo/Ayaka McGill)

Dyeing craftsman Yoshiharu Okamoto shows how he dyes the threads in indigo for denim at Momotaro Jeans in Kojima, Okayama prefecture, Japan, on Sept. 4, 2024. (AP Photo/Yuri Kageyama)

A dyer at Momotaro Jeans shows dyed yarn in Kojima, Okayama prefecture, western Japan, on Sept. 4, 2024. (AP Photo/Ayaka McGill)

Yoshiharu Okamoto, a dyer at Momotaro Jeans, demonstrates dyeing yarn in indigo for making denim in Kojima, Okayama prefecture, western Japan, on Sept. 4, 2024. (AP Photo/Ayaka McGill)

Weaver Shigeru Uchida and his colleague inspect vintage loom machines at Momotaro Jeans in Kojima, Okayama prefecture, western Japan, on Sept. 4, 2024. (AP Photo/Ayaka McGill)

Shigeru Uchida, a weaver at Momotaro Jean, examines a vintage loom machine in Kojima, Okayama prefecture, western Japan, on Sept. 4, 2024. (AP Photo/Ayaka McGill)

Weaving craftsman Shigeru Uchida examines the evenness of the fabric being woven by the old power looms at Momotaro Jeans in Kojima, Okayama prefecture, Japan, on Sept. 4, 2024. (AP Photo/Yuri Kageyama)

Shigeru Uchida, a weaver at Momotaro Jeans, holds a wooden shuttle next to a vintage loom machine in Kojima, Okayama prefecture, Japan, on Sept. 4, 2024. (AP Photo/Ayaka McGill)

SAN DIEGO (AP) — Fernando Tatis Jr. hit a towering two-run homer on his first playoff swing in four years and Michael King struck out 12 in his first postseason start as the San Diego Padres beat rookie AJ Smith-Shawver and the Atlanta Braves 4-0 in Game 1 of their NL Wild Card Series on Tuesday night.

Tatis' 415-foot shot in the first inning landed in the second deck in left field at Petco Park and sent the towel-waving, sellout crowd of 47,647 into a frenzy. The 25-year-old star, who missed just more than 2 1/2 months this season with a stress reaction in his right thighbone, watched the ball fly away, tossed his bat aside, gestured toward the home dugout and did his signature stutter step around third base.

“It’s beautiful energy. I love this type of situation,” Tatis said. “It definitely brings the best out of me. And just looking forward to way more experiences like this.”

He said he was hunting a fastball.

“I was going for it probably before he released the pitch. But looking for my fastball, he left it over the plate, and had definitely great results,” Tatis said. “I knew it was going to go out. I didn’t know it was going to land in the second deck just because how high it was.”

Game 2 in the best-of-three playoff is Wednesday night. If the Padres win the series, they'll face their biggest rivals, the NL West champion Los Angeles Dodgers, in the National League Division Series. The Padres eliminated the 111-win Dodgers in a 2022 NLDS.

King was brilliant in becoming the first pitcher to have 12 strikeouts with no runs or walks allowed in his first career postseason start. He permitted five hits and joined Kevin Brown and Sterling Hitchcock as the only Padres pitchers with double-digit strikeouts in a playoff game.

At 2 hours, 9 minutes, it was the fastest postseason game since Greg Maddux and the Braves beat the Dodgers in 2:08 during a 1996 NL Division Series.

“I think I dreamed of a perfect game instead of a few hits that I gave up,” said King, who came over in the blockbuster trade that sent Juan Soto to the New York Yankees in December. “But I mean, to get up 1-0 in a three-game series is huge. That was the goal and we accomplished that. We've got our horse Joe (Musgrove) tomorrow and I’ve got a lot of confidence in us.”

King made his postseason debut with the Yankees in the AL playoff bubble in 2020 at eerily empty Petco Park, where the only “fans” were a few thousand cardboard cutouts. He pitched two innings in a Game 3 loss during a Division Series that Tampa Bay won in five games.

Getting the quick 2-0 lead “made it so I could really attack on my fastball and stay ahead in the counts and really put the pressure on,” King said. “Feeling the crowd noise, knowing how big postseason games are, it all played into my mentality throughout the whole game.”

The Braves clinched a playoff berth by winning the second game of a makeup doubleheader against the New York Mets on Monday in Atlanta. But they are without NL Cy Young Award favorite Chris Sale for this series. The left-hander was scratched from the late game Monday with back spasms.

Atlanta played 27 innings on opposite coasts in a little more than 24 hours.

Tatis homered on a 94 mph four-seamer from the 21-year-old Smith-Shawver, one of the Braves' top prospects. He was making his first playoff start and just his second this season.

Luis Arraez was aboard on a leadoff single. Arraez, obtained in a trade with Miami in early May, became the first player since the 1800s to win batting titles with three teams.

Tatis experienced his first postseason game with fans in the stands. His first playoffs were in 2020 after the pandemic-shortened season. He missed San Diego's run to the 2022 National League Championship Series after receiving an 80-game PED suspension from MLB that August.

His home run came on the anniversary of his two homers in a 2020 Wild Card Series game against the St. Louis Cardinals. Mike Shildt, in his first season managing the Padres, was St. Louis' skipper then.

Kyle Higashioka homered in the eighth and had a sacrifice fly in the second. He is 3 for 30 against Atlanta, with three homers.

San Diego was the only one of the four home teams to win its playoff opener Tuesday.

Smith-Shawver allowed three runs and four hits in 1 1/3 innings.

Braves manager Brian Snitker said Smith-Shawver didn't know he was starting until the skipper called him Tuesday morning.

“It wasn’t because of who we started that we didn’t win this game,” Snitker said. “We couldn’t get anything going offensively.”

Said Smith-Shawver: “There are obviously nerves, but also it is where you want to be throwing and sometimes it doesn’t work out your way. But I don’t think nerves were the issue today.”

TRAINER'S ROOM

Braves: Snitker said he spoke with Sale on Tuesday: “He's not feeling real good. He wanted to be here pitching. Unfortunately, he can't. It's tough for him. He was realistic with us in how he felt.”

UP NEXT

Braves LHP Max Fried (11-10, 3.25 ERA) and Musgrove (6-5, 3.88) are scheduled to start Wednesday night. Fried is a former Padres farmhand. Musgrove grew up in suburban El Cajon.

AP MLB: https://apnews.com/hub/mlb

San Diego Padres' Donovan Solano reacts after connecting for a single during the second inning in Game 1 of an NL Wild Card Series baseball game against the Atlanta Braves, Tuesday, Oct. 1, 2024, in San Diego. (AP Photo/Gregory Bull)

Atlanta Braves pitcher Jesse Chavez throws to a San Diego Padres batter during the sixth inning in Game 1 of an NL Wild Card Series baseball game Tuesday, Oct. 1, 2024, in San Diego. (AP Photo/Gregory Bull)

Atlanta Braves' Travis d'Arnaud (16) slides into second base with a double before the tag attempt from San Diego Padres second baseman Jake Cronenworth during the fourth inning in Game 1 of an NL Wild Card Series baseball game Tuesday, Oct. 1, 2024, in San Diego. (AP Photo/Gregory Bull)

San Diego Padres' Jackson Merrill, left, is out at first base on a ground ball behind Atlanta Braves relief pitcher Aaron Bummer during the fourth inning in Game 1 of an NL Wild Card Series baseball game Tuesday, Oct. 1, 2024, in San Diego. (AP Photo/Gregory Bull)

San Diego Padres' Jake Cronenworth scores on a sacrifice fly ball from Kyle Higashioka during the second inning in Game 1 of an NL Wild Card Series baseball game against the Atlanta Braves, Tuesday, Oct. 1, 2024, in San Diego. (AP Photo/Gregory Bull)

Atlanta Braves relief pitcher Aaron Bummer throws to a San Diego Padres batter during the second inning in Game 1 of an NL Wild Card Series baseball game Tuesday, Oct. 1, 2024, in San Diego. (AP Photo/Gregory Bull)

Atlanta Braves' Orlando Arcia reacts after dodging an inside pitch during the third inning in Game 1 of an NL Wild Card Series baseball game against the San Diego Padres, Tuesday, Oct. 1, 2024, in San Diego. (AP Photo/Gregory Bull)

Atlanta Braves pitcher Luke Jackson stands on the mound after giving up a solo home run to San Diego Padres' Kyle Higashioka during the eighth inning in Game 1 of an NL Wild Card Series baseball game Tuesday, Oct. 1, 2024, in San Diego. (AP Photo/Gregory Bull)

Atlanta Braves' Orlando Arcia tosses his bat as he flies out during the fifth inning in Game 1 of an NL Wild Card Series baseball game against the San Diego Padres,Tuesday, Oct. 1, 2024, in San Diego. (AP Photo/Gregory Bull)

Atlanta Braves left fielder Ramón Laureano watches a home run from San Diego Padres' Kyle Higashioka go over the wall during the eighth inning in Game 1 of an NL Wild Card Series baseball game Tuesday, Oct. 1, 2024, in San Diego. (AP Photo/Gregory Bull)

Atlanta Braves pitcher Luke Jackson stands on the mound after giving up a solo home run to San Diego Padres' Kyle Higashioka during the eighth inning in Game 1 of an NL Wild Card Series baseball game Tuesday, Oct. 1, 2024, in San Diego. (AP Photo/Gregory Bull)

San Diego Padres starting pitcher Michael King walks off the mound after getting the third out during the sixth inning in Game 1 of an NL Wild Card Series baseball game against the Atlanta Braves, Tuesday, Oct. 1, 2024, in San Diego. (AP Photo/Gregory Bull)

San Diego Padres starting pitcher Michael King throws to a Atlanta Braves batter during the first inning in Game 1 of an NL Wild Card Series baseball game Tuesday, Oct. 1, 2024, in San Diego. (AP Photo/Gregory Bull)

San Diego Padres' Fernando Tatis Jr. runs onto the field at the start of Game 1 of an NL Wild Card Series baseball game against the Atlanta Braves, Tuesday, Oct. 1, 2024, in San Diego. (AP Photo/Gregory Bull)

San Diego Padres' Fernando Tatis Jr. is introduced before Game 1 of an NL Wild Card Series baseball game against the Atlanta Braves, Tuesday, Oct. 1, 2024, in San Diego. (AP Photo/Gregory Bull)

San Diego Padres' Fernando Tatis Jr., right, celebrates with Luis Arraez (4) after hitting a two-run home run during the first inning in Game 1 of an NL Wild Card Series baseball game against the Atlanta Braves, Tuesday, Oct. 1, 2024, in San Diego. (AP Photo/Gregory Bull)

San Diego Padres' Fernando Tatis Jr. celebrates after hitting a two-run home run during the first inning in Game 1 of an NL Wild Card Series baseball game against the Atlanta Braves, Tuesday, Oct. 1, 2024, in San Diego. (AP Photo/Gregory Bull)

San Diego Padres' Fernando Tatis Jr. tosses his bat after hitting a two-run home run during the first inning in Game 1 of an NL Wild Card Series baseball game against the Atlanta Braves, Tuesday, Oct. 1, 2024, in San Diego. (AP Photo/Gregory Bull)