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From a true insider’s perspective,
In the Japanese Ballpark explores the differences between the Japanese and American game through interviews with the people who play, oversee, promote, and watch the game, providing insight and revealing what makes Japanese baseball special.
List of contents
List of Illustrations
Introduction
Japanese Baseball Timeline
Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB) Teams
Glossary
Part 1: Setting the Stage 1. Robert Whiting, Journalist
Part 2: On the Diamond 2. Matt Murton, Player
3. Shungo Fukunaga, Minor League Player
4. Natsuo Yamazaki, Umpire
5. Trey Hillman, Manager
Part 3: In the Ballpark 6. Jim Allen, Sportswriter
7. Jennie Roloff Rothman, Superfan
8. Yasuro Karibe, Oendan Leader
9. Taylor Foote, Mascot Team
10. Saori Ogure, Cheerleader
11. Yuri Tanaka, Uriko (beer girl)
12. Kenjiro Kajita, Ballpark Security & Intern
Part 4: In The Clubhouse 13. Toshihiro Nagata, Data Analyst
14. Ichiro Kitano, Trainer
15. Ken Iwamoto, Interpreter
Part 5: The Front Office 16. Marty Kuehnert, General Manager
17. Tomoko Namba, Team Owner
18. Shun Kakazu, Assistant General Manager
19. Jonathan Fine, Assistant General Manager
Part 6: The Business of Baseball 20. Shigeo Araki, Marketing Director
21. Tomoki Negishi, Marketing and Business Development
22. Noamichi Yokota, Marketing and Merchandising
23. Ryozo Kato, NPB Commissioner
24. Edwin Dominguez Alvarez, Agent
25. Tatsuo Shinke, Sport Cards
Part 7: Conclusion 26. Bobby Valentine, Manager
Appendix A: Tips on Following NPB from Outside of Japan
Appendix B: Tips on Collecting Japanese Baseball Cards & Memorabilia
Appendix C: Tips on Attending Games in Japan
Appendix D: Recommended English-Language Books on NPB
Notes
Acknowledgments
Index
About the author
Robert K. Fitts is a curatorial consultant for the National Baseball Hall of Fame and a baseball historian. He is the author of eleven books of Japanese baseball, including
Issei Baseball: The Story of the First Japanese American Ballplayers (Nebraska, 2020),
Banzai Babe Ruth: Baseball, Espionage, and Assassination during the 1934 Tour of Japan (Nebraska, 2013), and
Mashi: The Unfulfilled Baseball Dreams of Masanori Murakami, the First Japanese Major Leaguer (Nebraska, 2015), and is the coeditor of
Nichibei Yakyu: U.S. Tours of Japan, volumes I and II.
