I originally posted this in the coffee shop. Later I thought "this is full of history and belongs in this thread"
I first became aware of baseball in Japan when Sadaharu Oh was approaching Babe Ruth, and then Hank Aaron's home run records. Oh, went on to hit 868 homeruns, the most in professional baseball history.
He played for the Yomiuri Giants, 1959–1980. In addition to his 868 homeruns, he had 2,170RBI with a 301-batting average. He won 11 Japan Series Titles as a player and 2 more as a manager. He was a 2-time Triple Crown Winner to go along with his 9 Central League MVP awards. An impressive career indeed!
Oh, was born to a Chinese father and Japanese mother, and though he was technically Taiwanese by nationality, he became a beloved icon in Japanese sports. His dedication, humility, and power at the plate made him a national treasure.
Babe Ruth played a pivotal role in popularizing baseball in Japan, especially during his legendary 1934 barnstorming tour. Before that tour baseball in Japan was mostly amateur and university-level and not exceedingly popular.
Ruth joined an American All-Star team, including Lou Gehrig, Jimmie Foxx, Lefty Gomez, and others for an 18-game exhibition tour across Japan. They played against top Japanese university players, drawing massive crowds. Over 500,000 people greeted Ruth upon his arrival in Japan.
It is interesting to note that there was a spy among the American players. Journey man catcher Moe Berg was that spy. He was highly educated, a graduate of Princeton and Columbia Law School and fluent in multiple languages. During the 1934 tour, he brought a 16-mm movie camera and filmed Japanese military installations, including naval yards and industrial sites.
Moe later joined the Office of Strategic Services (OSS), the precursor to the CIA, and conducted espionage many missions during World War II. His inclusion on the tour raised eyebrows even then, as he didn’t match the All-Star caliber of teammates like Babe Ruth and Lou Gehrig. He was a legitimate MLB player; he played fifteen seasons in the majors. But his off-the-field skills made him invaluable. That trip to Japan is widely believed to be his first covert mission.
