Many teams in the Major Leagues consistently work on stocking their Minor League systems with exciting prospects. These prospects can often define the future of organizations, and teams watch their top prospects quite closely to determine when they may be ready for the big leagues. There are a number of young players in the Minor Leagues and rookies in the Major Leagues who are currently drawing big expectations. Perhaps the player with the most hype is Washington Nationals prospect Bryce Harper, who was drafted first overall in the 2010 draft. Harper initially started his 2011 Read more »

In 1936, Japan’s first professional league (Nippon Professional Baseball, or NPB) was formed, and by 1950 its popularity had grown so much that a second league was formed. The fundamental rules are the same, but NPB rules stipulate that each team can have no more than four foreign-born players.

The first Japanese player to appear in the American major leagues was pitcher Masanori Murakami with the 1964 San Francisco Giants. Hideo Nomo was next with the Dodgers, earning 1995 NL Rookie of the Year, and twice led the league in strikeouts as well as Read more »

For the 2012 major league baseball season many fans will be watching Yu Darvish of the Texas Rangers. Behind him there are several other Nippon League stars that are ready to cross the Pacific Ocean.

Shinnosuke Abe currently is a star catcher for the Yomiuri Giants. This thirty year old star plays on the best team in Japan and has been selected as one of the most dynamic stars of the Nippon league. As a catcher his services are in demand at the major league level in the United States. His age may be a factor in why he Read more »

American baseball fans know all about Nipponese superstars like Ichiro Suzuki and productive players like Hideki Matsui. They probably have some familiarity with American ballplayers like Randy Bass, who crossed the Pacific and became extremely successful in the Land of Rising Sun. They may not know just how long Nipponese baseball has been an international game. In particular, one of Nipponese baseball’s immortal pitching legends was born in Russia.

In the days when Bob Feller and Dizzy Dean baffled American sluggers, Victor Read more »

Many people may not realize it, but baseball is one of the most popular sports in Japan. Fans pack the stadiums and cheer wildly for their favorite teams throughout the course of the game. While American baseball and Japanese baseball are basically alike, these two versions of baseball do have some differences.

In Japan, the baseball itself is slightly different from the ball used in America. Japanese baseballs are a little smaller, and they are more tightly wound producing a harder Read more »