On October 26, 1949 — The San Francisco Seals of the Pacific Coast League, infused with some major league players, complete an 11-game trip to American-occupied Japan, a tour that drew more than half a million spectators to the games played at Tokyo, Nagoya, and Osaka. One of the Japanese games draws over 100,000 fans.
Lefty O’Doul, the team’s 52 year-old skipper, who had been personally asked by General Douglas McArthur to organize the first post-war peacetime cultural exchanges between the two nations due to his warm relationship with Asian nation, will be enthusiastically greeted by the Japanese fans, including Emperor Hirohito and Prince Akihito.
Baseball is the only game you can watch on the radio. Join the community today and listen to hundreds of broadcasts from baseball’s golden age
@ET-DC@eyJkeW5hbWljIjp0cnVlLCJjb250ZW50IjoicG9zdF90YWdzIiwic2V0dGluZ3MiOnsiYmVmb3JlIjoiTGVhcm4gTW9yZSBhYm91dCB0aGUgdGVhbXMsIHBsYXllcnMsIGJhbGwgcGFya3MgYW5kIGV2ZW50cyB0aGF0IGhhcHBlbmVkIG9uIHRoaXMgZGF0ZSBpbiBoaXN0b3J5IC0gLSAtIC0gLSAtIC0gIiwiYWZ0ZXIiOiIiLCJsaW5rX3RvX3Rlcm1fcGFnZSI6Im9uIiwic2VwYXJhdG9yIjoiIHwgIiwiY2F0ZWdvcnlfdHlwZSI6InBvc3RfdGFnIn19@