1921 Vancouver Asahi’s Tour to Japan

Vancouver Asahi players bound for Japan on the SS Kashima Maru (Courtesy of the Nikkei National Museum 1997.8.9)

 

The Vancouver Asahi team was formed in 1914 with players who were mostly graduates of the Vancouver Japanese Community National School. Ihachi Miyasaki (a.k.a. Matsujiro Miyasaki), who ran a transportation business, became the manager of the team, which was organized through the Shiga Prefecture network and Matsumiya stores’ connections. The team played and practiced in vacant lots near the school and at Powell Grounds.1

In 1918, the Asahi was reorganized under the leadership of president Sotojiro Matsumiya by recruiting top players from nearby Japanese Canadian teams (such as the Yamato, Mikado, and Victoria Nippon) to form a stronger team now named the Asahi Baseball Club.2 In July 1918 they formed the Vancouver International League with Caucasian teams and started to play league games.3 That year, the Asahi finished second in the International League but lost the playoffs.4 The following year, they won the International League with an overwhelming record of 11 wins and 1 loss. Although the Asahi featured a full lineup of Japanese players against White teams who were bigger and more powerful, they showed that teamwork and smart game play could win the league championship.5 Japanese Canadian baseball fans were excited by the victory and gathered at the Powell Street Grounds to share their hopes for an Asahi tour to Japan. But team members said, “No, it’s too early for that. We will have to polish our team’s skills before demonstrating them to the Japanese people in our ancestral country.”6

In 1920 the presidency of the Asahi team changed to Henry Masataro Nomura, who decided to rename the team the Asahi Athletic Club, withdraw from the International League, and join the higher-ranked Vancouver City League to improve Asahi’s performance.7 Nomura had relocated in 1917 from St. Louis to Vancouver, where he started practicing dentistry on the second floor of Royal Bank.8 He was a passionate advocate of a theory for healthy baseball and sports but some of the players did not agree with him and they sometimes rebelled.

Asahi finished third in the City League in the 1920 season with a record of 10 wins and 14 losses.9 At the end of the season, there was a resurgence of talk about a tour to Japan. Some Japanese Canadians enthusiastically proposed that the team should demonstrate their baseball ability in their ancestral country to help raise the spirits of the team’s players. It was around this time that Yuji Uchiyama, one of the Asahi players, had returned to Vancouver after accompanying the Seattle Mikado team on their Japan tour. Uchiyama told the Asahi players about the current baseball situation in Japan. The Japanese Canadian Nisei (second-generation) players, who hoped of visiting their motherland, listened to him with shining eyes, and the team’s expectations for a tour to Japan rose at once.10 Nomura, as the leader of the team, showed great interest in the idea of a Japan tour and told many people about the plan to help gain support. Nevertheless, six players (Barry Kiyoshi Kasahara, Harry Miyasaki, Junji George Ito, Bull Oda, Tom Nichi Matoba and Sotaro Matsumiya) decided to withdraw from the Asahi team to form a new baseball club named the Vancouver Asahi Baseball Team (also known as the Tigers).11 The two groups were not in agreement over whether to go on the Japan tour. It was also rumored that they were divided over Nomura’s management policy.

Nomura’s Asahi Athletic Club rejoined the City League while the new Vancouver Asahi Baseball Team (the Tigers) joined the Terminal League, which had been previously known as the International League. Therefore, the two Asahi teams played in separate leagues. At the end of the 1921 season, the Asahi Athletic Club decided to follow Nomura’s plan and go on a tour to Japan.

On August 24, the day of the departure for Japan, a send-off party for the team was held at the Yang Ming Lou restaurant. Tour leader Nomura said, “We have been negotiating with Makoto [Shin] Hashido of the Japan Athletic Association for a long time. And they decided to invite us to Japan officially, so here we are today. The games will be played mainly against the Japanese university teams. And we will also visit Hokkaido plus Kansai to foster friendship between Japan and Canada.”12

The touring party consisted of 19 members: 12 Japanese players, four Caucasian players, and three leaders.13 These were Henry Masataro Nomura and his wife, Lovenda; scorer Yosomatsu (Nishizaki) Horii; umpire Dr. Fletcher; pitchers Mickey Kitagawa (captain), Tokikazu Tanaka, and Tat Larson; catchers Yo Horii, and Jack Wyard; first baseman Happy Yoshioka; second basemen Joe Nimi and Yuji Uchiyama (manager); third baseman Ernie Paepke (coach); shortstop George Iga; left fielders Joe Brown and Tamotsu Miyata; center fielder Eddie Kitagawa; right fielder Ted Furumoto; and substitute Takashi Kikukawa. The four Caucasian players were added to the Japan tour team for promotional reasons and to reinforce the squad.

The players’ spirits were high because the Japan trip was not only a tour of their ancestral country but was also a mission to promote friendship between Canada and Japan and to introduce British Columbian industry. The players received new uniforms, enjoyed the send-off party, and each expressed his determination to do his best. At 11:30 P.M., about 200 Japanese Canadians and Caucasians gathered at the pier to see the team off. The players lined up on the deck of the Kashima Maru with bouquets of flowers in their hands, donated by volunteers, and shouted “Banzai! Banzai!” The ship sailed off with a whoosh that pierced the air.14 A series of reports about the tour were to be written by manager Yuji Uchiyama and sent to the Tairiku Nippo (Continental Daily Newspaper) in Vancouver under the title “The Baseball Tour.”

The trip to Japan took two weeks. Also traveling on the Kashima Maru was the University of Washington baseball team, which was also touring Japan. In all, 10 teams from North America and Hawaii toured Japan that year: the University of California, Washington University, the Hawaiian Nippon, the Hawaiian Hilo, the Hawaii All-Stars, the Canadian Stars, the Suquamish Indians, the Sherman Indians, the Seattle Asahi, and the Vancouver Asahi. All of them were hoping to play with Japanese university teams. This phenomenon showed how popular Japanese baseball had become and how active baseball exchanges between Japan and the United States were.

As the voyage progressed, the Asahis played catch, ran, and played pepper on the deck during the day to prevent their bodies from getting too slow. Sometimes, their precious baseballs flew overboard into the sea.15 In the evening they met to discuss strategy and learn the signs. There were some players, however, who could not get up from their beds owing to seasickness.

On September 9 in the evening, after the long voyage, the Kashima Maru at last dropped anchor at Yokohama Port.

The group stepped onto the shores in Japan. On the dock, Shin Hashido of the Japan Athletic Association, Tatsuki Nakamura, a board member of the Asahi, and Kinzaburo Fukunaga, former scorer for the Asahi, were on hand to welcome them. The team got into cars and later settled down at the Tsukuiya Ryokan Inn, where they spent their memorable first night in Japan with a sense of relief.16

During the voyage on the ship, the itinerary was programmed and decided by wireless telegraph exchanges. Since the first game was scheduled to be held two days later against the Tomon Club, the group transferred on September 10 to the Maruya Ryokan Inn at Shinbashi, Tokyo. That evening, they went to the Japan Athletic Association Stadium at Shibaura to practice. There, dozens of baseball fanatics had been waiting for hours to watch them play. The players were very impressed with the enthusiasm for baseball in Japan. The Asahi members spent the night not only excited but also nervous in anticipation of the game next day.

The first game of the Japan tour was played at 2:30 P.M. on September 11 against the Tomon Club at sunny Shibaura Stadium which was filled to capacity. In the second inning, Tat Larson walked the first batter. A fielder’s choice plus a hit batsman loaded the bases with one out. A sacrifice bunt then put Tomon ahead 1-0. After that, Larson’s screwball became excellent and it looked as though he would control the rest of the game. But in the fifth inning, Junichi Ishii and Tadao Ichioka of Tomon got hits, and in the sixth Tomon scored another run. Larson was replaced by Tokikazu Tanaka in the seventh inning. Tanaka, however, was hit hard in the ninth inning and was replaced by Mickey Kitagawa. The final score was a disappointing 12-0 loss. The next day’s newspaper reported, “Asahi’s hitting seemed to be a little bit weak. It was pity that they were so quiet and gentlemanly that they became nervous and stiff.”17

Cursed by the long autumn rains, the second game, held at Shibaura Stadium on September 16 against Hoyu Club of Hosei University, was prolonged. In the second inning, Jack Wyard doubled and Joe Brown reached on an error to put runners on second and third. George Iga followed with a squeeze, scoring Wyard. Yo Horii then hit a groundball back to the pitcher, who threw high to first base, allowing Horii to reach first safely and Brown to score. This was all the scoring as Asahi got their first win, 2-0, on the Japan tour.18

The third game was against the Taiyo Club, but it was rained out in the third inning. A game against Rikkyo University was held at Shibaura Stadium on September 20. Larson pitched well, but his teammates could gain only two hits and they lost the game, 3-1.19

Asahi then left Tokyo and moved to the Kansai area. In the Kansai newspapers, the Asahi were introduced as the most orderly and exemplary team representing the youth of Canada. Special attention was paid to the three Kitagawa brothers and the Caucasian players Joe Brown and Ernie Paepke.20 On September 23 a game against the Kobe Diamond Club was played at Toyonaka Stadium, Osaka, in occasional light rain. The crowd was in a frenzy from the first inning as the two teams exchanged hits, but the game was rained out in the sixth inning, ending in a 4-1 victory for Asahi. The next day, September 24, the team played the Shoshin Club at Toyonaka Stadium. Mickey Kitagawa was the starting pitcher and his younger brother, Yo Horii, completed the battery.21 The Asahi won, 4-0, thanks to the efforts of the four White players.22

On September 27 the Asahi moved to Wakayama to play the Wakayama High School team and lost 5-3. Later, Takashi Kikukawa wrote, “We underestimated them because we thought they were only a high school team. But they were a championship team that was excellently organized.”23 Shinjiro Iguchi, Wakayama High School’s shortstop, later joined the Waseda University team and became a strong hitter. He was inducted into the Japan Baseball Hall of Fame in 1998 for his great contributions to amateur baseball.

The next day, September 28, the team returned to Toyonaka Stadium to play the Star Club. The event drew so much attention that the crowd started to fill the stadium three hours before the game began. In the first inning, the Star Club grabbed the lead on a bases-loaded walk, but in the fourth inning, the Asahi got the run back to tie it up 1-1. The Asahi scored again to make it 3-1 in the seventh inning, but in the next inning the Star Club scored two runs to tie the game at 3-3. The game went on until the 11th inning when, due to sunset, it was ruled a tie. This game was the most exciting and spectacular one during the tour.24

On October 1 the Asahi team traveled to Kyoto to play Doshisha University.25 Larson started the game and Asahi won 10-7. After the game, the team left Kyoto and headed for Morioka in the Tohoku region of northern Japan. In Morioka, they played two games against the Toryo Club, winning 9-2 on October 11 with Tokikazu Tanaka as the starter, and losing 4-3 on the next day with Larson as the pitcher.

At this time, Uchiyama wrote to the Tairiku Nippo regarding the differences between the Asahi and other North American teams visiting Japan. He said, “We are a young team accompanied by white players. Our baseball skills might not be high enough to satisfy the Japanese fans, but our main purpose is to introduce our team on behalf of Canada. And not to make a profit.26

The Asahi then moved to Hokkaido and played three games against the Taiyo Club in Hakodate.27 On October 16, with Larson on the mound, they lost 8-0 but the following day Mickey Kitagawa pitched the Asahi to a 10-4 victory. In the deciding game, on October 19, Larson shut out the Taiyo Club as the Asahi won 1-0. As the touring Canadian Stars happened to also be staying at Hakodate, the Asahi decided to play a game against them on October 20. The crowd at the Kashiwano Baseball Stadium was small and rattled because the game did not include native Japanese players. The Asahi started Ted Furumoto, who was usually an outfielder, on the mound. Furumoto gave up seven runs in the bottom of the second inning and the Asahi lost the game 10-0.28

Next, the Asahi went to Sapporo. There, they lost 4-1 to Hokkaido University on October 23 and in the following two days split a pair with the Kyowa Club. On October 27 they returned to Morioka and played a third game against the Toryo Club. Larson started and the Asahi won 2-0. They ended October and their time in the north by beating an amateur club, 11-9, in Sendai before returning to Tokyo.

Back in the capital, the Asahi stayed at Waseda University in Totsuka and on November 6 played the university team. The Asahi put Larson on the mound, but he had a rough start, allowing eight walks, as the team committed nine errors and lost 10-1.29

Before the scheduled final game of the tour, on November 7 against Keio University, Ed Kitagawa was injured and could not play. To replace him, the team recruited Tom Matoba to play. Matoba, their former teammate who had left to form the Tigers, was visiting Japan as a player for the touring Seattle Asahi, but his team had finished their tour and had disbanded. He just happened to be in the ballpark to watch the Asahi-Keio game. In the first inning, Matoba hit the first pitch for a single into center field. The second batter, George Iga, then grounded back to the mound, but the Keio pitcher threw wildly to second base, putting runners on first and third with no outs. Consecutive groundouts scored a run and a two-out error by the second baseman allowed another run to come home. In the second inning, Joe Nimi doubled, and Iga scored a run. Paepke pitched well, and the Asahi upset Keio 3-1.30 Before the game, the magazine Baseball World had predicted that Keio would win. They later reported that by beating the Japanese powerhouse, the Asahi had a good souvenir for the team to bring back home.31

After the game, the Caucasian Asahi players returned to Canada. Meanwhile, the Hawaii Hilo team, which was also visiting Japan, asked to play an exhibition game with Asahi on November 10. The result was a 9-5 Asahi loss.32 Soon afterward, the Mita Club (Keio University’s alumni team) asked for a chance to avenge Keio university’s defeat. With only the Japanese Canadian players remaining on the Asahi team, people predicted an easy victory for Mita, but during the November 13 game, Tokikazu Tanaka pitched so well that the Asahi team won 2-0.33 This marked the end of all the games in Japan.

The team had traveled about 2,000 miles in Japan, from Hokkaido to Kansai. When the Asahi put up good fights, they received cheers from the spectators in many places. The team finished with a record of 12 wins, eight losses, and one tie against Japanese teams. If the games with non-Japanese teams such as Canadian Stars and Hawaii Hilo are included, the record was 12 wins, 11 losses, and one tie. It was not an embarrassing result at all.

Many Japanese newspapers and fans expressed their hope that the Asahi team would visit Japan again because the players were so gentlemanly and friendly. Nomura brought with him a movie film introducing Canada and showed the film at various locations with the cooperation of the Tokyo Nichinichi newspaper to help promote friendship between Japan and Canada. The film was shown at the Ministry of Education’s exhibit of movies and at the Minister of Education’s official residence and was well received.34

At the end of the tour, manager Yuji Uchiyama said, “Our tour to Japan was a great success by overcoming many challenges such as the internal struggle prior to our departure from Vancouver, an unexpected large number of American teams also visiting Japan, schedule changes due to rain, plus financial problems.” He went on to share his thoughts on baseball in Japan. “There were many lessons to learn from the Japanese baseball techniques which are well studied and controlled in terms of strategy. However, there is a big difference in physical strength. The speed of the batted ball is inferior to that of any Canadian baseball team. It will take some time to develop their physical strength and they will have to study it scientifically. In Japan, the strong teams are Waseda, Keio and Diamond Star. These teams [would] have the possibility to reach top positions in the City League and the Terminal League in Vancouver.”35

On December 2, Mr. and Mrs. Henry Masataro Nomura, Joe Nimi, Takashi Kikukawa, and Yuji Uchiyama gathered at Yokohama and boarded the Fushimi Maru to return to Vancouver. Tokikazu Tanaka, Mickey Kitagawa, Eddie Kitagawa, Yo Horii, Yosomatsu (Nishizaki) Horii, Happy Yoshioka, and Ted Furumoto spent New Year’s Day at their ancestorial hometowns and returned to Vancouver on the Kashima Maru on January 26.

On Sunday, February 5, after taking a break on returning from Japan, the touring team attended a party to welcome them back, which was organized by a group of young Asahi players from the junior (nontouring) team. Totaro Fujino, the junior team manager, presided over the party.36 Each group of younger players in attendance was given new uniforms as souvenirs from the Japan tour. The gifts were presented with the hope that the next generation of Asahi players would be able to visit Japan and continue the friendship between Japan and Canada.

As the 1922 baseball season approached, there were growing voices from baseball fans for the two Asahi teams to merge and become one team. At the same time, the players of both teams began to feel that they should put aside their past feelings and unite, so they gathered at the Vancouver Japanese Community National School to discuss the issue. As a result, the two teams decided unanimously to merge and play in the Terminal League.37 The combined team was led by Mickey Kitagawa, with Harry Miyasaki as manager, Eddie Kitagawa as captain, and Ted Furumoto as secretary.

The Asahi took advantage of the experience gained from the Japan tour and worked hard to train the players under the direction of Harry Miyasaki. The merger was supposed to make the new Asahi stronger. However, unexpectedly, it failed to produce good results and they ended up at the bottom of the league. The Asahi’s original players were getting older and beginning to show signs of decline—new blood was needed.

Four years later, in 1926, when the younger players began to develop and show their abilities, the Asahi came back far stronger than ever. The team utilized the disciplined strategy that they had experienced during their tour of Japan. They had a well-trained and strong defense, and, above all, refined sportsmanship. They were masters of small ball, using set plays, stolen bases, hit-and-runs, etc. Their specialties were double plays and coordinated plays such as the two-run squeeze. The team won the Terminal League championship that year with an overwhelming 23-3 record.38

From then on, Asahi’s style of play featured “Brain Baseball” based on fair play. They were enthusiastically supported not only by Japanese Canadians but also by Caucasians, and continued to be a top team until the beginning of World War II, winning many championships. In 2003 the Asahi team was inducted into the Canadian Baseball Hall of Fame. From time to time, there were talks of another tour to Japan, but it never materialized.

Looking back, the 1921 trip to Japan was a turning point in Asahi’s history. The knowledge and skills gained in Japan were passed on to younger players and contributed to establish Asahi’s tradition.

SATOSHI MATSUMIYA was born in Kaideima-cho, Hikone City, Shiga Prefecture, Japan. He graduated from the Osaka Institute of Technology, Department of Industrial Management, and joined Naiki Kinzoku Seisakusyo Company. In July 1985 he joined Matsumiya Chemical Co., Ltd. and worked as the Hikone plant manager. Inspired by the Japanese movie Vancouver Asahi, in 2014 he started researching the footsteps of his grandfather Sotojiro Matsumiya, who had emigrated to Canada. In March 2017 he published a Japanese book Matsumiya Stores and the Vancouver Asahi—Footsteps of Japanese Canadian Immigrants, which won the 20th Self-Publishing Culture Award. In 2019 he headed a committee to host the Shin-Asahi baseball team in Hikone and published the booklet The Shin Asahi Team’s Tour to Japan. His latest E-book is When There Was a Japanese Baseball Club in Vancouver—My Grandfather Sotojiro Matsumiya and the Era of Canadian Immigration.

YOBUN SHIMA was born and raised in Kyoto, Japan, and later worked for an international shipping company in Tokyo. His family members were living in Vancouver from around 1907 until the 1930s, when they returned to Japan (except for one of his uncles who remained in Canada). After retiring, Shima started to research the Vancouver Asahi when he discovered that his uncle Shoichi Shima was one of the team’s original players. The Asahi was inducted into the Canadian Baseball Hall of Fame in 2003 and the BC Sports Hall of Fame in 2005. Yobun continues to track down unclaimed medalists of the team in cooperation with the BC Sports Hall of Fame, families of Asahi players, and other interested parties.

 

 

NOTES

1 “Remembering the Asahi: Founding of the Asahi,” Continental Times, January 9, 1973: 3.

2 “General Meeting of the Asahi, 1918; New Year Party and New Board Members,” Tairiku Nippo (Continental Daily News), February 4, 1918: 5.

3 “Inauguration of International League,” ‘Tairiku Nippo, July 19, 1918: 5.

4 “1918 Game Reports: Vancouver International Baseball League,” Western Canada Baseball, http://www.attheplate.com/wcbl/1918_100i.html.

5 “Asahi as League Champion. Teams Ranking in International League,” Tairiku Nippo, August 12, 1919: 3.

6 “Asahi as League Champion.”

7 “General Meeting of the Asahi: Dr. Henry Masataro Nomura Selected President of the Asahi,” Tairiku Nippo, December 15, 1919: 5.

8 “Dr. Nomura Passed the Dental Examination. Dr. Nomura Opened a Dental Clinic,” Tairiku Nippo, September 3, 1919: 5; “Dr. Nomura’s Early Life,” Tairiku Nippo, July 16, 1923: 5.

9 “1920 Game Reports: Vancouver City League August 12,” Western Canada Baseball. http://www.attheplate.com/wcbl/1920_100i.html.

10 “Japan Tour,” Tairiku Nippo, August 28, 1920: 5; “Yuji Uchiyama Is Back Home,” Tairiku Nippo, February 1, 1921: 5; “Yuji Uchiyama Reports on Seattle Mikado Japan Tour,” Tairiku Nippo, August 29, 1921: 5.

11 “New Asahi Baseball Team (Tigers) Founded with 6 Former Asahi Players,” Tairiku Nippo, March 9, 1921: 5.

12 Makoto Hashido was known as Shin Hashido when he was the captain of the Waseda University team that toured the West Coast of the United States in 1905. “A Send-off Party for the Asahi Athletic Club,” Tairiku Nippo, August 25, 1921: 5.

13 “Members of the Japan Tour Team Announced,” Tairiku Nippo, August 24, 1921: 5.

14 “Departure of the Asahi Japan Tour Team,” Tairiku Nippo, August 26, 1921: 5.

15 “The Ocean Voyage Log: Players Aboard the Kashima Maru Bound for Japan,” Tairiku Nippo, October 1, 1921: 5.

16 Yuji Uchiyama, “Arrival at Yokohama Port,” Tairiku Nippo, October 14, 1921: 5.

17 Yuji Uchiyama, “Game Between the Asahi and Tomon Club,” Tairiku Nippo, October 29, 1921: 5.

18 “Game Report: The Asahi and Hosei University,” Tairiku Nippo, October 4, 1921: 5.

19 “Game Report: The Asahi and Rikkyo University,” Tairiku Nippo, October 6, 1921: 5.

20 “Tour to Kansai Area,” unidentified newspaper, September 21, 1921. Newspaper clippings by Eddie Kitagawa on file at the Nikkei National Museum, Burnaby, British Columbia. All citations to the Nikkei National Museum refer to these clippings.

21 Yo Horii was bom Yo Kitagawa but was adopted into the Horii family.

22 “The Asahi and Diamond Club,” Osaka Jiji, September 23, 1921. Nikkei National Museum.

23 “Takashi Kikukawa’s Memoir,” Tairiku Nippo, July 19, 1927: 5.

24 “The Asahi and Star Club,” Tairiku Nippo, October 18, 1921: 5.

25 “Interview with Manager Uchiyama,” unidentified newspaper, October 11, 1921. Nikkei National Museum.

26 “Interview with Manager Uchiyama.”

27 Yuji Uchiyama, “Tour Report: Game Reports from September 11 to November 7,” Tairiku Nippo, November 25, 1921: 2.

28 “The Asahi and Canadian Stars,” unidentified newspaper, October 21, 1921. Nikkei National Museum.

29 Yuji Uchiyama, “Game Report: The Asahi and Waseda University,” Tairiku Nippo, November 24, 1921: 5.

30 “The Asahi and Keio University,” unidentified newspaper, November 7, 1921. Nikkei National Museum.

31 Review of the Asahi Japan Tour,” Baseball World, November, 1921: 124.

32 Yuji Uchiyama, “Game Report: An Exhibition Game Between the Asahi and Hawaii Hilo,” Tairiku Nippo, November 29, 1921: 5.

33 Yuji Uchiyama, “Game Report: The Asahi and Mita Club,” Tairiku Nippo, November 30, 1921: 5.

34 “Film Introducing Canada Was Shown,” Tairiku Nippo, unknown date; Nikkei National Museum.

35 Yuji Uchiyama, “Review of the Tour by Yuji Uchiyama,” Tairiku Nippo, December 20, 1921: 5.

36 “Welcome Party for the Asahi Tour Team Back Home,” Tairiku Nippo, February 6, 1922: 5.

37 “Merger of the Two Asahi Teams,” Tairiku Nippo, March 28, 1922: 5.

38 “The Asahi’s Victory in Terminal League in 1926,” Tairiku Nippo, August 13, 1926: 2.