SABR 41 presentation preview: Kenichi Zenimura and the Nisei-Negro Leagues
SABR member Bill Staples Jr. offers a preview of his SABR 41 research presentation, “Baseball Brothers: Kenichi Zenimura and Nisei-Negro Leagues Competition in California”, on his blog this week:
Staples will be delivering his presentation at 10 a.m. Friday, July 8 in the Pacific Room at the Long Beach Hilton. Here is a synopsis of his presentation:
Babe Ruth’s 1934 barnstorming tour in Japan is legendary, but it was far from the only contact between Japanese and American baseball clubs. Illuminating a chapter of his 2011 biography of Japanese American baseball pioneer Kenichi Zenimura, Bill Staples, Jr. recounts encounters between Zenimura-led teams and Negro Leaguers piloted by Lon Goodwin … almost a decade before the Babe crossed the Pacific. The tours by the all-black Philadelphia Royal Giants, little known here in the U.S., have been credited by Japanese sources as an important inspiration leading to the creation of professional leagues in their nation.
For details on all SABR 41 research presentations, click here.
For a complete schedule of events, click here.
For information on hotel booking, transportation, area attractions and everything, click here to go to the SABR 41 home page.
Originally published: June 13, 2011. Last Updated: April 17, 2020.
