Japan: Fan

Two teams of U. S. major league baseballers have made exhibition tours of Japan since the War. The last tour, organized by Sportswriter Fred Lieb of the New York Evening Post, ended last fortnight when a team including Pitcher Grove, Leftfielder Simmons and Catcher Cochrane of the Philadelphia Athletics, First Baseman Lou Gehrig of the New York Yankees, Captain Frank Frisch of the world's champion St. Louis Cardinals, and Shortstop Walter ("Rabbit") Maranville of the Boston Braves, docked at San Francisco. They had played 17 games in Japan, won them all, been seen by 500,000 people. Last week, when he reached his home in The Bronx, where his mother often frys eels for him and other Yankees, First Baseman Gehrig told about the trip: "The enthusiasm of the Japanese just about borders on the fanatical. . . . Never had I seen anything like it even in our biggest championship years at the Stadium. The six games in Tokyo were like a world series . . . each one drew between 55,000 and 60.000. . . . The gates had to be locked at 10:30. Never had I seen such happy jovial crowds. . . .

"The Japanese surprised with their skill . . . along defensive lines. ... In batting they are still weak, although they are absolutely fearless at the plate. . . .

"There is still no professional baseball in Japan, the nearest approach to it being a semiprofessional team. . . . All the other baseball is played by the colleges.

"The Japanese are keen students of baseball and they know a fine play when they see one. What struck us was the use of carrier pigeons in place of the telegraph for reporting the games. These pigeons flew between the Tokyo ball park and the newspaper offices. . . .

"Everywhere we played we packed them in. ... The scalpers did a merry business. ... At times it would take us hours from the park to the hotel. ... I haven't a doubt that within another couple of years, they will be playing baseball all over the country. . . .

"The fans knew us all by sight. ... It was strange to hear those people shout our names with that Japanese inflection. . . . Better get Rabbit Maranville to do that trick for you. Say, there was the life of the party. ... All their players soon were trying to imitate the Rabbit's trick of catching a ball in his lap while sitting on second base and making those vest pocket catches of pop flies. The crowds fairly roared when they saw those flies bouncing off the heads of their players. . .

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