Customer Reviews

Remembering Japanese Baseball: An Oral History of the Game (Writing Baseball)

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This is a very welcome addition to the growing literature on Japanese baseball. Oral history is hard work, but unlike the daily quotes of player pablum that fill newspaper game reports, reflections over long careers are often informative and moving (even if occasionally self-serving). The real virtues of this collection are the range of baseball people that Fitts was able to get to open up (from outstanding stars to working stiffs, from players to coaches, managers, and executives) and the range over time (with representative stories from six decades of Japanese professional baseball). Some of the most powerful chapters evoke the difficulties of Japanese-American players in the 1950s. Such range is extraordinarily valuable in demonstrating the surprising breadth of baseball experiences. It's a collection that instructs both the devotee and the neophyte to Japanese baseball lore.

This book does for Japanese baseball what Lawrence Ritter's classic, "The Glory of Their Times", did for early twentieth century baseball. It tells the story of Japan's passion for the game, through the first hand accounts of those who lived it.

Using both Japanese and American-in-exile players, Robert Fitts presents a spectrum of candid and engaging stories that cover nearly the entire history of Japanese Professional Baseball.

This book is not just for those looking to probe beyond Robert Whiting's fine books, but for all baseball fans. And, it's a great read.

More please!

This was my first read on Japanese baseball history and I found it well written and paced. Very interesting antidotes and easily prepares the reader for additional titles. I enjoyed the experience.

Remembering Japanese Baseball brings to life, in riveting detail, a familiar game and a distant (in time & space)land in the rich currency of humor, joy and sadness by the men who played it. Robert Fitts, much like the best talk show hosts, performs a nifty bit of disappearing magic by casting our full attention on the players he interviews. The effect is oral history that feels like a series of intimate dinner conversations. The difference between the game we grew up with and Japanese baseball, in style and spirit, will surprise the casual fan and the die hard fan alike. Cover to cover, a great read!

As a longtime fan of Japanese baseball, I was thrilled to come across Rob Fitts' book about something I have a real passion for. I had great expectations when I saw it, and would say they were met, if not surpassed. The oral accounts directly by the players themselves put some "flesh on the bone" of my image of Japanese baseball. I enjoyed the humble accounts by Japanese players and marveled at the differences between their style of play and ours. In fact, it was sort of mindblowing to me to hear about the culture and philosophy of Japanese baseball. Had it not been from the mouths of the players themselves, I might not have even believed it! I found the book quite enjoyable, extremely informative, and would not hesitate to recommend it.

I had the pleasure of hearing Rob Fitts give a presentation on his book recently, and it helps answer Brian Maitland's question about the relative lack of Japanese players. Why are there fewer? It's just plain hard to make the connections over such a long distance and then surmount the language barrier.

We should be glad there are as many players represented as there are. The breadth of decades is impressive, and the material is woven together very smoothly from the interviews. This is no easy task, and the individual personalities do shine through to a great extent. There are plenty of historical nuggets and cultural insights too. I most certainly was not disappointed.

"As a longtime fan of Japanese baseball, I eagerly anticipated the arrival of Rob Fitts's new book and was not disappointed. The accounts of these great and often colorful players are fascinating to read. The fact that the accounts are presented in the player's own words add tremendously to the book's validity and substance. Though any reader will appreciate the breadth and depth of this book, those of us who are particularly interested in the subject are very grateful for this contribution that expands on a chapter of baseball of which too little has been written. Well planned and well executed."

While this book does indeed reinforce some of the ground covered in Whiting's books, it is also the first
english language oral history on the subject and thus it gives a fuller view of how each player saw baseball in Japan than what Whiting could present in his more general overviews. Here you have both Japanese and American players talking about the development of Japanese baseball over the years, how they related to their teammates, who
would have made it in the major leagues but never got the chance, as well as some personal anecdotes about
what the families of American players experienced while following their husband or father to the Land of the Rising Sun. At the end of the day, you get a better feel for the humanity of the people who ply their trade on the diamond than in most other baseball books.

The only real defect of this worthy work is that one wishes it was longer. It is such a fun and engrossing read that one hopes for a sequel ASAP. Unfortunately, doing oral history is not an easy undertaking (and if you read Whiting's foreward, you will understabnd part of the reason why) and that Fitts was able to get as far as he did with this
book is a testament to the love and hard work that resulted in its realization.

For a fuller review of Remembering Japanese Baseball, go to: http://www.japanbaseballdaily.com

This book reminded me of Lawrence Ritter's outstanding book of baseball reminiscences, The Glory of Our Times--only this time former Japan Pro Baseball players recount their baseball memories. Nearly all English language books about Japanese baseball published in the past contain either Robert Whiting's well known views about Japanese ball or are very dry books of statistics. It's fascinating to hear first hand accounts of former stars in Japan talk about their experiences.

While the majority of players interviewed for the book are Americans, there are a number of native Japanese players who describe their baseball experiences. Having read virtually every Japanese baseball book published in English, I can say with some assurance that this is the first time that any nostalgic Japanese player interviews have been published in English. Of the American players, most have never been interviewed about their time spent in Japan.

All in all, this is an informative and enjoyable book which adds new perspective to our understanding of Japan Pro Baseball.

I had the pleasure of reading Robert Fitts book a few years back. To see Hideki Matsui in 2009 show such discipline at the plate and to watch him perform under pressure so well with each plate appearance is to see and appreciate the novel Remembering Japanese Baseball in living color. A must read for all who truly love baseball and for a insight of how japanese players of today are truly inspired by the great japanese and american players from yesteryear.