The beginning of American Baseball and Japanese Baseball

                                                Unit three: J-Ball

The beginning of American Baseball and Japanese Baseball

Even though football is the most popular sport in the world, baseball has become the sport most watched and played in the world. The original name of baseball was townball, which developed in the early nineteenth century in the northeastern United States. The field dimensions that are used today were standardized by Alexander Cartwright in 1840.Henry Chadwick, a sportwriter, wrote the first rule book for baseball in 1858. The Cincinnati Red Stockings was the first professional baseball team organized in 1869. In 1876, the National League was established, and the rival American League in 1901.

On the other hand, the Japanese professional baseball or J-Ball, as is known since 1958, was introduced in Japan by Horace Wilson, an American teacher, in 1873. In the beginning, J-Ball was played in schools as a way to create stronger minds and bodies. In 1920, the first professional team was formed in Tokyo, called Shibaura Club. In 1935, Dainippon Tokyo Baseball Club was founded, which later became the famous Yomirui Giants. The most famous Japanese players are Tetsuharu kawakami, who was nicknamed the God of Batting; Shigeno Nagashima, who was the most revered player; and Eiji Sawamura, who was the great pitcher of Japan. 

  

American Baseball and Japanese Baseball have been intertwined. Many American players have come to Japan, such as, Dave Nilsson and Leon Lees. In  addition to this, Japanese players also have gone to the United States, such as, Mikami Goro, Nomo Hido, and Suzuki Ichiro.

       

 
                                                                 Alexander Cartwright
 


  

                                                  Cincinnati Red Stockings

Henry Chadwick