{"product_id":"mashi-the-unfulfilled-baseball-dreams-of-masanori-murakami-the-first-japanese-major-leaguer-hardcover","title":"Mashi: The Unfulfilled Baseball Dreams of Masanori Murakami, the First Japanese Major Leaguer - Hardcover","description":"\u003cdiv\u003e\u003cp style=\"text-align: right;\"\u003e\u003ca href=\"https:\/\/reportcopyrightinfringement.com\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"nofollow\"\u003e\u003cb\u003eReport copyright infringement\u003c\/b\u003e\u003c\/a\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003c\/div\u003e\u003cp\u003eby \u003cb\u003eRobert K. Fitts\u003c\/b\u003e (Author)\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eIn the spring of 1964, the Nankai Hawks of Japan's Pacific League sent nineteen-year-old Masanori Murakami to the Class A Fresno Giants to improve his skills. To nearly everyone's surprise, Murakami, known as Mashi, dominated the American hitters. With the San Francisco Giants caught in a close pennant race and desperate for a left-handed reliever, Masanori was called up to join the big league club, becoming the first Japanese player in the Major Leagues.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eFeaturing pinpoint control, a devastating curveball, and a friendly smile, Mashi became the Giants' top lefty reliever and one of the team's most popular players--as well as a national hero in Japan. Not surprisingly, the Giants offered him a contract for the 1965 season. Murakami signed, announcing that he would be thrilled to stay in San Francisco. There was just one problem: the Nankai Hawks still owned his contract.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eThe dispute over Murakami's contract would ignite an international incident that ultimately prevented other Japanese players from joining the Majors for thirty years. \u003ci\u003eMashi \u003c\/i\u003eis the story of an unlikely hero who gets caught up in an American and Japanese baseball dispute and is forced to choose between his dreams in the United States and his duty in Japan.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003ch3\u003eAuthor Biography\u003c\/h3\u003e\u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eRobert K. Fitts is the author of \u003ci\u003eBanzai Babe Ruth: Baseball, Espionage, and Assassination \u003c\/i\u003e\u003ci\u003eduring the 1934 Tour of Japan\u003c\/i\u003e (Nebraska, 2012), winner of the Society of American Baseball Research's 2013 Seymour Medal for the best baseball book, and \u003ci\u003eWally Yonamine: The Man Who Changed \u003c\/i\u003e\u003ci\u003eBaseball \u003c\/i\u003e(Nebraska, 2008).\u003c\/p\u003e\n            \u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eNumber of Pages:\u003c\/strong\u003e 256\u003c\/div\u003e\n            \u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eDimensions:\u003c\/strong\u003e 0.92 x 9.3 x 6.4 IN\u003c\/div\u003e\n            \u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003eIllustrated:\u003c\/strong\u003e Yes\u003c\/div\u003e\n            \u003cdiv\u003e\n\u003cstrong\u003ePublication Date:\u003c\/strong\u003e April 01, 2015\u003c\/div\u003e\n            ","brand":"BooksCloud","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":47468659507453,"sku":"9780803255210","price":35.95,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0817\/3414\/0157\/files\/RjF4NFNjelQ1UW9vbDRpcE4wYWlPZz09.webp?v=1777290844","url":"https:\/\/booktolia.com\/products\/mashi-the-unfulfilled-baseball-dreams-of-masanori-murakami-the-first-japanese-major-leaguer-hardcover","provider":"booktolia","version":"1.0","type":"link"}