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Japan Samurai Bears join Golden Baseball League

April 14, 2005 - Golden Baseball League (GBL) News Release


Tokyo, Japan: The Golden Baseball League announced today that it will field an all Japanese traveling team during the 2005 Inaugural season. The team will be known as the Japan Samurai Bears and will consist of 24 players from Japan, a coaching staff, trainer, and interpreters. This will be the first time that an all Japanese team has participated as a regular member of a U.S. professional sports league.

"This is an historic moment for baseball in Japan and the United States. The Samurai Bears will provide an unparalleled cultural exchange between two countries that love the great game of baseball," said David Kaval, CEO of the Golden Baseball League. "The Japan Samurai Bears will play an exciting and unique brand of baseball that will be great for fans, competitive for the other teams in our league, and of interest to major league organizations looking for players."

The Japan Samurai Bears will be led by Japanese League baseball great, Warren Cromartie, as the field manager.

Warren Cromartie is one of the greatest western players to compete in the Japanese major leagues. For seven years between 1984 and 1990 he was a feared slugger, perennial all-star, and the Central League MVP in 1989 when he won the batting title with a .378 average. Playing for the beloved Yomiuri Giants and under the legendary Sadaharu Oh as his manager, Cromartie developed a keen sense of the Japanese style of baseball, the culture of Japan, and a deep appreciation for the unique nuances of the Japanese version of this sport. He is also a best-selling author as he chronicled his time in Japan with the book "Slugging It Out In Japan", published in 1991 and speaks Japanese.

"My time in Japan was the highlight of my playing career and I'm grateful to the Japanese baseball system for that opportunity," said Cromartie. "Getting back into uniform and on the field and being able to return that favor by leading and supporting young Japanese players as they work hard to advance their baseball careers is really a dream come true for me."

As part of the formation of the team, a partnership was formed with A-WAN Planning of Japan, a company focused on developing and supporting youth baseball in Japan. "We see the Golden Baseball League as an opportunity to promote Japanese players and to speak to thousands of Japanese baseball fans in California, Arizona, and here in Japan" said Takeshi Nomura, President of A-Wan Planning. "We are excited to help bring this team to the Golden Baseball League communities in California and Arizona."

The "Japan Samurai Bears" will play all 90 of their games on the road but the league expects a significant fan following in each market, and in Japan as well. "The quality of player coming out of Japan will make this team very competitive" said Kevin Outcalt, GBL League Commissioner "In some ways, I think this team will really push the competitive spirit of league and help us attract additional interest from the international baseball community. We are committed to a league comprised of the best players available from around the world. We want our baseball to be competitive and interesting to the broadest possible numbers of fans".

About the Golden Baseball League The Golden Baseball League, Presented by Safeway Inc., is a professional baseball league operating under a single-entity ownership model, with the League owning all the individual teams. Charter Golden Baseball League teams include the Chico Outlaws in Chico; CA, the Fullerton Flyers in Fullerton; CA, the Long Beach Armada in Long Beach; CA, the San Diego Surf Dawgs in San Diego; CA, the Mesa Miners in Mesa; AZ, the Surprise Fightin' Falcons in Surprise; AZ and the Yuma Scorpions in Yuma; AZ. The season will consist of 90 games per team and will begin late May and end in early September. Each team will have a 24-player roster.



Golden Baseball League Stories from April 14, 2005


The opinions expressed in this release are those of the organization issuing it, and do not necessarily reflect the thoughts or opinions of OurSports Central or its staff.


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