Here's A New Home Run Race To Follow

Japanese slugger Sadaharu Oh

Japanese baseball made the front page of the New York Times today.

International baseball isn't the usual fare here at Poetry and Pros, but it's on the front page of the Times, so it's worth a mention here.


When you have a minute, look up Sadaharu Oh. He's easily the best player you've never heard of. Who's the world record holder for career home runs? Hank Aaron? Nope. Barry Bonds? Sorry, wrong answer. It's Oh. He hit 868 career homers over 22 seasons, between 1959 and 1980. That means that even with juice, Barry misses Oh's record by 106 over the same length of time. Add to this his career average of .301, OBP of .446 and his single season record of 55 homers, and he's an impressive offensive player to say the least.

The article in the Times focused on Oh's single season HR record. His record has stood in the Japanese league since 1964. This is due in a large part to the Japanese respect for legendary people, a trait not found in the US, even in a highly traditional game like baseball; in the past, this respect led pitchers to intentionally walk players who threatened to break Oh's record. But, according to the Times, the winds are beginning to change. The record is close to being broken, by a foreigner no less, and the Japanese are on the edge of their seats. And I must admit, after reading the NYT article, I am as well.