1961 Photo Album, Tokyo Yomiuri Giants visit to Dodgertown – Vero Beach, Florida

The 1961 Tokyo Yomiuri Giants were invited by Dodger President Walter O’Malley to train at Dodgertown – Vero Beach, Florida. This photo album commemorates highlights of that significant visit. The entire team arrived in Vero Beach on the Dodger-owned DC-6B airplane from Los Angeles. In his first full-time job at Dodgertown, future Dodger President Peter O’Malley served as liaison, making all the arrangements and schedule for the Giants from their arrival to departure. The Giants were led by Manager Tetsuharu Kawakami, while Walter Alston was manager of the Dodgers. Both men were later inducted into their respective country’s Baseball Hall of Fame. After learning various training techniques from the Dodgers, the Giants returned home and won the Japan Series in 1961, their first title since 1955.