Letter from Sotaro Suzuki to Walter O’Malley

Sotaro Suzuki was an emissary of international baseball through Japan-U.S. relations. He was selected by Matsutaro Shoriki, known as the “father of professional baseball in Japan,” to invite U.S. baseball All-Stars and individual teams to visit Japan on goodwill tours. Suzuki, as Shoriki’s confidant, was highly successful in this effort. He also was a Yomiuri Shimbun sports columnist and author of several baseball books who was inducted into the Japan Baseball Hall of Fame.