The country has dominated the World Baseball Classic in the 2000s, but its baseball history started long before.

Pool C host and defending World Baseball Classic champion Japan is scheduled to face off against Chinese Taipei on Friday, 7 p.m. Eastern Time.

Seiya Suzuki was midway through his home run trot when he held out his left hand as if clutching an imaginary bowl. Holding an invisible whisk in his other hand, the Chicago Cubs outfielder made a stirring motion.

The attitude toward the sport really began to change when Babe Ruth, Lou Gehrig, “Lefty” Gomez and other Major League Baseball (MLB) heavy hitters embarked on a goodwill tour of Japan in 1934. Babe Ruth crowded by fans in Japan, 1934. . Photo: Photo by Keystone-France/Gamma-Keystone via Getty Images

One of the most electric moments in baseball over the last decade didn’t happen in October. It didn’t come under the weight of a 162-game grind, or for the prize of a Commissi

When Shohei Ohtani stepped onto the field at the Tokyo Dome in March 2025, he wasn’t just playing a game – he was carrying forward more than 100 years of baseball ties between the U.S. and Japan. It was a massive financial success. Marking MLB’s ...

Just look at how the fans in Japan reacted when Ohtani arrived ahead of the World Baseball Classic.