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Tampico, Illinois : Birthplace of President Ronald Reagan
Having driven through Illinois many times during road trips across the United States, I'd seen signs indicating "Ronald Reagan's birthplace ahead" several times while driving along the main roads. However, I always told myself, "I'll skip it this time; I'll visit next time." In June 2018, while on a road trip through the Midwestern United States, I had a sudden thought as I crossed from Iowa into neighboring Illinois: "That's it! This time, I'll definitely visit President Re
Oct 9
St. Paul, Nebraska : The hometown of a one-of-a-kind pitcher
St. Paul, Nebraska, is a relatively small city with a population of around 2,500. It was the summer of 2015. While on a road trip across the United States, I visited the "Museum of Nebraska Major League Baseball" located in this small city. You might be wondering why a city of only 2,500 people would have a museum with such an ambitious name; after all, one would normally expect a museum with a title like that to be in a major city. But there is a perfectly good reason for i
Oct 2
Yale, Oklahoma : The man known as the world's greatest athlete
Early one morning in early autumn 2013, I was visiting the United States and leisurely driving north on State Route 99 in the Oklahoma countryside, heading for the house of a great man who had lived a turbulent life. After about an hour of driving, I came to a four-way intersection, turned left, and entered State Route 51. After driving for a while, I came across a large sign announcing that the road had a nickname: Jim Thorpe, the name of the man who lived in the house I wa
Aug 28
Norway, Iowa : Home of the Ultimate High School Baseball Team
Japan is currently in the midst of the National High School Baseball Championship Tournament, a major annual event. First held in 1915, and—with the exception of a few interruptions (such as during World War II)—it has taken place every year; this year marks the 108th tournament. Qualifying tournaments have been held since June across all 47 of Japan's prefectures (equivalent to the 50 U.S. states)—with a total of 3,363 high schools participating nationwide. The 49 high schoo
Aug 14
October 21, 1975
If I write October 21, 1975, Major League Baseball fans, especially die-hard Boston Red Sox fans, will know what I'm talking about. That's right, I'm talking about that famous event at Fenway Park. On that day, Game 6 of the World Series between the Boston Red Sox and the Cincinnati Reds took place at Fenway Park in Boston. ...That year's World Series was incredible, with 6 out of 7 games being comeback victories, and ultimately the Reds became World Champions with a 4-3 ser
2 hours ago
Shohei Ohtani and the Daruma Doll
Shohei Ohtani, who had long been reported to be dealing with issues involving his left knee, neck, and right biceps, was finally placed on the Injured List (IL) on September 11. This development has sparked a wide range of opinions in both the United States and Japan. Some argue that the decision to put him on the IL came too late. Photograph of Shohei Ohtani featured on the cover of an interview book by Yuta Ishida (in Japanese; Bungeishunju Ltd., 2024) So, when should Ohta
Sep 25
Doesn't it cause confusion if the names are the same?
Regarding the topic at hand, there is a passage I would like to quote first. It comes from "The Enemy" (2004), one of the novels in the series featuring the truly compelling protagonist Jack Reacher, written by Lee Child—an author whose work I love and read avidly. It is a conversation Jack Reacher has with a certain woman. "I have to go to Paris," I said. "Paris, Texas?" she said. "Or Paris, Kentucky, or Paris, Tennessee?" "Paris, France," I said. "The Enemy" by Lee Child (p
Sep 18
The Moving Impact of "Conrack"
Previously, I published a column on this website highlighting Joe DiMaggio as a representative Major League Baseball player whose name often appears in films that aren't directly related to Major League Baseball. This time, I'd like to focus on Jackie Robinson, who, like Joe DiMaggio, is also a representative Major League Baseball player whose name often appears in films that aren't directly related to Major League Baseball. But I'd like to start with a Jackie Robinson biopi
Jul 31
Individuals whose uniform numbers have been retired by multiple teams
A "retired number" is a designation made by a team to honor the achievements of a player or manager by ensuring that their uniform number is never worn by anyone else again. Having one's number retired is a tremendous honor for a player or manager. Among such individuals, there are fifteen remarkable figures who have had their numbers retired by multiple teams for which they played. ...This excludes Jackie Robinson—the first Black player in modern Major League history—whose n
Oct 16
The Home Run Leaders and the Batting Average Leaders
In the previous column, I wrote about the results of my research on the home run and batting average rankings of all the Run Batted In (RBIs)–leading hitters in each league since the start of modern Major League Baseball. This time, I'll present the results of my research on the batting average rankings of all the league–leading home run hitters since the start of modern Major League Baseball, and conversely, the home run rankings of all the league–leading batting average hit
Sep 11
Has the way runs are scored in MLB changed?
At the conclusion of last year's (2025) regular season, I noticed something surprising regarding the players who led their respective leagues in Runs Batted In (RBIs). In the National League, the RBI leader was Kyle Schwarber, who also topped the league in home runs. While this fact didn't seem odd, I was surprised to find his batting average ranked extremely low—60th in the league. Meanwhile, the American League RBI leader was Cal Raleigh—who also led the league in home run
Sep 4
On-base percentage, batting average, and walk rate
In a column on this website two posts ago, I wrote about how surprised I was that Ichiro's slugging percentage—both the raw figure and his ranking—dropped significantly in Major League Baseball compared to his time in Japan. In fact, there is something else that surprised me greatly when comparing his Japanese and MLB careers: his on-base percentage (OBP). An incredibly wonderful interview with Ichiro by Yuta Ishida. "Ichiro Interviews: Complete Edition" (in Japanese, Bungeis
Aug 21
Author
Makio Mukai, MD, PhD
I'm MLB enthusiast.
From 2007 to 2019, I wrote weekly column about MLB for the Japanese newspaper, Asahi Shimbun.
I have published three books about MLB in Japanese.
October 21, 1975
If I write October 21, 1975, Major League Baseball fans, especially die-hard Boston Red Sox fans, will know what I'm talking about. That's right, I'm talking about that famous event at Fenway Park. On that day, Game 6 of the World Series between the Boston Red Sox and the Cincinnati Reds took place at Fenway Park in Boston. ...That year's World Series was incredible, with 6 out of 7 games being comeback victories, and ultimately the Reds became World Champions with a 4-3 ser
2 hours ago
Individuals whose uniform numbers have been retired by multiple teams
A "retired number" is a designation made by a team to honor the achievements of a player or manager by ensuring that their uniform number is never worn by anyone else again. Having one's number retired is a tremendous honor for a player or manager. Among such individuals, there are fifteen remarkable figures who have had their numbers retired by multiple teams for which they played. ...This excludes Jackie Robinson—the first Black player in modern Major League history—whose n
Oct 16
Tampico, Illinois : Birthplace of President Ronald Reagan
Having driven through Illinois many times during road trips across the United States, I'd seen signs indicating "Ronald Reagan's birthplace ahead" several times while driving along the main roads. However, I always told myself, "I'll skip it this time; I'll visit next time." In June 2018, while on a road trip through the Midwestern United States, I had a sudden thought as I crossed from Iowa into neighboring Illinois: "That's it! This time, I'll definitely visit President Re
Oct 9
St. Paul, Nebraska : The hometown of a one-of-a-kind pitcher
St. Paul, Nebraska, is a relatively small city with a population of around 2,500. It was the summer of 2015. While on a road trip across the United States, I visited the "Museum of Nebraska Major League Baseball" located in this small city. You might be wondering why a city of only 2,500 people would have a museum with such an ambitious name; after all, one would normally expect a museum with a title like that to be in a major city. But there is a perfectly good reason for i
Oct 2
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