O'Malley Exhibit at Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum in Tokyo

If only I could get across the Pacific with ease, I would be here in a New York minute.

This coming Saturday, June 29th at the Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum in Tokyo former Dodger owner Peter O'Malley will, along with Nippon Professional Baseball Commissioner Ryozo Kato, have an official ribbon-cutting ceremony to open up a new exhibit featuring numerous memorabilia items from the O'Malley family.

Fourteen artifacts from the Peter O’Malley collection will be featured in a special exhibition called: “Baseball in Japan and the O’Malley Family: A Lasting Friendship”.

(pic via Walter O'Malley.com)

As for the items that will be on display, one of them is the above featured porcelain hand-painted Noritake plate with Mt. Fuji in the background. It had been signed during the Dodgers’ 1956 Goodwill Tour to Japan and includes 40 autographs.

“We are honored and delighted that the Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum in Japan asked us for significant items to display in a unique exhibit about our family’s long-time friendship in Japan,” said Peter O’Malley. “We have enjoyed making many friends through baseball in Japan since our first goodwill trip in 1956. All of our memories are special.”

Other memorabilia items include a collection of eight autographed baseballs representing each of the participating countries from the 1984 Olympic Games exhibition tournament at Dodger Stadium, Hideo Nomo memorabilia, 1988 Dodger World Championship ring, and a jersey worn by Akihiro “Ike” Ikuhara (an assistant to Dodger President O’Malley who was hired in 1965).

The O’Malley family arranged for three Dodger friendship tours to Japan: 1956, 1966 and 1993. During the 1966 trip, Walter O’Malley was presented at the Prime Minister’s office with the Order of the Sacred Treasure Gold Rays with Neck Ribbon, a high honor for a non-Japanese, in recognition of fostering United States-Japan friendship through professional baseball. The medal, conferred by Emperor Hirohito, will be part of the exhibit. In addition, three different Happi coats presented to the Dodger traveling party during the 1966 Goodwill Tour will be displayed.  On one colorful coat, the Japanese wording reads, “Welcome, World Peace, Dodgers”.

You can get more information at the Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum in Tokyo, Japan website, here.  Walter O'Malley.com also has information about this exhibit, here.

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