Asians In Baseball

Before we get started, a moment for the passing of Billy Bean, MLB’s Senior VP for DEI who spent the last 10 years promoting inclusivity and education in baseball and sports. Thank you, Billy.  This week in position player news, we are alllllll over the place. Rob Refsnyder is subbed in after Jarren Duran’s suspension and comes up big with a walk off and a pep talk, Kim issues a public apology to...

We are fully in the second half, and Asians in Baseball are HOT! First off, congrats to Kelsie Whitmore and the US Women’s Baseball Team for winning Silver at the Women’s Baseball World Cup! Gold went to Japan, of course, in their 7th consecutive win.  In position player news, Connor Wong and Rob Refsnyder hold it down for the Red Sox, Volpe is mashing even from the bottom of the lineup, Travis d’...

So much to discuss after the trade deadline! Let’s get into it.  Scott and Kim will be doing an event in LA with the LA County Dept of Public Health Peer Resource Center on Thursday, August 15th - sign up at the link in our bio! Then, we welcome JJ Wetherholt to the AIB Cinematic Universe (thank you to listener Paul Kuo for the tip!) and chat exciting Asians in 2025 news.  The trade deadline was c...

Welcome to the All Star Break! We kick off our Midsummer Classic episode, of course, with the fits. Steven Kwan and Shota “Mike” Imanaga (II) opt for velvet, Christian Yelich dons mint green, and Ohtani steps out in a suit inspired, of course, by his dog, Decoy.  Obviously the main event of the All Star Game is the game itself! Ohtani sets more records with his 3-run home run, Big Papi deems Steve...

We're rocketing toward the halfway point, and Asians in Baseball show no sign of slowing down! Of course, we have to start by congratulating our 2024 All Stars! And Ryu Hyun Jin makes All Star history across leagues. Closer to home, the Dodgers celebrate Japanese Heritage Night, and we get into what Dodger Stadium is doing for the new influx of Japanese fans. In position player news, Connor Wo...

Summertime always brings the heat, and this season is no exception!  Naomi was our field correspondent this week, reporting on her pick for the Most Asian MLB stadium. And don’t forget, phase 1 All Star Voting is still going until June 27th!  Congrats is in order in position player news, as Connor Wong goes to the paternity list in the middle of his 13-game hitting streak! IKF shines with his firs...

First, a moment to recognize Willie Mays and all his incredible contributions to baseball. Thank you, Willie. Onto the episode, All Star voting is open! Round 1 voting goes until June 27th and you can vote 5x/day for our favorite guys! Look for our voting guide coming very soon. Also, we discuss the Dodgers’ new City Connects ahead of their release…did our comments hold up once the real deal dropp...

We’re back from our hiatus and there is MUCH to discuss in the world of Asians in Baseball! Our field correspondent Kim shares how Korea goes HAM for both the KBO and MLB, we chat about the culinary offerings of Dodgers Korean Heritage Night, and a brief diversion in AIB content to discuss another very important matter: WTF is going on with all these mid-to-bad City Connects??? In position player...

We are solidly in the season, and Asians in Baseball stay hot! First, Masanori Murakami - the first ever Japanese player in MLB - throws out the first pitch at the Giants game, and we talk exceptionalism and burden of representation.  Then, position players are making moves: Bo Bichette goes 4-for-4, Christian Yelich steals home, and Corbin Carroll triples in two in a row! But in a sad twist of fa...

It’s May, so you know what that means: we gotta talk about Asians in Baseball! (Because that’s what our podcast is about...obviously.) First up, we discuss AAPI Heritage Month - Naomi and Scott went to see the As in their final season in Oakland, and the OG OG Masanori Murakami was also in the Bay, watching the Dodgers and Giants.  Apparently we have a new weekly segment: Asians on the IL. While w...

Can you believe this is only the first month of the season?!  First, this year's hottest collab is MLB x Kpop groups! And there are HOW MANY of our guys on the IL right now?! Then, position player news: Tommy Pham and the White Sox make it official, Masataka Yoshida could use some more playing time, Anthony Volpe takes a big swing on his birthday, and there are a lot of guys raking right now,...

First, a huge thank you to Nikki Kay for featuring Asians in Baseball on Spectrum Sportsnet!! This week, we welcome 6 new players into the Asians in Baseball Universe, bringing us to 8 new guys this season and 46 known Asians in Baseball on MLB 40-man rosters!!! Welcome Matt Bowman (P - Twins), Joey Cantillo (P - Guardians), Freddy Tarnok (P - As), Cheng Tsung-Che (SS - Pirates), Riley O’Brien (P...

Asians in Baseball are ready to ECLIPSE the league! First, welcome Naoyuki Uwasawa and Jahmai Jones to the AiB Cinematic Universe!  Then, position players: Anthony Volpe and Conner Joe are off to hot starts,Travis d’Arnaud walks it off already, Kim Ha Seong and Lee Jung Hoo adjust to their new roles, and Steven Kwan and the Guardians play in the path of totality.  After the break, Kenta Maeda shut...

What in the KDrama is going on here?! It’s been a shocking week for Asians in Baseball, to say the least. Let’s start from the Seoul Series: a false threat at the Sky Dome, the unceremonious demotion of Go Woo Suk, Asians show up for the first official games of the season (on the field and in the stands), and Yu Darvish has still got it at 37. After the break, of course we have to talk about Ippei...

New season, new look, same us! We’re back for our third season of Asians in Baseball, and although the season hasn’t even officially started yet, we’re off to the races. First up: trades! (Or lack thereof.) Tommy Pham remains a Free Agent with Opening Day looming, Ryu Hyun Jin returns to the KBO, the Mets and minors gain some of our faves, and Where in the World is Kim Ng?! Then after the break: T...

It may be the offseason, but Asians in Baseball are still putting in work! 2:55 - Ohtani STAYS BUSY. We discuss his introductory press conference (including Decoy, of course), his side gig as a GM in pulling Glasnow and Yamamoto, and his new Big Market Team persona. 41:08 - Free Agents have been flying! Lee Jung Hoo solidifies himself as the MLB version of a Kpop Idol, Yoshinobu Yamamoto and his p...

We did it, Sho!!!! 0:28 - YEAH WE'RE GONNA TALK ABOUT OHTANI! The rumors, the Dave Roberts Press Conference Heard 'Round the World, the Toronto madness, the enormous contract, the enormous contract deferral, what this means for the Asian/Asian American community, and more. (Though we recorded this on Wednesday 12/13 before the press conference, so we don't get to that yet!) 1:04:00 - O...

The postseason has come to an end, but Asians were still all over in the playoffs, end-of-season awards, and - of course - trade rumors! 🍾 3:38 - If you left your Asian player off your DS roster or reassigned him to relief pitching, it didn’t work out well for you! (And if you were the Dodgers…it still didn’t work out well for you 😬) 11:58 - Only 4 Asian players were in the CS, and a little amat...

It’s the playoffs, baby! And we’ve got you covered on all things Asians in the Postseason. 3:31 - Just a LITTLE Ohtani Talk to start us off. Shohei exited the regular season early, but what’s all this mean for 2024????? 13:16 - The Wild Card has already come and gone, but not before Kikuchi got thrown to the wolves, Yeli's bat wasn't enough to carry the Brewers, and Kim Ng made history yet...

We’re only a month from the Postseason, and Asians in Baseball are in it to win it!  1:10 - Some quick Asians in Soccer/Futbol news! 3:44 - Position players are dominating! Masataka Yoshida homers in back-to-back games to break his “drought,” Anthony Volpe enters Yankees Rookie History, Steven Kwan takes a rare first-pitch swing which pays off in a big way, SD native Tommy Edman walks it off again...

Testing, testing, is this thing on?! We took a few weeks off from recording and boy oh boy were those a BONKERS three weeks. BUCKLE UP. 1:08 - A special shout out to one of our listeners, we discuss our trips to Dodger Stadium for Korea Night and Petco Park for Kim Ha Seong Bobblehead Night, and the next generation of Asian superstars were crushing it at the Little League World Series 15:49 - Posi...

We’re officially in the second half of the MLB season, and the race to the postseason is ON.  1:21 - The Trade Deadline has come and gone! We’re stoked for more Asians in the NL West but sad to see some of our faves get DFA’d.  17:53 - Bats are staying hot for our position players! Macho Man’s slump is broken after chatting with Ichiro, Lars Nootbaar is on fire right now, Kim Ha Seong is “the best...

Did you miss us?? We are back with a beefier episode than ever to cover the return of baseball post-All-Star break!  1:28 - A lot of random Asians in Baseball news! The Montgomery Biscuits temporarily become the Montgomery Kimchi, there is an Asian in Baseball in Barbie, the Dodgers and Padres are going to Seoul, there are helllllla Asians in the Women’s World Cup, and Arjun Nimmala is selected by...

We’re off this week, so as promised, here’s a profile on one of our favorite guys, Yu Darvish. Yu has a long baseball history, from MLB scouts trying to draft him out of high school in Japan to being a 5x MLB All-Star to dealing with anti-Asian racism in the 2017 World Series. He is truly one of the greats - we love you Yu!

It’s comeback season, baby!  2:12 - Corbin Carroll and Shohei Ohtani are the only Asians to make it through the first round of All-Star voting! (We recorded this before they announced the teams, forgive the late news) 2:58 - It was a hot week in pitching! Dane Dunning nearly throws a complete game, Kenta Maeda is back from the IL, and Yusei Kikuchi is still dominating on the mound…and being microa...