Fort Myers, FL (PRWEB) November 23, 2005 -–

Baseball America’s All-Star Fantasy Camps (formerly Diamond Dreams) is pleased to announce a first in baseball fantasy camp history, a special tribute to Japanese American baseball legends.

Kerry Yo Nakagawa, internationally recognized baseball historian, author, and filmmaker will join Hall of Famers Brooks Robinson, Frank Robinson, Fergie Jenkins and former all-stars Bill Campbell, Darrell Evans, George Foster, Tony Oliva and Pete Rose at the “Path of Legends” fantasy camp on January 10-15, 2006 at the world-famous Dodgertown in Vero Beach, Florida.

“Baseball will have an international flavor in 2006,” said Bob Dowdell, President of Baseball America, Inc. “The year marks the 70th anniversary of the Nippon (Japan) Baseball League and the inaugural season of the World Baseball Classic. The foundation for both of these events was laid by the efforts of Japanese American baseball pioneers.

Through Kerry’s presence, our campers will learn first-hand about an important and often overlooked part of baseball history,” said Dowdell.

Kerry is the author of Through a Diamond: 100 Years of Japanese American Baseball. In addition, he is the founder of the non-profit Nisei Baseball Research Project (NBRP), founding curator of the Diamonds in the Rough: Japanese Americans in Baseball exhibition and is a consultant to the prestigious Baseball Hall of Fame tour entitled Baseball as America.

In 2002, Kerry joined Buck O’Neil, Sharon Robinson and Roberto Clemente Jr. in a National Baseball Hall of Fame live satellite classroom that outreached to 20 million students across the U.S. His lecture tour includes venues at UC Santa Barbara, Ball State University, the Davies Forum at the University of San Francisco, National SABR Conventions and other venues of museums, schools, clubs and organizations around the country.

Kerry completed a documentary entitled “Diamonds In The Rough: Legacy of Japanese American Baseball,” narrated and hosted by Oscar-nominated actor, Pat Morita. He is also the associate producer of the film about baseball inside the Japanese American internment camps during WWII with Shadowcatcher Entertainment, entitled, “An American Pastime.” Based on his book and documentary, he also co-produced a teachers’ curriculum guide/education kit for high school students with Stanford University/SPICE. More than 12,000 students benefit from the curriculum annually.

He has chaired tributes with major league baseball clubs in recognizing Nisei ‘Pioneers’ with the San Francisco Giants, Los Angeles Dodgers, Oakland A’s, Arizona Diamondbacks, Fresno Grizzlies and Sacramento RiverCats. Kerry also serves as a board member for the Japanese American National Memorial Foundation site to Patriotism in Washington D.C.

Baseball has been in the Nakagawa family for generations. His uncles Johnny, Lefty, Mas, competed against Babe Ruth, Lou Gehrig, Jackie Robinson, Biz Mackey, Tony Lazzeri and Lefty O’Doul, and made goodwill baseball tours to Japan in 1924, 1927 and 1937.

About Baseball America’s All-Star Fantasy Camps

Baseball America’s All-Star Fantasy Camps (formerly Diamond Dreams) is one of nation’s top baseball fantasy camp experiences. Owners Bob and Diane Dowdell offer campers more than 24 years experience in making baseball dreams become a reality. The headquarters for Baseball America, Inc. is located in Fort Myers, Florida. For more information, visit: www.baseballfantasycamps.com.

About the Nisei Baseball Research Project

The Nisei Baseball Research Project (NBRP) is a non-profit 501(c)3 organization founded in 1996 by Kerry Yo Nakagawa to preserve the history of Japanese American Baseball. The NBRP exhibit Nisei Baseball: Diamonds In The Rough is the first ever to display the photos, memorabilia, artifacts, and text history of Japanese American Baseball. The exhibit is co-produced with the National Japanese American Historical Society and has traveled the world from Cooperstown, NY to the Japan Baseball Hall of Fame and Museum in Tokyo. The ultimate goal of NBRP is permanent inclusion of Japanese Americans in the National Baseball Hall of Fame in Cooperstown. For more information, visit: http://www.niseibaseball.com

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Tags: American, Baseball, Camp, Fantasy, Japanese, Legends, Pays, Tribute

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