Asahi Day proclaimed in Vancouver (image credit - Global)

By Michael Reeve

ASAHI DAY

Kamloops’ Kaye Kaminishi, Asahi Baseball Club honoured in Vancouver

Jan 11, 2024 | 6:30 PM

VANCOUVER — A baseball pioneer was honoured down in Vancouver on Thursday (Jan 11). Kamloops’ Kaye Kaminishi is the last surviving member of the Asahi Baseball Club. He played with the team from 1939 until 1941 when they were forced to disband due to Canada interning all people of Japanese descent at the height of the Second World War.

In recognition of the trailblazing team, the City of Vancouver proclaimed Thursday, Kaminishi’s 102nd birthday, Asahi Day.

The third baseman who was nicknamed ‘The Vacuum Cleaner’ for his impressive defence at the hot corner, was sure to share the praise on Thursday with his late teammates.

“I’m really happy that the players and that fans, too, are really happy for us. To get to see the recognition of not only me but the fans, too, I suppose,” Kaminishi told reporters.

The Asahi team was the pride of the B.C. Japanese population, beginning play in 1914, winning a number of championships along the way.

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For the City of Vancouver, Thursday was a way to right some of the wrongs of history.

“It’s a celebration of a historic team that made our city proud,” said Vancouver Mayor Ken Sim. “It’s also an acknowledgement of the team and the injustices that happened during the Second World War, when Canadians that just so happened to be Japanese had their rights stripped and shipped out of town to internment camps. And it is also a celebration of the rebirth of the Asahi, their 100th anniversary.”