1956 Global World Series

The Global World Series emerged as an alternative tournament to the Amateur World Series (AWS), the internationally sanctioned baseball world championship, which was last held in 1953, and would not be held again until 1961.{{cite web |title=THE NETHERLANDS |url=https://static.wbsc.org/assets/documents/201909_WBSC_premier12_magazine_WEB.pdf |website=Premier12.WBSC.org |publisher=World Baseball Softball Confederation |access-date=27 January 2025 |page=19 |date=2019}}{{cite web |title= Historia de la Copa Mundial/World Cup History XI-XX (1950-1972) |url=http://www.baseballdecuba.com/WCup2011/History1950-1972.html |website=Baseball de Cuba |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131207185735/http://www.baseballdecuba.com/WCup2011/History1950-1972.html |archive-date=7 December 2013 |language=es}} While the AWS was strictly for amateurs and did not allow professional baseball players, the Global World Series was organized by the semi-professional National Baseball Congress (NBC), under the auspices of NBC President Ray Dumont and former Major League Baseball Commissioner Happy Chandler.Buege, 2012{{cite book |title=USIS Features |date=1952 |publisher=US Department of State |page=159 |chapter=Baseball Interest Growing in Free World |chapter-url=https://books.google.com/books?id=4e325LkBU_8C&dq=%22international%20baseball%20congress%22%20ibc%20global%20world%20series&pg=PP377}} The first edition of the tournament was held in 1955, with the United States (represented by a semi-pro club from Wichita, Kansas) taking the gold medal.

The 1956 United States squad was represented by the Allen Dairymen, a semi-pro team from Fort Wayne, Indiana. The team included two players with Negro league experience: John Kennedy, who would soon become the first African American to play for the Philadelphia Phillies, and Wilmer Fields, an all-star with the Homestead Grays. It also included Don Pavletich, a future catcher for the Cincinnati Reds.{{cite web |title=Wilmer Fields |url=https://sabr.org/bioproj/person/wilmer-fields/ |website=SABR |publisher=Society for American Baseball Research}}

Japan was represented by the Yokohama Nippon Oil club, which won the 1956 intercity baseball tournament. The team, managed by Keiichiro Masuyama, was captained by outfielder Tokichiro Ishii and included pitcher Motoshi Fujita, a future player and manager of the Yomiuri Giants of Nippon Professional Baseball.{{cite web |title=Second annual Global World Series baseball scorecard |url=https://digitalcollections.detroitpubliclibrary.org/islandora/object/islandora%3A133034 |publisher=National Baseball Congress |website=Detroit Public Library |access-date=26 January 2025 |page=13 |date=1956}} {{ill|Yu Hanai|ja|花井悠}}, billed in American media as "the Babe Ruth of Japan", would go on to play with the Nishitetsu Lions of NPB.{{cite web |title=Yu Hanai |url=https://www.baseball-reference.com/register/player.fcgi?id=hanai-000yu- |website=Baseball Reference (minors)}}

The Canadian representatives were the North Battleford Beavers, champions of the Western Canada League; the team was led by player-manager Emile Francis, best known as a professional ice hockey coach and former player.{{cite web |title=1956 North Battleford Beavers |url=https://attheplate.com/wcbl/1956_1g.html |website=Western Canada Baseball |access-date=26 January 2025}}Scorecard, p. 30{{cite news |title=Remembering the 1956 NB Beavers, the team Emile Francis built |url=https://www.sasktoday.ca/north/local-sports/remembering-the-1956-nb-beavers-the-team-emile-francis-built-4091971 |access-date=26 January 2025 |agency=SaskToday |date=27 May 2016}} Hawaii was again represented by the Honolulu Red Sox, managed by Lawrence Kunihisa. One pitcher, John Sardinha, would later play two seasons in Japan with the Nankai Hawks.{{cite web |title=John Sardinha |url=https://www.baseball-reference.com/register/player.fcgi?id=sardin000joh |website=Baseball Reference (minors)}}

The other national teams were true all-star selections. Carlos "Petaca" Rodríguez was on the Colombian team.{{cite news |title=Derrotaron a Senadores Dos por Una |url=https://hndm.iib.unam.mx/consulta/publicacion/visualizar/558075be7d1e63c9fea1a303?pagina=558a36da7d1ed64f16cf126c |access-date=15 February 2025 |agency=El Informador |date=10 September 1956 |language=es}} The Netherlands national team, winners of the 1956 European Baseball Championship, were managed by Henk Keulemans and headlined by pitchers Jan Smidt and Han Urbanus.National Baseball Congress, pp. 18–19 Puerto Rico included Félix Torres, recently of the Reds system, who would later play with the Los Angeles Angels.Scorecard, p. 31

{{#invoke:Sports table|main|style=WL|for_against_style=runs|ranking_style=percentage|show_GB=no|update=complete

|team_order=USA, HAW, JAP, MEX, PRI, COL, CAN, NED

|result1=W|result2=S|result3=B

|win_USA=4|loss_USA=1|gf_USA=29|ga_USA=12|status_USA=H

|win_JAP=3|loss_JAP=2|gf_JAP=19|ga_JAP=18

|win_HAW=4|loss_HAW=2|gf_HAW=27|ga_HAW=13

|win_MEX=2|loss_MEX=2|gf_MEX=13|ga_MEX=26

|win_PRI=1|loss_PRI=2|gf_PRI=19|ga_PRI=12

|win_COL=1|loss_COL=2|gf_COL=14|ga_COL=12

|win_NED=0|loss_NED=2|gf_NED=3|ga_NED=21

|win_CAN=0|loss_CAN=2|gf_CAN=5|ga_CAN=15

|name_USA={{bb|USA|1912}}

|name_JAP={{bb|JAP}}

|name_HAW={{bb|Hawaii}}

|name_NED={{bb|NED}}

|name_MEX={{bb|MEX}}

|name_COL={{bb|COL}}

|name_PRI={{bb|PRI|1952}}

|name_CAN={{bb|CAN|1921}}

|col_W=gold|col_S=silver|col_B=#cc9965

|source =

}}

{{Baseballbox

|date = September 7, 1956

|time = 8:00 (UTC-6)

|team1 = {{bb|CAN|1921}}

|score = 4–5

|team2 = {{bb|JAP}}

|stadium = Milwaukee County Stadium, Milwaukee}}

----

{{Baseballbox

|date = September 8, 1956

|time = 13:00 (UTC-6)

|team1 = {{bb|Hawaii}}

|score = 3–5

|team2 = {{bb|USA}}

|stadium = Milwaukee County Stadium, Milwaukee}}

{{Baseballbox

|date = September 8, 1956

|time = 18:00 (UTC-6)

|team1 = {{bb|NED}}

|score = 2–14

|mercy rule = 7

|team2 = {{bb|PRI}}

|stadium = Milwaukee County Stadium, Milwaukee}}

{{Baseballbox

|date = September 8, 1956

|time =

|team1 = {{bb|MEX}}

|score = 8–5

|mercy rule =

|team2 = {{bb|COL}}

|stadium = Milwaukee County Stadium, Milwaukee}}

----

{{Baseballbox

|date = September 9, 1956

|time = 13:00 (UTC-6)

|team1 = {{bb|COL}}

|score = 7–1

|mercy rule =

|team2 = {{bb|NED}}

|stadium = Milwaukee County Stadium, Milwaukee}}

{{Baseballbox

|date = September 9, 1956

|time =

|team1 = {{bb|Hawaii}}

|score = 10–1

|mercy rule = 8

|team2 = {{bb|CAN|1921}}

|stadium = Milwaukee County Stadium, Milwaukee}}

{{Baseballbox

|date = September 9, 1956

|time = 18:00 (UTC-6)

|team1 = {{bb|USA}}

|score = 6–2

|mercy rule =

|team2 = {{bb|PRI}}

|stadium = Milwaukee County Stadium, Milwaukee}}

{{Baseballbox

|date = September 9, 1956

|time =

|team1 = {{bb|JAP}}

|score = 5–0

|mercy rule =

|team2 = {{bb|MEX}}

|stadium = Milwaukee County Stadium, Milwaukee}}

----

{{Baseballbox

|date = September 10, 1956

|time = 12:30 (UTC-6)

|team1 = {{bb|JAP}}

|score = 6–3

|mercy rule =

|team2 = {{bb|USA}}

|stadium = Milwaukee County Stadium, Milwaukee}}

{{Baseballbox

|date = September 10, 1956

|time = 18:00 (UTC-6)

|team1 = {{bb|PRI}}

|score = 3–4

|mercy rule =

|team2 = {{bb|MEX}}

|stadium = Milwaukee County Stadium, Milwaukee}}

{{Baseballbox

|date = September 10, 1956

|time =

|team1 = {{bb|COL}}

|score = 2–3

|mercy rule =

|team2 = {{bb|Hawaii}}

|stadium = Milwaukee County Stadium, Milwaukee}}

----

{{Baseballbox

|date = September 11, 1956

|time = 18:00 (UTC-6)

|team1 = {{bb|MEX}}

|score = 1–13

|mercy rule = 6

|team2 = {{bb|USA}}

|stadium = Milwaukee County Stadium, Milwaukee}}

{{Baseballbox

|date = September 11, 1956

|time =

|team1 = {{bb|Hawaii}}

|score = 2–0

|mercy rule =

|team2 = {{bb|JAP}}

|stadium = Milwaukee County Stadium, Milwaukee}}

----

{{Baseballbox

|date = September 11, 1956

|time = 18:00 (UTC-6)

|team1 = {{bb|JAP}}

|score = 3–9

|mercy rule =

|team2 ={{bb|Hawaii}}

|stadium = Milwaukee County Stadium, Milwaukee}}

----

{{Baseballbox

|date = September 11, 1956

|time = 18:00 (UTC-6)

|team1 ={{bb|USA|1912}}

|score = 2–0

|mercy rule =

|team2 = {{bb|Hawaii}}

|stadium = Milwaukee County Stadium, Milwaukee}}

• 1956 World Series
• 1953 Amateur World Series

{{reflist}}

• {{cite web |last1=Buege |first1=Bob |title=Global World Series: 1955-57 |url=https://sabr.org/journal/article/global-world-series-1955-57/ |website=SABR |publisher=Society for American Baseball Research |date=Spring 2012}}

{{Baseball in the United States}}

{{International baseball}}

Global World Series, 1956

1956

Global World Series

Category:Baseball in Milwaukee