The Fourth Inning: Building & Populating the Diamond in the Rough, & the Social Significance of Sports

In the most isolated and desolate settings, amidst inhumane and horrific conditions, baseball flourished. It did so thanks to the individual and collective efforts of all those who built, maintained, used, and shared the fields and stadiums, formed the teams and leagues, played and cheered on the games, that extended and deepened the legacy of Japanese American baseball. And in the process, baseball at Manzanar exemplified two of the most longstanding and inspiring social roles of sports, in direct contrast to a familiar and divisive third role.