Aggies came together earlier this summer to help launch a new book by Aaron Fischman ’11.
Fischman’s book, A Baseball Gaijin: Chasing a Dream to Japan and Back (Sports Publishing, 2024), traces Tony Barnette’s six-year path playing baseball in Japan before heading to the majors at 32. So it made sense to hold his first signing at a single-A San Jose Giants game in June at the invitation of Ben Taylor ’11, who is the general manager. And the first person in line for a book? Another Aggie.
In addition to signing his book, Fischman threw out the first pitch.
“Luckily, I didn't completely embarrass myself,” Fischman said. “I got it over the [plate].”
Fischman’s book was many years in the making. After developing a relationship with Barnette while still a student at UC Davis, Fischman kept in touch with the pitcher through graduate school and ultimately suggested a book.
Based in Los Angeles, Fischman co-hosts the podcast On the NBA Beat. Here, he talks about his vision for A Baseball Gaijin, writing it and his time at UC Davis.
How did you get to know Tony Barnette?
It was pretty cool how it came about. I was a student at UC Davis at the time when I first got in touch with him. I was writing for this small independent website called DavisSportsDeli.com. I was reaching out to minor league pitchers. He was one of a handful I reached out to, and he was the only person who responded and agreed to participate in an interview. I sent him questions on Facebook and then he got me back within a couple of days. We might have done that one more time. Then we graduated to podcast interviews where I recorded at least one or two with him in Lower Freeborn. Then he started writing blog entries for DavisSportsDeli.com.
On March 11, 2011, when the devastating triple disaster happened in Tohoku — the earthquake, tsunami and nuclear disaster in Fukushima — he actually blogged about it within days. [In the book,] there are a couple chapters that are devoted to that disaster. The first is more on a micro level where it documents anecdotes from Tony and others about where they were when it hit, how they got in touch with their loved ones. And then the second chapter is written in a really different way where it takes a step back and it's more on a macro level, talking about the various media, how they're covering the events in different ways and then other things like return to play. Can returning to baseball inspire the nation or are you rushing back too quickly? I thought that was really fascinating and important for me to cover.
Why did you want to turn Barnette’s story into a book?
I had known him for over 15 years by that point. I went to graduate school at University of Southern California for my master's in journalism. My final semester at USC, I covered Tony and his story for two or three class projects. Up until that point, it had just been blog entries from him or me interviewing him. But that was the first time that I was writing a story about him and he wasn't the only source. I brought in other people who knew his story very well and would become major characters — family, friends, teammates.
Even before Japan, it’s an interesting story: There's this guy who is in triple-A; he's on the cusp of making the major leagues. He's 26 years old. A Japanese agent, who's well known in the industry, Don Nomura — who wrote the foreword — reached out to him and was offering all this money. And so even though he was on the cusp and about to achieve his lifelong dream of pitching in the major leagues, the money was too enticing to turn down. He was willing to take that risk. But it was a risk because it's a lot harder to come back to the U.S., especially at that time. He made that decision understanding that it's possible that it could derail his ultimate dream.
In late 2015, when he did get a contract with the Texas Rangers, he was 32. I think that made his story more inspiring. And so then I reached out to him [about the book idea]. He enthusiastically agreed.
What is it like writing about a specific person?
Initially I was probably too ambitious about it and kind of made my life a little bit difficult because I didn't really want it to be a biography. And there are digressions because it informs the reader more about him and his journey too. But initially I was more ambitious and the book was on pace for a ridiculous length, over 500 pages or something. And I learned by working with an editor to significantly cut the story and actually enhance the storytelling and narrative. I wanted to convey the cultural aspect of his story — being in a land that you are unfamiliar with and having to adapt. I thought that those digressions collectively would make it that much more powerful and effective.
How do you remember your time at UC Davis?
I really enjoyed it, made some good friends, enjoyed the college-town atmosphere. I liked my major — political science was my first major and I added communication. The two complemented each other well. And there's another Davis connection: I took a Japanese politics class at UC Davis. I really enjoyed it a lot. Ethan Scheiner was the professor and he actually wrote a really nice review for the book.
This Q&A has been edited and condensed from a longer interview.