Hiromori Kawashima (February 2, 1922 – December 9, 2012) was a

Japanese Japanese may refer to: * Something from or related to Japan, an island country in East Asia * Japanese language, spoken mainly in Japan * Japanese people, the ethnic group that identifies with Japan through ancestry or culture ** Japanese diaspor ...

executive. He served as the

Commissioner of Baseball The Commissioner of Baseball is the chief executive officer of Major League Baseball (MLB) and the associated Minor League Baseball (MiLB) – a constellation of leagues and clubs known as "organized baseball". Under the direction of the Commiss ...

in Nippon Professional Baseball from 1998 to 2004. He is a member of the Japanese Baseball Hall of Fame. Kawashima was an alumnus of

Chuo University , commonly referred to as or , is a private flagship research university in Tokyo, Japan. Founded in 1885 as Igirisu Hōritsu Gakkō (the English Law School), Chuo is one of the oldest and most prestigious institutions in the country. The univer ...

. In the 1970s Kawashima was director of the Japan Railway Construction Public Corporation (JRCC). He was one of six JRCC executives forced to step down in September 1979 when it was revealed that the corporation had used money intended for overtime and other expenses for personal vacations. In December 1998 Kawashima and Major League Baseball commissioner

Bud Selig Allan Huber "Bud" Selig (; born July 30, 1934) is an American baseball executive who currently serves as the Commissioner Emeritus of Baseball. Previously, he served as the ninth Commissioner of Baseball from 1998 to 2015. He initially served a ...

and signed the revised United States – Japanese Player Contract Agreement, which initiated the "

posting system The is a baseball player transfer system that operates between Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB) and Major League Baseball (MLB). Despite the drafting of the United States – Japanese Player Contract Agreement, unveiled in 1967 to regulate ...

." It required MLB teams to place "bids" for NPB players, which became the basis of transfer fees that are paid as compensation to NPB teams whose star players sign with MLB.

References

External links

Japanese Baseball Hall of Fame
: 1922 births 2012 deaths Nippon Professional Baseball commissioners Chuo University alumni {{baseball-business-bio-stub