The Weyburn Senior Beavers gained a new shortstop at the start of their weekend road trip, a player who hails from Japan, and who will be with the team for the balance of the season.

Naoki Komatsu, 24, is from Tokyo, Japan, where he graduated in economics from the University of Tokyo.

He spent the last two months at the Japanese Baseball Academy in Los Angeles before he flew up to meet the Beavers for their Canada Day match in Saskatoon, said team president Garnet Hansen.

In his first game, he hit the game-winning RBI to help the Beavers to a 3-2 win over the Yellowjackets.

Hansen said this is his first time in Canada and doesn't know much English, but loves to play the game of baseball.

Hansen explained that the player came to the Beavers through an arrangement with a new team to start up in Calgary next year, to play in the same league as the Winnipeg Goldeyes. The new team wanted to give Naoki some experience playing ball in Canada, and made the arrangement with the Beavers. They also arranged for a pitcher to be sent to Moose Jaw.

"They are trying to use our league for farm development," said Hansen.

Prior to coming to the baseball academy in L.A., Naoki played university ball in Japan for the four years he went to school. In their league, the university team played 10 games in the spring and 10 games in the fall.