For Immediate Release
August 1, 2014

FUNAI ELECTRIC AND BOSTON RED SOX ANNOUNCE SIXTH YEAR OF THE
RED SOX U.S./JAPAN YOUTH BASEBALL EXCHANGE
Young Japanese Baseball Players to Visit Boston
BOSTON -- The Red Sox Foundation and global electronics giant Funai today announced thesixth Red Sox US-Japan Youth Baseball Exchange Presented by Funai Electric. The program
allows children from Japan and the United States to visit one another's homelands and explore
their customs and culture through their shared love of baseball.
On July 26th, a dozen Japanese youngsters from Kyoto, sister city of Boston, and Chiba, a suburbof Tokyo, travelled with two coaches to Boston for a 10-day stay with 5 host families in Greater
Boston through Monday, August 4th. The Japanese teens will participate in baseball clinics byHarvard and Northeastern University baseball coaches and will play games with several of theRed Sox Foundation's RBI Youth Baseball teams of the same age. Funai executives and thedozen Japanese boys and their Boston hosts will be honored at Fenway Park prior to the Red Sox
vs. Yankees game on Friday, August 1st.
In the past six years, the exchange has run in both directions, with Boston boys traveling to Japan
as well as Japanese teens traveling to Boston to participate in various baseball and culturalactivities while living with Japanese or American host families.
“Funai Electric is very pleased to support this program which will continue to provide lifechanging experiences to all involved in this program,” said Yoshikazu Uemura, President &CEO of Funai Electric Co., Ltd. “It serves as a wonderful reminder of how much we can sharethrough the beloved American pastime of baseball. We sincerely wish that we can pass on suchvalues of friendship, sportsmanship, fairness, and tenacity to our younger generation.”“Funai’s continued commitment to this exchange speaks volumes about their vision as achampionship company with a true global reach,” said Red Sox Chairman Tom Werner. “We arehonored that Red Sox fans here in Boston have opened their hearts and homes to the Japaneseyoungsters, who not only share their love of baseball, but also have the courage and perseverance
to travel halfway across the globe to learn about American history and culture.”
This is the sixth year that Funai Electric is the presenting sponsor of the Red Sox US-JapanYouth Baseball Exchange program, which is coordinated by the Red Sox Foundation. GenaBorson, Executive Director of the Red Sox Foundation said “We are particularly proud to hostthe young Japanese players here in Boston this summer and thanks to Funai, these teens canenjoy America’s favorite pastime while they make new friendship we know will last a lifetime.”

ABOUT PRESENTING SPONSOR FUNAI ELECTRIC CO., LTD.
Funai Electric Co., Ltd. Founded by Mr. Tetsuro Funai, the company was established in 1961 inOsaka, Japan. Funai Electric Co., Ltd. in Japan is engaged in development/design, manufacture,marketing and distribution of Audio/Visual Products such as LCD TVs, DVD/Blu-ray related
Products. Funai also produces Printers and Ink Cartridges. Funai has the manufacturing sites inJapan, China (consignment), Mexico (consignment), Thailand, and Philippines. For more
information on Funai Group, please visit: http://www.funai.jp/en/Funai Corporation in the United States was established in 1970 as a wholly-owned subsidiary ofFunai Electric Co., Ltd. Funai Corporation, Inc. was reorganized in May 1991, and is engaged in
the import, export, servicing, marketing and distribution of Funai products in order to servecustomers across United States. For more information, please visit http://www.funai.us/.
ABOUT RED SOX FOUNDATIONThe official team charity of the Boston Red Sox, the Red Sox Foundation has distributed over $68
million to support programs serving children and families across New England. The Foundation’s efforts
are primarily focused on five cornerstone programs: the Red Sox Scholars Program, which provides
tutoring, mentoring, enrichment programs and a college scholarship to academically talented but
economically disadvantaged Boston public school students; the Red Sox Foundation's RBI and Rookie
League youth baseball and softball programs serving more than 2,000 inner city teens each summer; theRed Sox Foundation and Massachusetts General Hospital Home Base Program for veterans returningfrom Iraq and Afghanistan with combat stress and traumatic brain injury; The Dimock Center in Roxbury,
serving more than 40,000 low-income families in Boston’s most disadvantaged neighborhoods; and The
Jimmy Fund, supporting breakthrough cancer research at the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute.
A 501(c)(3) nonprofit, the Red Sox Foundation raises funds through special events, corporate
sponsorships, and grants. Founded and initially funded by Red Sox Principal Owner John Henry,Chairman Tom Werner, President/CEO Larry Lucchino and their partners, the Red Sox Foundation haswon numerous awards for the impact of its innovative programs. In 2010, the Foundation’s Red Sox
Scholars program was recognized by Major League Baseball with the first-ever “MLB Commissioner’sAward for Philanthropic Excellence.” In 2009, the Red Sox Foundation was honored by the Robert WoodJohnson Foundation and the Sports Philanthropy Project with the Patterson Award as the nation’s “BestTeam Charity in Sports.” For more information about the foundation, visit redsoxfoundation.org.