Tokyo redevelopment plan threatens stadium where Babe Ruth played

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A historic baseball stadium in Tokyo where Babe Ruth played could be demolished, part of a disputed redevelopment plan harshly criticized by environmentalists.

Ruth played at the Meiji Jingu Stadium in 1934 on a barnstorming tour with other American stars that included Lou Gehrig, Lefty Gomez and Jimmie Foxx. Ruth homered several times before 60,000 fans in games at the stadium, which is still home to the Japanese league champion Yakult Swallows.

Only three other major ballparks remain where Ruth played: Fenway Park, Wrigley Field and the Koshien Stadium in Kobe, Japan. Wrigley and Fenway have been renovated, but plans to save Meiji Jingu have been dismissed by developers and politicians.

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The stadium was opened in 1926 in an area known as Meiji Gaien, a green patch in central Tokyo that's famous for an avenue lined with about 150 ginko trees. Plans call for razing the ballpark and a neighboring rugby stadium and rebuilding them in different spots in the reconfigured space, making room for a pair of towering skyscrapers and a shopping area.

"I really think we shouldn't sacrifice nature in order to get short-term economic growth," said Natsuka Kusumoto, a university student campaigning against the redevelopment. "In order to stop global warming we have to face how to balance economic growth and nature conservation."

She said real estate developers, construction companies and Tokyo Governor Yuriko Koike "don't hear the voice of the people who live in this town."

"Around this area in Jingu Gaien there are lots of trees that have been living for