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Masaichi Kaneda
was a Japanese professional baseball pitcher of Zainichi Korean origin, one of the best-known pitchers in Japanese baseball history, and is the only Japanese pitcher to have won 400 games. He was inducted in the Japanese Baseball Hall of Fame in 1988. Nicknamed "The Emperor" because he was the most dominant pitcher in Japan during his prime, Kaneda holds numerous Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB) career records. He won 400 games despite being on an extremely weak team, the Kokutetsu Swallows, for most of his career. About 90% of his 400 career wins came with the Swallows. Kaneda batted and threw left-handed. Career Kaneda was born, in Heiwa, Aichi Prefecture, to Korean parents. He quit high school in 1950, and joined the Kokutetsu Swallows (current Tokyo Yakult Swallows) in the middle of 1950. The Swallows were a very weak team at that point in Japanese baseball. Kaneda quickly became recognized as the best pitcher in Japan for his fastball and trademark drop curve. Kaneda als ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Heiwa, Aichi
was a town located in Nakashima District, Aichi Prefecture, Japan. As of 2003, the town had an estimated population of 13,374 and a population density of 1,514.61 persons per km². The total area was 8.83 km². On April 1, 2005, Heiwa, along with the town of Sobue (also from Nakashima District), was merged into the expanded city of Inazawa is a city located in Aichi Prefecture, Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 135,580 in 54,999 households, and a population density of . The total area of the city was . Geography Inazawa is located in the flatlands of far western Ai .... Dissolved municipalities of Aichi Prefecture Inazawa {{Aichi-geo-stub ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Japanese Baseball Hall Of Fame
The is a museum which includes a library, reference rooms and . It first opened in 1959 next door to Korakuen Stadium in Tokyo, Japan. In 1988, the museum moved to a new site within the Tokyo Dome. The Hall of Fame and Museum was created as a means to contribute to the development of baseball in Japan through dedication of baseball greats—players, executives, and umpires—as Hall of Famers. In addition, the facility houses many memorable baseball materials including various kinds of baseball literature. Players inducted * Victor Starffin (1960) * Yutaka Ikeda (1962) *Haruyasu Nakajima (1963) *Tadashi Wakabayashi (1964) *Tetsuharu Kawakami (1965) *Tsunetaro Moriyama (1966) * Kazuto Tsuruoka (1969) * Shunichi Amachi (1970) *Nobuaki Nidegawa (1970) * Shuichi Ishimoto (1972) * Sadayoshi Fujimoto (1974) *Fumio Fujimura (1974) *Hideo Nakagami (1976) *Shigeru Mizuhara (1977) *Michio Nishizawa (1977) *Kenjiro Matsuki (1978) *Shinji Hamazaki (1978) *Takehiko Bessho (1979) *Hirosh ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sadaharu Oh
Sadaharu Oh (Japanese: , ''Ō Sadaharu''; born May 20, 1940), also known as Wang Chen-chih (), is a Japanese-born former baseball player and manager Nussbaum, Louis-Frédéric. (2005)"Ō Sadaharu"in ''Japan Encyclopedia'', p. 758. who is currently the chairman of the Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks of Nippon Professional Baseball. Oh holds the world lifetime home run record, having hit 868 home runs during his professional career. He established many NPB batting records, including runs batted in (RBI) (2,170), slugging percentage (.634), bases on balls (2,390), and on-base plus slugging percentage (OPS) (1.080). In 1977, Oh became the first recipient of the People's Honour Award. He was inducted into the Japanese Baseball Hall of Fame in 1994. Oh batted and threw left-handed and primarily played first base. Originally signed with the powerhouse Yomiuri Giants in 1959 as a pitcher, Oh was soon converted to a full-time hitter. Under the tutelage of coach Hiroshi Arakawa, Oh devel ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Shigeo Nagashima
is a Japanese former professional baseball player and manager. Biography Nagashima played baseball at his local high school, and on the Rikkyo University baseball team from 1954–1957. He joined the Yomiuri Giants in 1958. His jersey number (3) is now a retired number for the Yomiuri Giants. After retiring, he became manager of the Yomiuri Giants from 1975–1980, and again from 1993–2001. He was scheduled to manage the Japanese national team for the 2004 Athens Olympics, but he suffered a stroke shortly before and was hospitalized. He recovered from his stroke, appearing at a baseball game in the Tokyo Dome in 2005, and in a television commercial in 2006, with his son, Kazushige. Nagashima has four children. His eldest son, Kazushige Nagashima, is a former professional baseball player, and currently works as a sportscaster. Kazushige was not as successful as his father on the field, but he played on the Yomiuri Giants when his father was manager, and has since launched a ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Chunichi Dragons
The are a professional baseball team based in Nagoya, the chief city in the Chūbu region of Japan. The team plays in the Central League of Nippon Professional Baseball. They have won the Central League pennant nine times (most recently in 2011) and the Japan Series twice (in 1954 and 2007). They were also champions in the 2007 Asia Series. Franchise history The Chunichi Dragons were formed in 1936 as the Nagoya Club. The franchise was acquired by the ''Chunichi Shimbun'' newspaper company in 1946. They became the "Dragons" in 1947, but experimented with a number of variations on their team name before settling on Chunichi Dragons in 1954. The Dragons' most famous player, Michio Nishizawa, played for the team from 1936 to 1958. He entered the league as a 15-year-old pitcher. He developed into a 20-game winner by 1939. Nishizawa's most memorable pitching feats occurred in 1942. On May 24 of that year, Nishizawa pitched a remarkable twenty-eight complete innings, totalling 311 pi ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Central League
The or is one of the two professional baseball leagues that constitute Nippon Professional Baseball in Japan. The winner of the league championship plays against the winner of the Pacific League in the annual Japan Series. It currently consists of six teams from around the country. Unlike the Pacific League, designated hitters are not used during Central League home games. History The Central League was founded in 1949 with eight teams: four holdovers from the previous Japanese Baseball League — the Chunichi Dragons, the Hanshin Tigers, the Yomiuri Giants, and the Shochiku Robins (formerly the Taiyō Robins) — and four new teams — the Hiroshima Carp, the Kokutetsu Swallows, the Nishi Nippon Pirates, and the Taiyō Whales. The Nishi Nippon Pirates existed for one season — they placed sixth in 1950, and the following season merged with the also Fukuoka-based Nishitetsu Clippers (a member of the Pacific League) to form the Nishitetsu Lions, who joined the Pacific Lea ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Eiji Sawamura
Eiji Sawamura (沢村 栄治; February 1, 1917 – December 2, 1944) was a Japanese professional baseball player. A right-handed pitcher, he played in Japan for the Yomiuri Giants. Early life On November 20, 1934, the 17-year-old Sawamura faced a team of visiting all-star players from Major League Baseball, including Babe Ruth, Jimmie Foxx, Lou Gehrig, and Charlie Gehringer. Entering the game in the fourth inning, the high school pitcher struck out nine batters and held the Americans to a single run over five innings pitched; a home run by Gehrig in the seventh saddled Sawamura with the loss. However, he did manage to strike out Gehringer, Ruth, Gehrig, and Foxx in succession. Connie Mack, who was managing the American team, was so impressed by Sawamura's performance that he tried to sign him to a Major League contract; Sawamura refused to go, citing a reluctance to leave home. Professional career With the formation of the Japanese Baseball League, Sawamura joined the Yomiur ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Noboru Aota
was a Japanese professional baseball player. An outfielder, he played with the Tokyo Kyojin/Yomiuri Giants, Hankyu Braves, and Taiyo-Shochiku Robins from 1942–1959, playing in both the Japanese Baseball League and Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB). A five-time league home run champion, he was one of the first true sluggers of Japanese professional baseball — despite being only 5'7" and 171 lbs. Aota was selected as a Best Nine Award-winner five times and a NPB All-Star six separate times. In 2009, he was inducted to the Japanese Baseball Hall of Fame. Biography Playing career Aota made his professional debut at age 17 in 1942 with the Tokyo Kyojin of the Japanese Baseball League (JBL). After the 1942 season (also with Tokyo), Aota left professional baseball to serve in the Japanese military through 1945. He returned to the JBL in 1946 with the Hankyu Braves, for whom he played through the 1947 season. Upon joining the Yomiuri Giants (the renamed Tokyo Kyojin) in 1948 ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Osaka Tigers
The Hanshin Tigers (Japanese: 阪神タイガース ''Hanshin Taigāsu'') are a Nippon Professional Baseball team playing in the Central League. The team is based in Nishinomiya, Hyōgo Prefecture, Japan, and is owned by Hanshin Electric Railway Co., Ltd., a subsidiary of Hankyu Hanshin Holdings Inc. The Hanshin Tigers are one of the oldest professional clubs in Japan. They played their first season in 1936 as the Osaka Tigers and assumed their current team name in 1961. History The Hanshin Tigers, second of the oldest professional clubs in Japan, were founded on December 10, 1935, with the team being formed in 1936. The team was first called "the Ōsaka Tigers". In 1940, amid anti-foreign sentiment, the Tigers changed the name to "Hanshin" and in 1947 changed the name back to "Ōsaka Tigers". The current team name was assumed in 1961. The Tigers won four titles before the establishment of the two league system in 1950. Since the league was split into the Central League and ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Masayasu Kaneda
Masayasu is both a given name and a surname. Notable people with the name include: * Hotta Masayasu (1848–1911), Japanese politician *Inaba Masayasu was a Japanese ''hatamoto'' and ''daimyō'' (feudal lord) of Aono han in Mino Province in Edo period Japan. Masayasu's family was descended from Konō Michitaka.Papinot, Jacques. (2003)''Nobiliare du Japon'' -- Inaba, p. 15 Papinot, Jacques Edm ... (1640–1684), Japanese feudal lord * Masayasu Wakabayashi (born 1978), Japanese comedian, television presenter, and actor {{given name, type=both ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Curveball
In baseball and softball, the curveball is a type of pitch thrown with a characteristic grip and hand movement that imparts forward spin to the ball, causing it to dive as it approaches the plate. Varieties of curveball include the 12–6 curveball, power curveball, and the knuckle curve. Its close relatives are the slider and the slurve. The "curve" of the ball varies from pitcher to pitcher. The expression "to throw a curveball" essentially translates to introducing a significant deviation to a preceding concept. Grip and action The curveball is gripped much like a cup or drinking glass is held. The pitcher places the middle finger on and parallel to one of the long seams, and the thumb just behind the seam on the opposite side of the ball such that if looking from the top down, the hand should form a "C shape" with the horseshoe pointing in towards the palm following the contour of the thumb. The index finger is placed alongside the middle finger, and the other two extran ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Fastball
The fastball is the most common type of pitch thrown by pitchers in baseball and softball. "Power pitchers," such as former American major leaguers Nolan Ryan and Roger Clemens, rely on speed to prevent the ball from being hit, and have thrown fastballs at speeds of (officially) and up to (unofficially). Pitchers who throw more slowly can put movement on the ball, or throw it on the outside of home plate where batters can't easily reach it. Fastballs are usually thrown with backspin, so that the Magnus effect creates an upward force on the ball. This causes it to fall less rapidly than expected, and sometimes causes an optical illusion often called a rising fastball. Although it is impossible for a human to throw a baseball fast enough and with enough backspin for the ball to actually rise, to the batter the pitch seems to rise due to the unexpected lack of natural drop on the pitch. A straight pitch is achieved by gripping the ball with the fingers across the wide part o ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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