Isao Odate

Isao Odate (大館 勲)

• Bats Right, Throws Right
• Height 5' 10", Weight 205 lb.

• High School Heian High School, McKinley High School

• Born April 9, 1917 in Honolulu, HI USA
• Died June 8, 2000

BR register page

Biographical Information

Isao Odate played in Nippon Pro Baseball for 7 years.

Odate signed with the Osaka Tigers in 1949, and he hit .213/.250/.238 in 42 games in his first season. He was then traded to the Nishitetsu Lions for Shigeru Tokuami, and he played 31 games with a .232/.306/.393 batting line in 1950. Odate hit .261/.306/.457 in 1951, and he improved to 319/.364/.583 with 4 homers in 1952. He hit all four homers as a pinch-hitter, and he set the NPB record for most pinch-hit homers in a season (broken by Futoshi Nakanishi 1966). Odate's batting line fell to .222/.341/.292 in 1953, and he crushed 4 homers with a .286/.286/.657 batting line in 1954. He was 5-for-19 in 1955, and he he announced his retirement. He retired as the NPB career pinch-hit home run record holder with 9, and Nakanishi broke his record in '66.

Overall, Odate hit .253/.312/.405 with 96 hits and 13 homers in 380 AB, spread over 7 seasons in NPB.

Sources

• Wiki Japan