Nariharu Sakazawa

Nariharu Sakazawa (酒沢 成治)

• Bats Right, Throws Right
• Height 5' 6", Weight 132 lb.

• High School Ikuei Commercial High School

• Born May 1, 1918 in Himeji, Hyogo Japan
• Died May 6, 2002 in Fujieda, Shizuoka Japan

BR register page

Biographical Information

Nariharu Sakazawa played in Nippon Pro Baseball for 13 years.

Sakazawa signed with the Lion team in 1938, and he hit .222/.293/.244 in 27 games in his first season. He left the team after that season, and he returned in 1942. Sakazawa hit .211/.241/.258 in '42 season, and he recorded a .203/.290/.229 batting line in 1943 while leading the Japanese Professional Baseball League with 18 sacrifice bunts. Sakazawa played 32 games with a .180/.300/.203 batting line in 1944, before World War II shut down the JPBL for a year. He went to the Goldstar club in 1946 after the War, and he hit .214/.296/.252 in 103 games. Sakazawa struggled again in 1947 as he had a .205/.264/.232 batting line with 15 steals.

The Himeji native hit .209/.238/.257 in 1948, and he collected 5 triples with a .265/.309/.356 batting line in 1949. Sakazawa then batted .263/.304/.343 with 6 triples in 1950, and he tied Hiroshi Oshita and Tokuji Iida for 7th in triples in the Pacific League. He broke a NPB record as he didn't get a strikeout in 153 consecutive plate appearances in 1951, and he also tied Tetsuharu Kawakami's NPB record for fewest strikeouts in a season with 6. Sakazawa ended up hitting .220/.263/.292 that season, and he recorded a .193/.260/.262 batting line in 1952. He was released after the '52 season, and the Hankyu Braves signed him. Sakazawa hit .259/.346/.272 in 1953, but he went 3-for-21 in 1954 and he retired.

Overall, Sakazawa hit .224/.283/.276 with 777 hits and 15 homers in 13 seasons in NPB.

Sources

• Wiki Japan