| Katsuya Nomura 野村 克也 | |
|---|---|
 Nomura in 1959 | |
| Catcher /Manager | |
| Born:(1935-06-29)June 29, 1935 Kyōtango,Kyoto,Japan | |
| Died: February 11, 2020(2020-02-11) (aged 84) Setagaya,Tokyo, Japan | |
Batted: Right Threw: Right | |
| NPB debut | |
| June 17, 1954, for the Nankai Hawks | |
| Last NPB appearance | |
| October 3, 1980, for the Seibu Lions | |
| NPB statistics | |
| Batting average | .277 |
| Hits | 2,901 |
| HRs | 657 |
| RBIs | 1,988 |
| Managerial record | 1,565–1,563–76 |
| Winning % | .500 |
| Teams | |
| As player As manager
| |
| Career highlights and awards | |
As player
As manager
| |
| Member of the Japanese | |
 Baseball Hall of Fame | |
| Induction | 1989 |
Katsuya Nomura (野村 克也,Nomura Katsuya; June 29, 1935 – February 11, 2020) was a JapaneseNippon Professional Baseball (NPB)catcher andmanager. During his over 26-season playing career mostly spent with theNankai Hawks (now the Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks), he became one of NPB's greatest offensive catchers. He was awarded thePacific LeagueMVP Award five times, became the first NPB batter to win theTriple Crown in 1965, and holds the record for second-most home runs and RBIs in NPB history.
Nomura was aplayer-manager for the last eight years he was with the Hawks, leading them to the Pacific League title in 1973. After playing, he became a full-time manager and served led theYakult Swallows to four league titles and threeJapan Series championships from 1990 to 1998. Later, he managed theHanshin Tigers for three seasons and theTohoku Rakuten Golden Eagles for four seasons until his retirement in 2009. As a manager, Nomura recorded 1,565 wins, the fifth-most wins of any manager in NPB history. He was elected to theJapanese Baseball Hall of Fame in 1989.
Nomura was born in the coastal fishing village of Amino (nowKyōtango) inKyoto Prefecture. When he was three years old, his father died of disease while serving in China during theSecond Sino-Japanese War. Nomura grew up in poverty with his mother and older brother. With the help of his brother, he was able to attend high school.[1]
After graduating from Mineyama High School, Nomura joined theNankai Hawks after a tryout in 1954.[2] The team's manager at the time believed he'd at least be useful as a catcher for pitching practice. That year, Nomura played in nine games and went hitless for the season. The Hawks discussed cutting him from the team, however, he was given another chance reportedly after Nomura offered to play for free and even threatened to throw himself in front of a train if he was let go.[1]
During a career that spanned four decades from 1954 to 1980, Nomura hit 657 home runs and led thePacific League in homers eight straight seasons, utilizing the full potential of his home park Osaka Stadium, which had a home run wall just 276 feet down the line until 1972 that adjusted to 300 feet from that year onward (the distance to straightaway center was 380 feet). He was the first player to have 500 home runs in NPB history, doing so on 2 July 1971 off Satoru Miwa of theNishitetsu Lions atOsaka Stadium.[3][4] He finished his career with 2901 hits.[5]
In 1965, Nomura won the league's firstTriple Crown.[citation needed] He was a player-manager between 1970 and 1977.[6] He played for 26 years, the longest NPB playing career untilKimiyasu Kudo pitched in his 27th season in 2008; Kudo retired in 2010 having played 29 seasons.[7]
Nomura began his 24-year managerial career asplayer-manager of the Hawks in 1970. During his eight-year stint as Hawks manager, he led the team to the Pacific League title in 1973. After his playing career, Nomura went on to become a full-time manager. From 1990 to 1998, he managed theYakult Swallows, leading them to four league titles and threeJapan Series championships.[8] During what became known as the "golden age of Yakult", Nomura became known for his theory of "ID baseball" based on the philosophy of "thinking baseball".[9][10] Nomura mentored many talented players, includingTetsuya Iida, who became known as the "poster child for ID baseball",[10] as well as the team's catcher,Atsuya Furuta, who became a hall of fame catcher in his own right.[11]
Following his role as Yakult manager, Nomura joined theHanshin Tigers and managed the team from 1999 to 2001. The team finished last in theCentral League all three seasons.[12] On December 5, 2001, his wife, television personality Sachiyo Nomura, was arrested fortax evasion. Nomura resigned from his managerial position the next day.[13] His wife was accused of hiding ¥45 million of his income, however Nomura was not accused of any criminal responsibility.[14]
After the scandal, Nomura managed the amateur corporate league team Shidax from 2003 to 2005. He left after three seasons to return to NPB. TheTohoku Rakuten Golden Eagles had a poor showing during their inaugural 2005 season. It was the first PL club in 40 years to lose at least 90 games in one season. They finished with a 38–97–1 record. Hoping to improve for their second season, the team hired Nomura to manage the club because of his experience.[12] Over the next four season, he helped turn Rakuten around. By his final season with the team, the Eagles finished the regular season in with their best-ever showing up to that point in time, second place, securing them a position in theClimax Series. After losing in the final stage of the2009 Pacific League Climax Series, Nomura retired from managing at the age of 74. As a manager, Nomura recorded 1,565 wins, the fifth-most wins of any manager in NPB history.[8]
During his playing time, Pacific League games were rarely televised. Because of this, Nomura was often overshadowed by his Central League contemporaries such as superstarsSadaharu Oh andShigeo Nagashima of theYomiuri Giants.[1] He openly resented this and felt he never received the attention that he deserved as a player.[15] Over 26-season playing career, however, Nomura amassed a number of awards, titles and records. During his time with the Hawks, he won five Pacific LeagueMVP Awards – the most of any PL player and second-most all-time.[16] Nomura also led the PL in home runs for nine seasons, eight of which were consecutive and won 19Best Nine Awards for best catcher in the league. He accumulated 657 home runs, 1,988 RBIs and 2,901 hits in 3,017 games, all of which are 2nd in the all-time rankings.[8] He was elected into theJapanese Baseball Hall of Fame by the Selection Committee for Players in 1989.;[17] his copper plaque depicts him wearing his cap backwards with no team logo visible.[18]
While married to his first wife from 1960, Nomura started dating Sachiyo in 1971 and cohabiting in 1972. Soon she became pregnant and gave birth to future NPB playerKatsunori Nomura in 1973.[19][20] Nomura eventually remarried her after he divorced his first wife in 1978.[19] The two remained married until her death in 2017 at age 85.[21] His first wife died ofSubarachnoid hemorrhage in 1982.[19] Sports agents Kenny andDon Nomura, Sachiyo's children from her previous marriage, are Nomura's step-children. Nomura died of heart failure on February 11, 2020, at age 84.[8]
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Media related toKatsuya Nomura at Wikimedia Commons| Sporting positions | ||
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| Preceded by | Tohoku Rakuten Golden Eagles manager 2006–2009 | Succeeded by |
