1974 NPB All-Star Game

There were three 1974 NPB All-Star Games, and the Pacific League swept the Central League. Katsuya Nomura was the second and last player-manager in All-Star history, following Kazuto Tsuruoka in 1952.

Game 1

Game 1 was July 21 with 46,160 fans coming to Korakuen Stadium. Sadaharu Oh was 1-for-3 with a double and 2 RBI, and the CL held their one-run lead until the 9th inning. The PL then rallied; Hiromu Matsuoka gave up an infield single to Masahiro Doi, and Yasuhiro Takai blasted a sayonara, 2-run homer and grabbed the MVP.

Team	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	R	H	E
Central	1	0	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	2	6	0
Pacific	0	0	1	0	0	0	0	0	2	3	9	0

Players used

Central League Starting Lineup

1. Shigeo Nagashima, 3B (Yomiuri Giants)
2. Tsutomu Wakamatsu, LF (Yakult Swallows)
3. Koichi Tabuchi, C (Hanshin Tigers)
4. Sadaharu Oh, 1B (Yomiuri)
5. John Sipin, 2B (Taiyo Whales)
6. Taira Fujita, SS (Hanshin)
7. Isao Shibata, CF (Yomiuri)
8. Koji Yamamoto, RF (Hiroshima Carp)
9. Tsuneo Horiuchi, P (Yomiuri)

Backups Used

• Bob Taylor, PH (Hanshin)
• Toshiyuki Mimura, 2B (Hiroshima)
• Daisuke Yamashita, 3B (Taiyo)
• Sachio Kinugasa, PH (Hiroshima)
• Masayuki Nakatsuka, PH (Taiyo)
• Toshimitsu Suetsugu, RF (Yomiuri)
• Masaji Hiramatsu, P (Taiyo)
• Hiromu Matsuoka, P (Yakult)

Manager

• Tetsuharu Kawakami

Coaches

• Wally Yonamine
• Masayasu Kaneda

Pacific League Starting Lineup

1. Yutaka Fukumoto, CF (Hankyu Braves)
2. Don Buford, 3B (Taiheiyo Club Lions)
3. Isao Harimoto, LF (Nippon Ham Fighters)
4. Atsushi Nagaike, RF (Hankyu)
5. Katsuo Osugi, 1B (Nippon Ham)
6. Michiyo Arito, SS (Lotte Orions)
7. Hiroyuki Yamazaki, 2B (Lotte)
8. Kimiyasu Murakami, C (Lotte)
9. Masaaki Kitaru, P (Lotte)

Backups Used

• Keisuke Senda, SS (Lotte)
• George Altman, PH (Lotte)
• Masahiro Doi, DH (Kintetsu Buffaloes)
• Teruhide Sakurai, PR (Nankai Hawks)
• Yasuhiro Takai, PH (Hankyu)
• Hideji Kato, PH (Hankyu)
• Shinji Nakazawa, C (Hankyu)
• Sumio Hirota, PH (Lotte)
• Katsuya Nomura, C (Nankai)
• Toru Ogawa, LF (Kintetsu)
• Satoshi Niimi, P (Nippon Ham)
• Choji Murata, P (Lotte)
• Hisashi Yamada, P (Hankyu)

Manager

• Katsuya Nomura

Coaches

• Hiromitsu Tsuchiya
• Toshiharu Ueda

Umpires

• Motoya Tsuyuzaki (Home), Isao Okada (1B), Isao Kyuki (2B), Hiroshi Maruyama (3B), Toru Nakagawa (LF), Toshio Kashiwagi (RF)

Game 2

The next day, 24,101 fans came to Nishinomiya Stadium and the PL clinched the series. Yutaka Fukumoto was 2-for-2 with 2 walks and a homer to win the MVP, then Don Buford followed him with another homer in the 8th inning. The CL's Shigeo Nagashima crushed a 3-run homer in the 4th inning, but they couldn't score any runs the rest of the game.

Team	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	R	H	E
Central	0	0	0	3	0	0	0	0	0	3	10	1
Pacific	0	0	0	2	0	2	2	0	x	6	8	0

Players used

Central League Starting Lineup

1. Fujita, SS
2. Wakamatsu, LF
3. Tabuchi, C
4. Oh, 1B
5. Nagashima, 3B
6. Yamamoto, RF
7. Shibata, CF
8. Mimura, 2B
9. Yutaka Enatsu, P (Hanshin)

Backups Used

• Kinugasa, PH
• Tatsuhiko Kimata, PH (Chunichi Dragons)
• Makoto Matsubara, 3B(Taiyo)
• Yamashita, 3B
• Taylor, LF
• Sipin, 2B
• Suetsugu, RF
• Nakatsuka, RF
• Kenji Furusawa, P (Hanshin)
• Yukitsura Matsumoto, P (Chunichi)
• Senichi Hoshino, P (Chunichi)

Pacific League Starting Lineup

1. Fukumoto, CF
2. Sakurai, 2B
3. Kato, 1B
4. Nagaike, RF
5. Doi, LF
6. Arito, SS
7. Koichi Hada, 3B (Kintetsu)
8. Nakazawa, C
9. Takenori Emoto, P (Nankai)

Backups Used

• Ogawa, CF
• Buford, 3B
• Senda, SS
• Murakami, C
• Nomura, C
• Yamazaki, 2B
• Hirota, PH
• Osugi, PH
• Altman, PH
• Toshio Kanbe, P (Kintetsu)
• Kouji Ota, P (Kintetsu)
• Yamada, P

Umpires

• Katsuo Takemoto (Home), Nakagawa (1B), Maruyama (2B), Kyuki (3B), Kashiwagi (LF), Masao Yoshida (RF)

Game 3

Game 3 was held July 23 in Hiroshima Municipal Baseball Stadium; the attendance was 25,924. It was a pitcher's contest as both teams were silent until the 8th inning. Harimoto was 2-for-4, driving in the only run and winning the MVP. Satoshi Niimi struck out 2 in 2 innings to get the win, and Murata saved it with another two shutout innings.

Team	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	R	H	E
Pacific	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	1	0	1	6	1
Central	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	4	2

Players used

Pacific League Starting Lineup

1. Ogawa, CF
2. Buford, 3B
3. Kato, 1B
4. Altman, LF
5. Harimoto, RF
6. Arito, SS
7. Sakurai, 2B
8. Murakami, C
9. Hajime Kato, P (Taiheiyo)

Backups Used

• Senda, SS
• Hirota, PR
• Fukumoto, PH
• Nomura, PH
• Yamazaki, 2B
• Nagaike, RF
• Takai, PH
• Shinichi Yamauchi, P (Nankai)
• Niimi, P
• Murata, P

Central League Starting Lineup

1. Wakamatsu, LF
2. Yamamoto, CF
3. Tabuchi, C
4. Oh, 1B
5. Kinugasa, RF
6. Fujita, SS
7. Matsubara, 3B
8. Mimura, 2B
9. Motoyasu Kaneshiro, P (Hiroshima)

Backups Used

• Taylor, LF
• Akihiko Oya, C (Yakult)
• Sipin, PH
• Yamashita, PR
• Kimata, PH
• Nagashima, 3B
• Suetsugu, PH
• Nakatsuka, PH
• Shibata, LF
• Keishi Asano, P (Yakult)
• Shitoshi Sekimoto, P (Yomiuri)
• Yoshiro Sotokoba, P (Hiroshima)

Umpires

• Yoshida (Home), Kashiwagi (1B), Nakagawa (2B), Okada (3B), Tsuyuzaki (LF), Takemoto (RF)

Sources

• Japanese Wikipedia entry