Akitada Tsukuda

Akitada Tsukuda (佃 明忠)

• Bats Right, Throws Right
• Height 5' 10", Weight 158 lb.

• High School Waseda Jitsugyo High School

• Born May 19, 1935 in Tokyo Prefecture Japan

BR register page

Biographical Information

Akitada Tsukuda caught in Nippon Pro Baseball for 6 years.

Tsukuda was signed by the Mainichi Orions in 1954, but he spent his first two seasons primarily in the NPB Farm Leagues, only having 57 at-bats with the big club. he was named their starting catcher in 1956, and he hit .198/.278/.396 with a career-high 11 homers in 70 games. He was also selected into the 1956 NPB All-Star Game, and he was 1-for-4 with a 2-run home run off Ryohei Hasegawa in Game 1; he was 0-for-1 in Game 2. When prospect Takeo Daigo shined in 1957, Tsukuda only had 129 at-bats with a .248/.331/.295 batting line, then he was sent to the Kintetsu Buffaloes. He hit .209/.247/.364 in 1958, but he only played 45 games in 1959 because Masatoshi Kato took the starting spot. Tsukuda announced his retirement after the 1958 season.

Overall, Tsukuda hit .218/.276/.353 with 164 hits and 22 homers in 6 seasons in the NPB.

Sources

• NPB site
• Wiki Japan
• 1956 NPB All Star Game