Hidenosuke Shima

Hidenosuke Shima (島 秀之助)

• Bats Right, Throws Right
• Height 5' 4", Weight 132 lb.

• School Hosei University
• High School Daiichi Shinko Shogyo High School

• Born June 21, 1908 in Kobe, Hyogo Japan
• Died December 25, 1995

BR register page

Biographical Information

Hidenosuke Shima was an outfielder for Hosei University (twice leading his league in steals) and the Nagoya Golden Dolphins/Kinko in the first two years of the Japanese Professional Baseball League (1936-1937). In the spring of 1934, he was 4 for 34 with a double and 3 walks for Nagoya. He improved to .262/.392/.279 in the fall campaign. In the spring of 1937, he hit .181/.283/.276 with 17 steals in 43 games. He was 6th in the JPBL in swipes. He batted .272/.344/.319 with 30 runs and 22 steals in 48 games in the fall of 1937, leading the league in singles (47) and steals (tied with Kazuo Kito). He had hit .230/.322/.286 with 51 steals and 72 runs in 120 games as a pro.

He hurt his shoulder and became an umpire in 1938; he would work 2,605 games. In 1938, he found his true calling as an umpire. He was the Central League's umpire-in-chief from 1950 to 1980. He worked 10 Japan Series, starting from the first one in 1950, and 12 NPB All-Star Games, again including the first one (1951).

Shima was inducted into the Japanese Baseball Hall of Fame in 1989.