Kiyotake Suzuki

Kiyotake Suzuki (鈴木 皖武)

• Bats Right, Throws Right
• Height 5' 7", Weight 143 lbs.

• High School Doi High School

• Born February 6, 1941 in Shikokuchuo, Ehime, Japan

BR register page

Biographical Information

Kiyotake Suzuki pitched in Nippon Pro Baseball for 14 years.

Suzuki was signed by the Kokutetsu Swallows in 1962, and he joined their bullpen as a rookie. He had a 3.86 ERA in 41 games in his rookie year, then he was 3-9 with a 4.42 ERA in 1963. He ranked 10th in appearances in the Central League in 1963, tied with Minoru Kakimoto and Kiyoshi Oishi. Suzuki then had a 3.54 ERA in 22 games in 1964, and his ERA was 3.50 in 49 games in 1965. He had his career year in 1966, pitching a career-high 62 games with a 2.33 ERA and a 8-9 record. He led the league in appearances, and he was 7th in ERA (between Masatoshi Gondo and Hidetake Watanabe).

The Ehime native was selected into the 1967 NPB All-Star Games, and he relieved Katsuya Sugawara in the 7th inning of Game 1. However, he gave up 2 homers, to Masahiro Doi and Isao Harimoto, so he got the loss. Suzuki ended up having a 3.63 ERA in 53 games in 1967, and he was 5th in appearances (between Yukihiro Kubo and Yataro Oishi). After having a 4.18 ERA in 36 games in 1968, the Swallows traded him to the Hanshin Tigers for Akio Saionji. Suzuki entered the rotation in 1969, and he was 6-8 with a 2.17 ERA. He led the league in WHIP and ranked 3rd in ERA (between Minoru Murayama and Kazumi Takahashi).

Suzuki was 5-5 with a 2.37 ERA in 1970, and he recorded a 2.84 ERA with a 4-7 record in 1971. The Tigers then moved him back to the bullpen, and he had a 2.14 ERA in 31 appearances in 1972. Suzuki was still a stable reliever in 1973 as his ERA was 3.18 in 24 games, but he had a fight with manager Masayasu Kaneda and he got a suspension for a month. He recorded a 3.45 ERA in 28 games in 1974, then the Tigers traded him with Osamu Uetsuji, Seiichi Ogawa, Hideo Hirayama and Masayoshi Moriyama to the Lotte Orions for Keiichi Inoue and Takenori Ikebe. Suzuki only pitched 16 games with a 2.75 ERA for the Orions in 1975, then he announced his retirement. He was a scout for the Orions after he retired.

Overall, Suzuki was 47-61 with a 3.11 ERA, struck out 866 and pitched 1,198 2/3 innings in 14 years in NPB.

Sources

• Wiki Japan
• NPB.com Bio
• 1967 NPB All-Star Game