Masahiko Hirose

Masahiko Hirose (弘瀬 昌彦)

• Bats Right, Throws Right
• Height 5' 8", Weight 158 lbs.

• High School Kochi Shogyo High School

• Born January 8, 1934 in Kochi Prefecture Japan

BR register page

Biographical Information

Submariner Masahiko Hirose pitched in Nippon Pro Baseball for 10 years.

Hirose was signed by the Osaka Tigers in 1954, but he only pitched 2 games for them then he left the team due to a health issue. He then pitched for Tosa Electric Railway in the Industrial league until the Hiroshima Carp signed him in 1957. Hirose was 6-9 with a 3.31 ERA in 1957, then he had a 9-10 record with a 3.20 ERA in 53 games in 1958. He led the Central League in hit-by-pitches with 10 in 1958, and he ranked 6th in appearances (tied with Masaaki Koyama and Masaaki Koyama). Hirose had a 3.32 ERA in 29 games in 1959, and he was 3-8 with a 3.52 ERA in 1960

The Kochi native improved to 8-11 with a 3.15 ERA in 1961, and he was also selected into the 1961 NPB All-Star Games; he didn't appeared in either of the games. Hirose slumped to 2-6 with a 4.18 ERA in 1962, then he bounced back in 1963. He was 10-10 with a 2.99 ERA, ranking 8th in appearances (between Masaichi Kaneda and Kiyoshi Oishi) and 10th in ERA (between Tatsumi Yamanaka and Noboru Akiyama). After having a 3.71 ERA in 33 games in 1964, the Carp traded him to the Hankyu Braves for cash. Hirose only pitched 10 games for the Braves, and he announced his retirement in 1965.

Overall, Hirose was 44-61 with a 3.32 ERA, struck out 537 and pitched 1,028 2/3 innings in 10 years in NPB.

Sources

• Wiki Japan
• Bio