Mikio Kudo

Mikio Kudo (工藤 幹夫)

• Bats Right, Throws Right
• Height 5' 11", Weight 165 lb.

• High School Honjo High School

• Born September 30, 1960 in Honjo, Akita Japan
• Died May 13, 2016 in Akita, Akita Japan

BR Register page

Biographical Information

Mikio Kudo had pitched in Nippon Pro Baseball.

Kudo was drafted by the Nippon Ham Fighters in the second round of the 1978 NPB draft. He spent his rookie year in the NPB Farm League, and only pitched 3 games with the big club. Although he didn't pitched in the major league in 1982, Kudo pitched well in the Eastern League and led the league with 13 wins. He was 2-9 with a 4.86 ERA in 1981, and collected two wins in the 1981 Nippon Series. He beat Mitsuo Sumi in Game 1 and Shoji Sadaoka in Game 3 as Nippon Ham built a 2-1 lead over the Yomiuri Giants but Yomiuri won the last three games as Kudo got all of the Fighters' wins for the Series. The Akira native became the ace of the Fighters in 1982. In 1982 NPB All-Star Game 2, he pitched a shutout inning, but allowed a run in 2 1/3 innings and got the loss in Game 3. He recorded a 20-3 with a 2.10 ERA, and won the Best Nine award. He led the league in wins and winning percentage, and ranked 2th in ERA(.26 behind Satoshi Takahashi). In 1982 PL MVP Voting, Kudo ranked 3th (behind Hiromitsu Ochiai and Takuji Ota) and gained 318 points. He fractured his right little finger and missed half of the month in the end of that season. Even though people expected that the Fighters would not have their ace in the 1982 Nippon Climax Series, Kudo miraculously came back, as he pitched 6 innings without allowing any runs in the Game 1, and collected a complete game to got the only win for the Fighters in this series in Game 3. He also won the Fighting Spirit Award of the series. Nevertheless, those appearances permanently hurt Kudo's hand, and his ERA rose to 5.13 in the next year. Kudo couldn't came back to the league after the 1984 season, and announced his retirement after the 1988 season.

Overall, Kudo was 30-22 with a 3.74 ERA and pitched 413 2/3 innings in five seasons in NPB.