Minoru Kakimoto

Minoru Kakimoto (柿本 実)

• Bats Right, Throws Right
• Height 5' 9", Weight 182 lbs.

• High School Kanda High School

• Born October 5, 1935 in Miyako-gun, Fukuoka, Japan

BR register page

Biographical Information

Minoru Kakimoto pitched in Nippon Pro Baseball for 10 years and won an ERA title.

Kakimoto was signed by the Nankai Hawks in 1960, but he was given up after he allowed 4 runs in a inning. The Chunichi Dragons picked him up, and Kakimoto went 3-3 with a 2.67 ERA in 1961. He broke out in 1962, having a 20-17 record with a solid 2.52 ERA. He ranked 7th in the Central League in wins (10 shy of Hiroshi Gondo), 9th in strikeouts (113 behind Masaaki Koyama) and 6th in ERA (.86 behind Minoru Murayama). Kakimoto also pitched a shutout inning in 1962 NPB All-Star Game 2.

The Fukuoka native had a career year in 1963, and he was selected into the 1963 NPB All-Star Games; he started in Game 3 and pitched 3 shutout inning. Kakimoto ended up 21-13 with a 1.70 ERA, and won his only CL ERA title, .20 ahead of runner-up Yoshiaki Itoh. He ranked 3rd in wins (9 behind Masaichi Kaneda) and 5th in complete games (13 behind Kaneda). The talented righty slumped a little with a 15-19 record and a 2.85 ERA in 1964, and he led the league in losses. Kakimoto still managed to attended the 1965 NPB All-Star Game, and he pitched a shutout inning in both Game 2 and Game 3. However, he only went 9-7 with a 3.14 ERA in 1965. The Dragons then traded him to the Hankyu Braves for Kimihiro Sato after this season.

Kakimoto struggled in 1966 as his ERA rose to 5.66, and the Braves released him. The Hanshin Tigers picked him up and turned him into a reliever, so Kakimoto bounced back as he had a 1.52 ERA in 20 appearances. He went 8-7 with a 3.20 ERA in 1967, then announced his retirement after having a 3-4 record with a 3.27 ERA in 1968. After retiring, he became the pitching coach for the minor league team of the Tigers from 1970 to 1971 and for their big club from 1972 to 1973.

Overall, Kakimoto was 83-71 with a 2.55 ERA, struck out 645 and pitched 1,402 1/3 innings in 10 years in the NPB. He didn't have any wild pitches in his entire career.

Related Sites

• Wiki Japan
• NPB.com Bio