Minoru Tanimoto

Minoru Tanimoto (谷本 稔)

• Bats Right, Throws Right
• Height 5' 8", Weight 171 lb.

• High School Yawatahama High School

• Born February 1, 1937 in Yawatahama, Ehime Japan
• Died 2010

BR register page

Biographical Information

Catcher Minoru Tanimoto was a 2-time All-Star in Nippon Pro Baseball.

Tanimoto was signed by the Daiei Stars in 1955, and he was named their starting catcher as a rookie. He became the first high school graduate catcher to start on opening day in NPB history, and he hit .251/.300/.302 in 87 games in his rookie year. He recorded a .234/.293/.269 batting line in 1956, then he batted .227/.285/.303 in 1957. Daiei merged with the Mainichi Orions and became the Daimai Orions in 1958, and he hit .270/.293/.341 in 73 games as the backup behind Takeo Daigo. Tanimoto won the competition with Daigo for the starting spot in 1959, and he hit .276/.312/.429 with a career-high 10 homers.

The Ehime native had a .265/.316/.336 batting line in 1960, and he was selected into the 1960 NPB All-Star Game; he was 0-for-2. Tanimoto went 3-for-15 in the 1960 Nippon Series, and the Taiyo Whales swept the Orions. He then crushed 10 homers with a .258/.300/.414 batting line in 1961, and he batted .266/.290/.383 in 1962. Tanimoto attended the 1963 NPB All-Star Games, and he was 1-for-2 with a single against Noboru Akiyama in Game 3. He ended up hitting .285/.328/.403 in 1963, but he then slumped to .213/.259/.244 in 1964.

The Orions traded him to the Hanshin Tigers for Katsuhiko Maki after the 1964 season, and he played 62 games with a .212/.264/.282 batting line in 1965. He only had 52 at-bats with a .204/.220/.204 batting line in 1966, and he announced his retirement in 1967. Tanimoto then coached the Tigers from 1967 to 1974 and from 1979 to 1981. He also scouted for them from 1983 to 2000.

Overall, Tanimoto hit .257/.299/.352 with 708 hits and 46 homers in 13 seasons in the NPB.

Sources

• NPB site
• Wiki Japan
• 1963 NPB All Star Game