Saneo Aso

Saneo Aso (麻生 実男)

• Bats Right, Throws Right
• Height 5' 6", Weight 178 lb.

• High School Eishin Gakuen High School

• Born December 17, 1937 in Fukuyama, Hiroshima Japan

BR register page

Biographical Information

Saneo Aso played in Nippon Pro Baseball for 8 years.

Aso was signed by the Taiyo Whales in 1959, and he was named their starting shortstop as a rookie. He hit .231/.271/.324 in his rookie year, but he also committed 27 errors. Thus, the Whales used him frequently as a pinch-hitter in 1960, and he recorded a .254/.285/.341 batting line; his batting average was .308 as a pinch-hitter. He was 0-for-1 in the 1960 Nippon Series, and he won his only Nippon Series title as the Whales swept the Daimai Orions. Aso hit .203/.222/.291 in 1961, then his batting line was .188/.225/.365 in 1962. He became the first player who was mainly used as pinch-hitter in the regular season to make the NPB All-Star Game, and he went 1-for-2 in the 1962 NPB All-Star Game. He then hit .152/.204/.217, .156/.156/.188 and .227/.239/.303 respectively in the next three seasons. Aso jumped to the Sankei Swallows in 1966, and he announced his retirement the same year.

Overall, Aso hit .216/.248/.311 with 183 hits and 11 homers in 8 seasons in the NPB.

Sources

• NPB site
• Wiki Japan
• 1962 NPB All Star Game