Shozo Higuchi

Shozo Higuchi (樋口 正蔵)

• Bats Left, Throws Left
• Height 5' 9", Weight 160 lbs.

• School Hosei University
• High School Naniwa Shogyo High School

• Born September 26, 1939 in Osaka, Osaka Japan

BR register page

Biographical Information

Outfielder Shozo Higuchi played in Nippon Pro Baseball for 10 years.

Higuchi was signed by the Nankai Hawks in 1962, but he only got 80 at-bats with a .250/.302/.325 batting line in his rookie year. He was named the starting right fielder in 1963 when Yoshio Anabuki struggled, and he hit .313/.352/.397 with 9 triples. He led the Pacific League in triples, and he was 3rd in batting (behind Jack Bloomfield and Kihachi Enomoto). Higuchi then hit .296/.354/.349 in 1964, and he set the NPB record as he collected 55 infield hits in a season. He was 9-for-27 in the 1964 Nippon Series, and he helped the Hawks beat the Hanshin Tigers in 7 games.

The Osaka native recorded a .261/.310/.318 batting line in 1965, and he was 1-for-7 in the 1965 Nippon Series; the Yomiuri Giants beat the Hawks in 5 games. Higuchi's batting line was .265/.314/.317 in 1966, then he hit .256/.300/.293 in 1967. He crushed a career-high 5 homers with a .288/.317/.369 batting line in 1968, then he batted .261/.314/.288 in 1969. All-Star slugger Hiromitsu Kadota joined the team in 1970, so Higuchi only played 80 games with a .325/.370/.429 batting line, He played 72 games with a .259/.298/.315 batting line in 1971, then he announced his retirement.

Overall, Higuchi hit .281/.313/.342 with 800 hits and 15 homers in 10 years in NPB.

Sources

• Wiki Japan
• NPB.com Bio