Toshiyuki Mimura

Toshiyuki Mimura (三村 敏之)

• Bats Right, Throws Right
• Height 5' 8", Weight 156 lb.

• High School Hiroshima Shogyo High School

• Born September 19, 1948 in Aki-gun, Hiroshima Japan
• Died November 3, 2009 in Sendai, Miyagi Japan

BR Register page

Biographical Information

Toshiyuki Mimura played 17 seasons for the Hiroshima Carp and later managed them. He often hit in the #2 spot of the order. He played primarily shortstop but also saw action at second base, third base and the outfield.

Mimura was a second-round pick of the Carp in the 1966 NPB draft out of high school. He hit .182/.229/.273 in 42 games as a rookie in 1967 and improved slightly to .210/.260/.311 in 1968. He batted .200/.296/.321 in 63 games in 1969.

At age 21, Mimura became a starter in 1970, producing at a .261/.321/.364 rate with 16 steals (in 26 tries). He was hit by 10 pitches, leading the Central League, and made the All-Star team. Toshiyuki hit .216/.290/.348 with 15 homers and only 6 steals in 13 tries in 1971.

Mimura made major strides in 1972, when he hit .308/.407/.444. He made his second All-Star team and was hit by 19 pitches, second-most all-time to that point after Yoshiyuki Iwamoto. He was second in the batting race in the CL behind Tsutomu Wakamatsu. Mimura was named to the Best Nine as the top shortstop in the circuit.

In 1973, the young veteran hit .269/.362/.390. He followed with a .260/.312/.429 batting line in 1974 and made his third All-Star squad. Mimura batted .281/.350/.410 in 1975 and again made the Best Nine at short. He was just 4 for 25 with two walks in the 1975 Japan Series as Hiroshima was swept by the Hankyu Braves.

Mimura hit .269/.317/.487 in 1976 with a career-high 27 home runs. He made his third and final Best Nine team. From there, Mimura faded to a .239/.283/.354 batting line with 8 homers in 1977. He hit .249/.331/.418 in 1978.

Mimura bounced back in 1979, his 13th season with Hiroshima. The 30-year-old hit .288/.356/.424 and was named NPB Comeback Player of the Year. He also made his fourth All-Star team. He batted .304/.360/.522 in the 1979 Japan Series, won by Hiroshima, including a homer in game six.

Mimura fell back down in 1980, only hitting .211/.305/.281. As a part-time second baseman, he was 1 for 7 with a walk in the 1980 Japan Series as the Carp took a second Japan Series of his career.

In 1981, he hit .227/.280/.356 in 96 games. He fell to 57 games in 1982 and hit .189/.303/.257 as a bench player. He went 0 for 7 in 1983 then retired.

Overall, Mimura had hit .255/.326/.390 in 1,567 games in Nippon Pro Baseball. He had hit 149 home runs and stolen 49 bases in 99 tries. After his playing career ended, he was a minor league coach and manager with Hiroshima.

In 1994, he replaced Koji Yamamoto as Hiroshima's manager. His first season, they finished third in the CL at 66-64, only 4 games behind the Yomiuri Giants in a closely matched field. His club improved to 74-56-1 in 1995 but placed second behind the Yakult Swallows.

Mimura's Carp were 71-59 and in third place in 1996 and 66-69 in 1997 when the yagain took third. His only second division finish was in 1998 when Hiroshima was 60-75 and in fifth place. That cost him his job despite an overall career record of 337-323-1. He was replaced by Mitsuo Tatsukawa.

Mimura later became a commentator for RCC TV, then was an official with the Rakuten Golden Eagles before his death at age 61.

Sources

• Japan Times
• Japan Baseball Daily