Katsuya Nomura 野村 克也 | |
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![]() Nomura in 1959 | |
Catcher / Manager | |
Born: Kyōtango, Kyoto, Japan | June 29, 1935|
Died: February 11, 2020 Setagaya, Tokyo, Japan | (aged 84)|
Batted: Right Threw: Right | |
NPB debut | |
June 17, 1954, for the Nankai Hawks | |
Last NPB appearance | |
October 3, 1980, for the Seibu Lions | |
NPB statistics | |
Batting average | .277 |
Hits | 2,901 |
HRs | 657 |
RBIs | 1,988 |
Managerial record | 1,565–1,563–76 |
Winning % | .500 |
Teams | |
As player
As manager
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Career highlights and awards | |
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Member of the Japanese | |
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Induction | 1989 |
Katsuya Nomura (野村 克也, Nomura Katsuya, June 29, 1935 – February 11, 2020) was a Japanese Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB) catcher and manager. During his over 26-season playing career mostly spent with the Nankai Hawks (now the Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks), he became one of NPB's greatest offensive catchers. He was awarded the Pacific League MVP Award five times, became the first NPB batter to win the Triple Crown in 1965, and holds the record for second-most home runs and RBIs in NPB history.
Nomura was a player-manager for the last eight years he was with the Hawks, leading them to the Pacific League title in 1973. After playing, he became a full-time manager and served led the Yakult Swallows to four league titles and three Japan Series championships from 1990 to 1998. Later, he managed the Hanshin Tigers for three seasons and the Tohoku Rakuten Golden Eagles for four seasons until his retirement in 2009. As a manager, Nomura recorded 1,565 wins, the fifth-most wins of any manager in NPB history. He was elected to the Japanese Baseball Hall of Fame in 1989.