Books and articles about Shigeo Nagashima

Nagashima, who usually batted fourth behind home run champ Sadaharu Oh, was Japan's most popular and highest-paid player in his time. After a spectacular career at Rikkyo University, he signed with the Giants for a then-record $48,000 bonus. His 9th-inning homer to win the 1959 Emperor's Game is generally regarded as the greatest moment in Japanese baseball history. Upon retirement, he became the Giants' manager, winning the Japan Series in 1976. He was promoted to GM when Oh retired and was named manager in 1981. (MC)

FROM THE BASEBALL CHRONOLOGY » November 20, 1957: Shigeo Nagashima, a star at Rikkyo University, signs with the Yomiuri Giants for a record bonus of $69,000. He will go on to have one of the great careers in Japanese baseball. » April 5, 1958: Shigeo Nagashima, a rookie phenom, makes his pro debut with the Yomiuri Giants. He is fanned 4 times, but will go on to win the Central League batting title and have one of the distinguished careers in Japanese baseball. » June 26, 1959: The "Emperor's game," the greatest in Japanese baseball history, is played by the Yomiuri Giants and the Hanshin Tigers, with Emperor Hirohito and his wife attending at Tokyo's Korakuen Stadium. The game is tied 4–4 in the 7th on Giants rookie Sadaharu Oh's 2-run home run, then won 5–4 in the last of the 9th on a home run by the Giant's Shigeo Nagashima. This starts the famed "O-N cannon," the hitting combination of Oh and Nagashima, that will bring the Giants nine pennants between 1965 and 1973. In all, the O-N cannon hits dual home runs in 106 games.