was a

Japanese Japanese may refer to: * Something from or related to Japan, an island country in East Asia * Japanese language, spoken mainly in Japan * Japanese people, the ethnic group that identifies with Japan through ancestry or culture ** Japanese diaspor ...

baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball games, bat-and-ball sport played between two team sport, teams of nine players each, taking turns batting (baseball), batting and Fielding (baseball), fielding. The game occurs over the course of several Pitch ...

first baseman A first baseman, abbreviated 1B, is the player on a baseball or softball team who fields the area nearest first base, the first of four bases a baserunner must touch in succession to score a run. The first baseman is responsible for the majori ...

and

manager Management (or managing) is the administration of organizations, whether businesses, nonprofit organizations, or a government bodies through business administration, nonprofit management, or the political science sub-field of public administra ...

. He played for the Osaka/Hanshin Tigers from 1936 until 1941, when he was drafted into

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

. He returned as a

player-manager A player–coach (also playing coach, captain–coach, or player–manager) is a member of a sports team who simultaneously holds both playing and coaching duties. Player–coaches may be head coaches or assistant coaches, and they may make chang ...

, a role he possessed in 1940 and 1941, for 1950 and 1951. He served as a non-playing manager of the Tigers from 1952 until 1954, the Daiei Stars/Unions for 1956 and 1957, and the

Toei Flyers The are a Japanese professional Baseball in Japan, baseball team based in Kitahiroshima, Hokkaido, Kitahiroshima, Hokkaidō, in the Sapporo metropolitan area. They compete in the Pacific League of Nippon Professional Baseball, playing the major ...

for 1969 and 1970. He was inducted into the

Japanese Baseball Hall of Fame The , commonly known outside of Japan as the Japanese Baseball Hall of Fame, is a hall of fame and museum in Tokyo dedicated to professional baseball, with a prominent focus on professional baseball in Japan. The Hall is intended to honor and co ...

in 1978.

Early life

Matsuki was born on January 22, 1909, in

Tsuruga, Fukui is a Cities of Japan, city located in Fukui Prefecture, Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 66,123 in 28,604 households and the population density of 260 persons per km2. The total area of the city was . Geography Tsuruga is l ...

. He attended

Meiji University is a Private university, private research university in Chiyoda, Tokyo, Chiyoda, Tokyo, Japan. Originally founded as Meiji Law School () by three lawyers in 1881, it became a university in April 1920. As of May 2023, Meiji has 32,261 undergradu ...

and played baseball there. While on the university's team, he played against American universities.

Playing career

Prior to playing professionally, he played in industrial leagues. He also played on a team consisting of Japanese All-Stars in 1934, which played United States Major League Baseball All-Stars, including

Lou Gehrig Henry Louis Gehrig ( ; June 19, 1903June 2, 1941), also known as Heinrich Ludwig Gehrig, was an American professional baseball first baseman who played 17 seasons in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the New York Yankees (1923–1939). Gehrig was ...

and

Babe Ruth George Herman "Babe" Ruth (February 6, 1895 – August 16, 1948) was an American professional Baseball in the United States, baseball player whose career in Major League Baseball (MLB) spanned 22 seasons, from 1914 through 1935. Nickna ...

. Matsuki played for the

Osaka Tigers The are a Nippon Professional Baseball team playing in the Central League. The team is based in Nishinomiya, Hyōgo Prefecture, Japan, next to their main stadium, Hanshin Koshien Stadium. The Tigers are owned by Hanshin Electric Railway Co., L ...

' first seasons. For the 1937 spring season, Matsuki led the

Japanese Baseball League The was a professional baseball league in Japan which operated from 1936 to 1949, before reorganizing in 1950 as Nippon Professional Baseball. The league's dominant team was Tokyo Kyojin (renamed the Yomiuri Giants in 1947), which won nine le ...

with a .338

batting average Batting average is a statistic in cricket, baseball, and softball that measures the performance of batters. The development of the baseball statistic was influenced by the cricket statistic. Cricket In cricket, a player's batting average is ...

and four

home run In baseball, a home run (abbreviated HR) is scored when the Baseball (ball), ball is hit in such a way that the batting (baseball), batter is able to circle the bases and reach home plate safe (baseball), safely in one play without any error ( ...

s. In that year's fall season, Matsuki tied for first on his team with three home runs on their way to winning the second-ever Japanese Baseball League, which they won again in the 1938 spring season. In that year's fall season, Matsuki led the league with 35 runs and led the team with four home runs. 1939 saw Matsuki become one of the Tigers' most valuable offensive players, leading the team in batting average, runs, hits, and walks. In 1940, Matsuki became the player manager of the newly named Hanshin Tigers. He led the team to a 64-37-3 record, and a second-place finish in the league. This year, his offensive performance somewhat regressed, leading the team only in

sacrifice flies In baseball, a sacrifice fly (sometimes abbreviated to sac fly) is defined by Rule 9.08(d): "Score a sacrifice fly when, before two are out, the batter hits a ball in flight handled by an outfielder or an infielder running in the outfield in fair o ...

. The next year, he led the team to 41–43 record and a fifth-place finish and did not lead the team in any offensive category. That year, Matsuki resigned after he was drafted to serve for Japan in

. During the

Battle of Okinawa The , codenamed Operation Iceberg, was a major battle of the Pacific War fought on the island of Okinawa Island, Okinawa by United States Army and United States Marine Corps forces against the Imperial Japanese Army during the Pacific War, Impe ...

, he was wounded and captured by American forces. He returned as the player manager of the Tigers in 1949, beginning his tenure in the 1950 season. It was clear that his playing ability was diminishing. Aged 41, he had thirteen plate appearances for three hits and two walks. He led the team to a 70-67-3 record, and a fourth-place finish in the

Central League The or , also known as the for sponsorship reasons, is one of the two professional baseball leagues that constitute Nippon Professional Baseball in Japan. The winner of the league championship plays against the winner of the Pacific League i ...

. In 1951, he recorded only one at-bat, which resulted in an out. The team went 61-52-3, good for third in the league. 1951 would be the final year he played in a professional game.

Managerial career

Osaka/Hanshin Tigers

Though he was no longer a player manager, he continued to be the manager of the Tigers. Under his leadership, the Tigers went 79-40-1 and finished second in the league in 1952, 74-56 and second place in the league in 1953, and 71-57-2 and third place in the league in 1954. He was replaced by Ichiro Kishi following that result.

Daiei Stars/Unions

Matsuki became manager of the Daiei Stars in 1956. The team finished 57-94-3 and finished seventh in the

Pacific League The , or , or the , due to sponsorship reasons, is one of the two professional baseball leagues constituting Nippon Professional Baseball in Japan. The winner of the league championship competes against the winner in the Central League for the a ...

. The following season, the team, now called the Daiei Unions, went 41-89-2 and finished last in the league. The team then merged with the

Mainichi Orions The are a professional baseball team in Japan's Pacific League based in Chiba City, Chiba Prefecture, in the Kantō region, and owned by Lotte Holdings Co., Ltd. The Marines were a founding member of the Pacific League in as the Mainichi Or ...

to form the

Daimai Orions The are a professional baseball team in Japan's Pacific League based in Chiba, Chiba, Chiba City, Chiba Prefecture, in the Kantō region, and owned by Lotte Holdings, Lotte Holdings Co., Ltd. The Marines were a founding member of the Pacific Le ...

in 1958.

Toei Flyers

Twelve years after his last season, Matsuki took the helm of the Toei Flyers. For the 1969 season, the team went 57-70-3 and finished fourth in the league. The next season, the team went 54-70-6 and finished fifth in the league.

Kenjiro Tamiya was a Japanese Nippon Professional Baseball player and manager. In his early years as a professional player, Tamiya was utilized as a pitcher and first baseman, but during the prime of his career, he transitioned to playing as an outfielder. He w ...

replaced him the following season.

Post-baseball career

Matsuki wrote a book about his experiences during the war in 1974, entitled ''Matsuki Ittohei no Okinawa Horyoki'' (). In 1978, he was inducted into the Japanese Baseball Hall of Fame. He died on February 21, 1986, at the age of 77.

Published works

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Matsuki, Kenjiro 1909 births 1986 deaths Baseball people from Fukui Prefecture Managers of baseball teams in Japan Hanshin Tigers players Hanshin Tigers managers Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters managers People from Tsuruga, Fukui Imperial Japanese Army personnel of World War II Japanese prisoners of war World War II prisoners of war held by the United States Japanese Baseball Hall of Fame inductees