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Kazuto Tsuruoka

1916 – 2000

Japanese baseball player

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About Kazuto Tsuruoka

Lived 1916 – 2000 (aged 83). Kazuto Tsuruoka was a Japanese baseball player.

, also known as Kazuto Yamamoto, was a Japanese professional baseball infielder and manager in the Japan Baseball League (JBL) and Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB).

Tsuruoka played for the same franchise in 1939, and from 1946 to 1952, which during his career changed names from the Nankai Club to Kinki Great Ring, and ultimately to the Nankai Hawks. Tsuruoka did not play professional baseball from 1940 to 1945 due to World War II. In 1939, he won the JBL home run title with 10. In 1946, he won the JBL Most Valuable Player Award, repeating the feat in 1948. His team won the JBL championship both those years.

In 1949, he was named player-manager of the Hawks. His playing career ended after the 1952 season, but he stayed on as the team's manager through the 1968 season, guiding the team to Japan Series championships in 1959 and 1964. His managerial record overall was 1773–1140, for a winning percentage of .609. His teams finished .500 or better in 21 of 23 seasons as a manager.

Tsuruoka was elected by the Selection Committee for the Players to the Japanese Baseball Hall of Fame in 1965.

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Important facts

Birth century
Occupation
Education
Hosei University
Awards
Japanese Baseball Hall of Fame
Also known as
Yamamoto Kazuto

Contemporaries

People whose lives overlapped Kazuto Tsuruoka's

Frequently asked questions

Who was Kazuto Tsuruoka?

Japanese baseball player

When was Kazuto Tsuruoka born?

Kazuto Tsuruoka was born on 27 July 1916 in Kure.

When did Kazuto Tsuruoka die?

Kazuto Tsuruoka died on 7 March 2000.

What was Kazuto Tsuruoka's occupation?

Kazuto Tsuruoka was a baseball player.

What nationality was Kazuto Tsuruoka?

Kazuto Tsuruoka was Japanese.

Sources & further reading

· Wikipedia: Kazuto Tsuruoka

· Wikidata: Q11174023

· DBpedia: Kazuto Tsuruoka

Cite this page

APA: Biography.guide. (2026). Kazuto Tsuruoka. https://biography.guide/kazuto-tsuruoka/

MLA: "Kazuto Tsuruoka." Biography.guide, https://biography.guide/kazuto-tsuruoka/.

Chicago: "Kazuto Tsuruoka." Biography.guide. https://biography.guide/kazuto-tsuruoka/.

Data last updated: 2026-09-23 · Spot an error? Report a correction.

Portrait: Wikimedia Commons · author & licence

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