Japanese baseball legend Shigeo Nagashima dies at 89

Popularity of Yomiuri Giants' charismatic star transcended sports

20250603 Nagashima file photo

Shigeo Nagashima helped the Yomiuri Giants win nine consecutive Central League and Japan Series titles from 1965 to 1973. (Nikkei)

TOKYO (Kyodo) -- Japanese baseball legend Shigeo Nagashima, a People's Honor Award recipient who rose to stardom for his on-field exploits during the country's era of rapid economic growth in the 1960s and 1970s, died Tuesday due to pneumonia, the Yomiuri Giants said. He was 89.

Nagashima, who was a key player on the Giants that won nine consecutive Central League and Japan Series titles from 1965 to 1973 and later managed the club, was a charismatic figure whose popularity transcended sports.

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