Ueda, former Japanese pro baseball manager, dies

July 2, 2017

Tokyo- Toshiharu Ueda, who won three consecutive Japan Series professional baseball titles starting in the 1975 season as manager of the former Hankyu Braves, died of pneumonia at a hospital in Kawasaki near Tokyo on Saturday. He was 80.

Ueda, who was a catcher during his playing days in professional baseball in the 1959-1961 seasons, became manager of the Braves, now the Orix Buffaloes, in the 1974 season at the age of 37 to replace Yukio Nishimoto.

Ueda stepped down after the 1978 season but returned to the job after two seasons off and managed the team again in the 1981-1990 seasons. He also had a manager's job with the Nippon Ham Fighters in the 1995-1999 seasons. He claimed five Pacific League titles, all with the Braves.

In Game 7 of the 1978 Japan Series against the Yakult Swallows, Ueda complained about an umpire's home run call for 79 minutes. He went 1,322-1,136-116 during his entire 20 seasons as professional baseball manager.

Ueda was inducted into the Japanese Baseball Hall of Fame in 2003. Jiji Press