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Sadaharu Oh, who hit a record 868 home runs in a 22-year career in Japan, will step down as manager of the Fukuoka Softbank Hawks at the end of the season, ending his association with pro baseball in Japan that started back in 1959.
Two years ago, Oh had his stomach removed in a cancer operation. Oh has had some complications from that operation this year and he feels that he no longer has the energy to continue as manager.
Oh started his pro career with the Yomiuri Giants back in 1959 and along with Shigeo Nagashima, he keyed the Giants unmatched run of nine consecutive Japan Series championships from 1965 through 1973.
As a manager, Oh led the Hawks to two Japan Series championships and he also managed Japan to victory in the first World Baseball Classic back in 2006.
Here is a clip of some of Oh's milestone home runs. The numbers in the upper right corner are the Japanese method of marking dates. The first number is the year of the emperor's reign, followed by the month and date. So year 1 = 1926 in this case.
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