Triple Crown Winner?
Year Name (Team) Avg. HR RBI
1938 (Fall) Nakajima Haruyasu (Giants) .361 10 38
1965 Nomura Katsuya (Nankai) .320 42 110
1973 Oh Sadaharu (Giants) .355 51 114
1974 Oh Sadaharu (Giants) .332 49 107
1982 Ochiai Hiromitsu (Lotte) .325 32 99
1984 Boomer Wells (Hankyu) .355 37 130
1985 Ochiai Hiromitsu (Lotte) .367 52 146
1985 Randy Bass (Hanshin) .350 54 134
1986 Ochiai Hiromitsu (Lotte) .360 50 116
1986 Randy Bass (Hanshin) .389 47 109
2004 Matsunaka Nobuhiko (Daiei) .358 44 120
As you can see, Matsunaka is not the first player to hit for the Triple Crown. Ochiai did it three times when playing for Lotte!
Are you sure the announcer didn't say something like "Matsunaka's first Triple Crown"? Or "the first Triple Crown of the millennium"? Perhaps even "the first Triple Crown of Heisei"? (Heisei is the name of the current reign of the Emporor. Tomorrow begins the 17th year of Heisei.)
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I am really out of the loop on this one. To regular posters, sorry for such an elementary question. I should know this, but it slipped under my radar.
Another poster said Boomer Wells won the TC back in 1984. Is this correct? If so the, announcer was mistaken in saying this year's winner was the first one.