Career stats for both men:
Nagashima Oh
MVPs 5 9
Best Nines 17 (3B) 18 (1B)
Games 2,186 2,831
AB 8,094 9,250
R 1,270 1,967
H 2,471 2,786
2B 418 422
3B 74 25
HR 444 868
RBI 1,520 2,170
BB 969 2,390
SB 190 84
AVG .305 .301
OB Pct .380 .445
Slg .540 .634
The Japanese Gold Gloves weren't awarded until Nagashima's last two years (he won both at 3B) and Oh's last 9 seasons (he won all of them, all at 1B). I'd think Nagashima probably rates an advantage on defense, but especially since Oh was a good defensive first baseman, I cannot see how that advantage can outweigh the significant edges Oh possesses as a hitter.
Jim Albright
Nagashima Oh
Year Hr RBI BB AVE Hr RBI BB AVE
1958 29 92 36 .305
1959 27 82 70 .334 7 25 24 .161
1960 16 64 70 .334 17 71 67 .270
1961 28 86 88 .353 13 53 64 .253
1962 25 80 51 .288 38 85 72 .272
1963 37 112 86 .341 40 106 123 .305
1964 31 90 96 .314 55 119 119 .320
1965 17 80 50 .300 42 104 138 .322
1966 26 105 58 .344 48 116 142 .311
1967 19 77 37 .283 47 108 130 .326
1968 39 125 66 .318 49 119 121 .326
1969 32 115 38 .311 44 103 111 .345
1970 22 105 40 .269 47 93 119 .325
1971 34 86 59 .320 39 101 121 .276
1972 27 92 63 .266 48 120 108 .296
1973 20 76 37 .269 51 114 124 .355
1974 15 55 24 .244 49 107 158 .332
1975 33 96 123 .285
1976 49 123 125 .325
1977 50 124 126 .324
1978 39 118 114 .300
1979 33 81 89 .285
1980 30 84 72 .236
Nagashima Oh
HR 2 14
RBI 7 9
BB 3 13
Avg 7 9
Oh clearly wins the comparison, without even allowing for the fact Nagashima's RBI wins were almost certainly boosted by batting behind an on-base machine like Oh, though Oh knocked in a lot of runners, which probably has a smaller negative effect on Nagashima's RBIs.
I have always believed from the day I first met him in Tokyo Station that Nagashima-san had a "mysterious" part that accounted for the tremendous hold he had on the imaginations of people in our country. It is this part that makes me think he had genius as well as great talent. With it, Nagashima-san revolutionized our game.
The best way I can think of to describe this "myserious part" is to recall the oneness he had with fans and players alike. Nagashima-san was the kind of player who seemed genuinely to depend on the support of fans. When the game was on the line and the fans were wild for a hit, he always seemed to rise to the occasion. It was as though he allowed the fans to lift the level of his game. If ever he was in a slump, everyone in the park would be aware of it; there was a way Nagashima-san carried himself that seemed to draw everyone into his own trouble, so that there might be help and comfort to get him through.
Nagashima-san had the ability to make a routine play look like a great one and a great one merely routine. If the fans seemed to hang on his every move, he seemed always to be perfectly attuend to what they were feeling. If they wanted to roar with approval -- he would provide them with a moment; if they wanted to laugh -- he would find a way; if they needed, somehow, as a collective body, to express the poignancy of things -- he would concentrate that longing and draw it into his own person.
A genius, it is often said, usually has a side that is quirky and arrogant. This was not the case with Nagashima-san. He was the most natural of men, a hard worker and easy-going at the same time. Emotional to the point of seeming almost dependent, he always had a way of being totally captivating. With reporters and the media, he always had the right words to go with looks that everyone agreed were handsome and dashing. In the clubhouse he did little things that seemed to endear himself to his teammates. Sometimes he would put two socks on the same foot or start to the field wearing someone else's uniform shirt -- and hence someone else's name on his back. He always did these things in such a way that everyone knew they were happening. There were expolsions of affection and emotion around him wherever he went.
It seems that statistics lovers such as myself need to keep reminding ourselves that as insightful as they can be, they are very limited. Baseball is much bigger than statistics or any other evaluative tools. The magic of players such as Nagashima, Ichiro, Willie Mays, and Babe Ruth can never be quantified. Oh certainly had his own sort of magic, and together with Nagashima they spurred the Yomiuri Giants on to championships. But Nagashima's personality and athletic excellence seemed to be what Japan most needed at a critical point in its history, and I feel that this -- along with his pure Japanese blood -- largely accounts for his immense popularity.
Stat Nagashima Oh
HR 39 15
RBI 125 0
Avg .353 1
OBP .460 11
Slg .657 11
Ttl bases 314 3
Runs scored 99 11
RC 124.4 12
RC/G 10.12 12
OPS 1.101 11
I figured these late on a sleepless night, so please forgive any errors. I was awake enough that the general point remains valid. The point is, that while Nagashima's career highs are quite impressive, Oh surpassed many of them in half or more of the seasons in his career.
Lest anyone try to make the argument that Oh wasn't as dominant in average and RBIs, that is true. However, 1) in RBIs Nagashima benefitted from hitting after an on-base machine named Oh, and 2) when you look at the overall record, Oh certainly isn't dominated by Nagashima in either category:
Nagashima Oh
avg >= .320 6 10
RBI >= 120 1 3
RBI >= 100 5 14
The bottom line for me is, no matter how you look at it, while Nagashima was great, Oh was by far the greater player, whether one uses a peak or career measurement.
Jim Albright
"Yes, we have to divide up our time like that, between our politics and our equations. But to me our equations are far more important, for politics are only a matter of present concern. A mathematical equation stands forever."
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