two brothers were teammates for three more seasons (making it five in all). As a member of the Braves in 1947, Akira became the first person in Japanese pro baseball to hit an inside-the-park grand slam. Dragons Leaving the Braves after the 1948 season, Akira joined the Chunichi Dragons, the franchise where he would have his greatest success, as a catcher. He played for the Dragons from 1949 to 1955, making four All-Star teams and being named to the Best Nine at catcher twice. His best year was 1950, when he hit .271 with a career-best 18 home runs and 73 RBI. Immediately after his playing career ended, Noguchi was hired by Dragons as the team's manager. He guided the team to winning records in 1955 and 1956, and then retired from baseball. Death Noguchi died on October 5, 1996, at age 79. References External links 1917 births 1996 deaths Japanese baseball players Nippon Professional Baseball catchers Nippon Professional Baseball pitchers Hankyu Braves players Chunichi Dragons players Chunichi Dragons managers Nishitetsu Baseball Club players Meiji University alumni Sportspeople from Nagoya