Auction #70 is our first to contain a single signed autograph of Korean born pitching legend Hideo Fujimoto. In fact, in this auction we have two different Hideo Fujimoto autographed items (See Lot 117). Fujimoto is the all time Japan Pro Baseball leader in lifetime ERA (1.90), single season ERA (0.73) and all time winning percentage (.697). He is credited with introducing the slider to Japanese baseball. He pitched the first perfect game in Japan Pro Baseball history. He is a Sawamura (Japan Cy Young) Award winner. In 1943 alone, he pitched in 432 2/3 innings, threw 19 complete game shutouts and went 100 consecutive innings without allowing an earned run! He was also a decent hitter, batting .245 in nearly 1,500 plate appearances, occasionally playing second base, third base, and outfield. The 5' 7" 145 right hander is certainly one of the most overlooked of the great Japanese baseball players.

Fujimoto has signed this photo boldly with a fountain pen. In a way, this is a double autographed photo. It appears that Fujimoto must have signed another photo while it was on top of this one, thus causing an indented signature impression that can be seen on this photo.

Size: 2 5/8" x 3 3/8"

Condition: Ink Signature--9.5 out of 10. An indented signature impression can also be seen on the photo. Photo--Vg.