Japanese pitcher Kudo retires at 48

TOKYO, Japan - Japanese pitcher Kimiyasu Kudo (L) puts on a Golden Players Club jacket with the assistance of Masaichi Kaneda, then executive member of the club, in August 2004 at Tokyo Dome in the Japanese capital after winning his 200th game, a requirement for pitchers to become members of the Japanese professional baseball players' club. Kudo, who won 224 games in his 29-year career -- the longest playing career in Japanese baseball history, announced his retirement on Dec. 9, 2011, at the age of 48. (Photo by Kyodo News Stills via Getty Images)