Kudo was a 6th-round pick in the 1980 draft, and signed a contract with the Lions when his father was given a job by team owner Yoshiaki Tsutsumi.

The Lions were a strong club at the beginning of the Golden Age, and won the 1982 and 1983 Japan Series championships.

[1] In game 2 of the 1983 Japan Series against the Yomiuri Giants, he pitched one inning, recorded one strikeout and gave up one run.

In game 1, Kudo came in relief with two runners on, pitched 1⁄3 inning and gave up a 3-run home run to Randy Bass and took the loss.

He threw 3 innings, struck out 5, did not allow a run and earned the win when the Lions walked-off in the bottom of the 12th.

He won the ERA title and was an All-Star selection, but lost the Eiji Sawamura Award to Masumi Kuwata of the Yomiuri Giants (15-6, 2.17, 207 IP, 151 strikeouts).

Kudo was named the Japan Series MVP for the second consecutive year after he gave up one run in 18+2⁄3 innings for a 0.48 ERA.

Despite his efforts, he ended up losing out to Shinji Sasaoka (17-9, 2.44, 240 IP, 213 strikeouts) of the Hiroshima Toyo Carp for the Sawamura Award.

In game 5, Kudo pitched 7 innings, struck out 4 batters and gave up 3 runs, but the Lions offense was shutout and he took the loss.

In game 7, Kudo came in relief to start the top of the 5th and threw the final 5 innings of the series, striking out 4 batters and not allowing a run to earn the win.

He lost out on the Sawamura Award, this time to Chunichi Dragons lefty Shinji Imanaka (17-7, 2.20, 249 IP, 247 strikeouts), despite having a lower ERA and fewer losses.

In the 1993 Japan Series in a rematch against the Yakult Swallows, he made 3 appearances and gave up 4 runs in 6+2⁄3 innings pitched.

In the 1994 Japan Series against the Yomiuri Giants, Kudo made 2 appearances, pitched 12+1⁄3 innings, giving up 2 runs for a 1.46 ERA and struck out 10 batters.

Kudoh, who won 8 championships in 11 seasons with the Lions and was one of the top pitchers in NPB, fit the mold perfectly.

He joined the Hawks, along with his fellow Lions teammates Koji Akiyama and Hiromichi Ishige, to bring a winning culture to the organization.

Even though the Hawks had been one of the worst teams in Japan for the better part of a decade, an incentive was that the legendary Yomiuri Giants slugger Sadaharu Oh was going to be the manager.

The 1999 season for the Hawks culminated in a Japan Series title and ended the organization's long drought since 1964.

He was not needed the rest of the way as the Dragons took game two, but the Hawks responded with the three consecutive wins to claim the title.

Showing that he had plenty of good pitching left in him, Kudoh continued his winning ways, even after moving to the non-DH Central League for the first time.

The real attraction for Kudo in 2000 came when he ended up facing the team he had played for one year prior, the defending champion Fukuoka Daiei Hawks, in the 2000 Japan Series.

In game 1, Kudo received a no decision after he threw 7 innings, gave up 3 runs and struck out 8 batters.

The Giants won 4 straight games after losing the first 2 at Fukuoka Dome for Kudoh's 10th Japan Series victory.

The workload he was originally going to be pegged with was greatly alleviated thanks to a rejuvenated Masumi Kuwata and continued production of hotshot youngster Koji Uehara, as the trio formed the front end of the Giants rotation.

In his only appearance, he got the start and earned the win in game 3, pitching 8 innings with 8 strikeouts and only giving up 2 runs.

Used as a situational lefty, Kudoh did not have much success, as he went 2–3 with a 6.51 ERA and the cagey veteran also managed to strike out 24 batters in 37+1⁄3 innings.

Kudoh had a small role in an injury-riddled Lions bullpen, but was ineffective again, as he went 0–2 with a 10.50 ERA in 10 appearances and just six innings.

The following year the Hawks also won the 2018 Japan Series against the Hiroshima Carp in six games, making it back-to-back titles for a 2nd time, and four out of the last five; the next year, they became the first team to win three straight Japan Series titles since the Seibu Lions did it from 1990 to 1992, the teams that Kudoh was also a member of, by sweeping the Yomiuri Giants.

Standing at 176 cm or 5'9" and weighing 80 kg or 176 lbs., Kudo was never known for overpowering pitches, even in his prime, as he topped out at 148 km/h or 92 mph.

Kudoh instead relied on pinpoint control on his straight (four-seam) fastball and an array of breaking pitches.

Kudoh had his share of injuries, but the vast majority of them came late in his career, including endoscopic elbow surgery in 2008.