He had a short stint with the Chicago White Sox where he was the closer for two seasons until struggles closing games ultimately led to his demotion to the minors.

In the 2004 season, his entrance in home games was accompanied by a video montage and a loud gong.

Shingo Takatsu, like many Japanese pitchers, has incorporated pauses into his pitching mechanics in order to throw off batters' timing.

Takatsu was a fan of the Hiroshima Toyo Carp during his childhood, and grew up wanting to play for the team.

He attended Hiroshima Kogyo High School, and his team advanced to the Koshien tournament twice in his senior year.

In 2004, he signed with the Chicago White Sox as a free agent, and marked a 2.31 ERA in 56 games, along with 19 saves.

He signed a minor league deal with the New York Mets, and made his way up to the majors, but was dropped at the end of the season.

He was a reliever early in the season, but was given the closing job after injuries to Hirotoshi Ishii and Masao Kida.

The only other Japanese player to have made 300 saves is former Seattle Mariners closer Kazuhiro Sasaki.

In 2008, Takatsu attempted to return to U.S. baseball and signed a minor league deal, with an invitation to spring training, with the Chicago Cubs of the MLB.