Sugitaya was born in 1908 in Hawaii. After playing for Waseda U. in the Tokyo Big Six University League, he was a member of the Japan All-Star team that played against Babe Ruth and the
U.S. All-Stars during the 1934 Tour of Japan. He later played Japan Pro Baseball for the Eagles from 1937 until 1941, and also managed the team in his final season. The JBR 32 set has an R5 scarcity factor rating in the Japanese
Baseball Card Checklist and Price Guide, which means that three or fewer examples are known of most cards in the set.