Kinugasa is mostly remembered for his consecutive game streak of 2,215 games, but he ranks 7th in Nippon Professional Baseball in career home runs (504), 5th in career hits (2543), and 10th in career RBIs (1448), showing that he was one of the most consistent hitters in Japanese baseball. He was inducted into the Japanese Baseball Hall of Fame in 1996. Kinugasa passed Lou Gehrig's mark of 2,130 consecutive games in 1987 only to be surpassed by Cal Ripken, Jr. in 1996.

This Rawlings official American League baseball was signed both in English and Japanese by Kinugasa and inscribed "2215." This baseball includes a JSA sticker and COA.