“It has a huge impact on Japanese baseball.”

On the 6th (Korean time), Japan’s ‘Sportiva’ interviewed Hiroki Nomura, who had a total of 101 wins during his active career and coached at Yokohama Baystar. We took the time to select the ‘best’ foreign pitchers of Japanese professional baseball history.스포츠토토

First, former coach Nomura began his professional career after being selected by Yokohama Taiyo Wales (currently Yokohama DeNA Baystars) in the third round of the Japanese professional baseball rookie draft in 1987, and began to stand out in 1990. Nomura won 11 wins in 1990 and 15 wins the following year, and in 1993, he won the title of most wins through a ‘career high’ season with 17 wins, 6 losses, and an average ERA of 2.51. He played only in Yokohama for a total of 15 seasons, playing in 301 games (233). He took the mound as a starter and left with a record of 101 wins, 88 losses, and an average ERA of 4.01.

Although many foreign pitchers have played in Japanese professional baseball so far, the first foreign player Nomura chose was Trevor Bauer. Bauer began his professional career after being selected third overall in the first round by the Arizona Diamondbacks in the 2011 Major League Baseball Draft. He transferred to the Cleveland Indians (current Guardians) a year after his big league debut, and his talent has blossomed since 2015. started smoking.

Bauer performed well with 11 wins, 12 losses, and an ERA of 4.55 in 31 games (30 starts) in 2015, and began his winning streak the following year with a record of 12 wins, 8 losses, and an average ERA of 4.26 in 35 games (28 starts). And in 2017, he achieved 17 wins, his personal most in a single season, and achieved double-digit wins for the fifth consecutive year. And during the 2020 Cincinnati Reds, when the shortened season was held, he pitched in 11 games (2 complete pitches) and played with 5 wins, 4 losses, and an ERA of 1.73, showing off his spirit of winning the National League Cy Young Award title.

Bauer qualified as a free agent (FA) thanks to his good performance, and even signed a large three-year contract worth $102 million (approximately KRW 135.8 billion) with the LA Dodgers ahead of the 2021 season. But something unexpected happened. Bauer was put on trial after suspicions arose that he had sexually assaulted a woman he met through social media. Bauer was found ‘not guilty’ due to insufficient evidence, but the Major League office, which could only impose disciplinary action on charges of domestic violence and sexual offenses, imposed a 324-game suspension on Bauer.

Bauer fought the suspension from Major League Baseball and succeeded in having his suspension reduced to 194 games late last year. Then, the Dodgers decided to release Bauer, ‘cutting off’, and the 29 major league teams excluding the Dodgers did not reach out to him, ultimately leading to Bauer losing his position. As a result, Bauer turned his attention to the Asian stage rather than the United States, and by joining hands with Yokohama DeNA, he was able to continue his active career with difficulty.

Bauer, who headed to Japan, experienced the joy of winning in his first appearance on the mound. However, perhaps because his absence was long, Bauer performed poorly in the next two games, conceding 7 runs in a row, and eventually suffered the humiliation of being sent down to the second team. However, Bauer, who had a short adjustment period in the second team, was different from before. He began to show off the kind of performance that earned him the Cy Young Award in the 2020 season.

Bauer recorded a no-decision in his first appearance before returning (May 27), allowing 2 runs (2 earned) in 6 innings, and then swept 4 wins in 4 games in June, when the exchange game began, with an ERA of 2.08 and was named the first monthly MVP. He held the title in his arms, showing off his skills as a Cy Young Award winner by pitching 6 innings and over 100 pitches in 14 consecutive games from his first appearance in June to August 25.

When asked to name the five best foreigners who have ever played in Japanese professional baseball, Nomura chose Bauer as the best foreign pitcher without any hesitation. According to ‘Sportiva’, Nomura praised him, saying, “Trevor Bauer has only been in Japan for a year, but he is definitely in the top five among the pitchers I have seen so far. In any case, he is on a different level.”

Why did you choose Bauer? Nomura said, “I have been away from actual games since July 2021, but I started to show my skills in the exchange match in May of this year. The accuracy of not only fastballs but also knuckle curves, sliders, cutters, and split change-ups are very high. The split change-up is very accurate. “I think I started throwing after entering Japan,” he explained.

Nomura continued, “His performance is good, but what’s really great is that he can throw 100 to 130 pitches even on a four-day break. He’s very tough. In the game against Chunichi Dragons on July 1, there was a scene where he got angry because he failed to make a sharp play. He gave a thumbs up, saying, “It is proof that he is burning up his fighting spirit. The 2020 Cy Young Award pitcher’s influence on Japanese baseball, not only in his pitching but also in his attitude toward baseball, is huge.”

Bauer is currently out of line. 

It’s a situation. This is because he suffered an injury in the game against the Hanshin Tigers on the 30th of last month when he caught a ground ball by sliding and twisted his body to throw it to first base. At the time, Bauer could only pitch three innings and was expunged from the first team the next day. As a result of the examination, he was diagnosed with damage to the distal part of the right iliopsoas muscle. Currently, the timing of his return to the first team is unclear.

Bauer suffered an ‘accident’ in his last appearance on the mound in August and was only able to pitch 3 innings. However, he pitched in 6 games in August and posted excellent results with 3 wins, 1 loss, and an ERA of 1.67, earning him his second monthly MVP award on the 8th. Bauer said, “I have no pain now. I am filled with the desire to throw. I want to throw the ball right away, but once I recover well, I will be in good condition and help the team. I will work hard on my rehabilitation so that I can return as soon as possible.” emphasized.