Akinori Otsuka
| Akinori Otsuka | |
|---|---|
| Texas Rangers – No. 40 | |
| Pitcher | |
Bats: Right Throws: Right | |
| debut | |
| April 6, 2004, for the San Diego Padres | |
| Career statistics (through September 1, 2006) | |
| Saves | 32 |
| ERA | 2.44 |
| Strikeouts | 189 |
| Former teams | |
Akinori Otsuka (大塚晶則, Otsuka Akinori) is a Japanese baseball player. He was formerly the 8th-inning pitcher for the San Diego Padres. Currently, he pitches for the Texas Rangers as the closer, replacing Francisco Cordero. He was also the closer for Team Japan that won the inaugural 2006 World Baseball Classic.
Otsuka throws a low-90's 4-seam fastball that is very straight, along with a hard, late-breaking slider. He emplys an unorthdox pitching delivery: He lifts his lead leg up very slowly, taps his glove, then fires to to home plate.
External links
- Akinori Otsuka - mlb.com
- Career statistics and player information from Baseball Reference
- Official blog Template:Jp icon
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