An in-depth look at the Tokyo Yakult Swallows, Jingu Stadium, the Central League, and Japanese Pro Baseball
On this day in 1980, Masanori Ishikawa was born in Akita Prefecture. He joined the Tokyo Swallows at the end of 2001 when he was selected in the first round by the Japan Series champion Tokyo Swallows. There was no delay in his introduction to top team baseball, and he quickly found himself a weekly [...]
OK, let’s try not to think about the fact that Aoki is officially gone. In fact, let’s not even think about position players at all. Instead, let’s ponder the bright spots in the pitching corps over the past five seasons. That’s right, it’s time for some more trivia (again care of SPORCLE)! Over the past [...]
As announced yesterday, we have a new friend. Orlando Roman has signed a deal to pitch for the Swallows during the 2012 season. ¡Bienvenido a Tokio, Señor Román! Call me crazy, but looking over his numbers from the past several years, it seems like there’s a bit of a climate-linked variable in terms of how [...]
It’s official. The rumors that we reported earlier this month were the real deal. The Swallows now have a little extra competition brewing in the starting rotation. Meet Orlando Roman. The 33-year-old RHP has significant minor league experience in North America with the New York Mets, Baltimore, and Toronto. He has also spent time in Mexico [...]
After agreeing to basic terms with three new players the day before, the Swallows announced on Friday that they had added another pitcher to the mix in the form of 23 year-old RHP, Tatsuo Kinoshita. He actually turns 24 tomorrow (Nov. 28th). Originally from Aichi Prefecture, Kinoshita was selected in the 2005 high school draft by [...]
Unrelated to the Tokyo Swallows, but definitely of interest to baseball lovers–Eri Yoshida, the female knuckleballer who became the first woman to play pro baseball in Japan, has signed with the Chico Outlaws of the Golden Baseball League. The Golden Baseball League is a North American independent league with 10 teams in western Canada, America, and Mexico. [...]
Semi-official injury count for the month of February at the Tokyo Swallows spring camp: 11 players missed all or part of at least one day of practice. In detail, that works out to six pitchers, four catchers, and one infielder. Go, go Swallows! While the six injured pitchers may set off the loudest alarm for [...]
Pitcher Ricky Barrett (no. 18), the Swallows’ first year lefty who pitched in the Minnesota Twins organization, reportedly left for the United States today. The 28-year-old has been having trouble with his throwing-arm elbow, and he apparently has decided to get it looked at by a doctor back home.
Tokyo center fielder, Norichika Aoki, and starting pitcher, Masanori Ishikawa, were named the top defensive players at their respective positions yesterday. Aoki won his third Golden Glove in a row, and third overall, in the outfield. For Ishikawa, 2008 is the first time in his professional career that he has snagged the top spot.
