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Masahiro Araki
is a retired Japanese professional baseball player. He played predominantly at second base for the Chunichi Dragons. He was noted for his speed and defense. Early career Araki was a first-round draft pick by Chunichi in 1995, out of high school. In 1997, he made his NPB debut and hit .179/.203/.209 in 74 plate appearances; he did steal 12 bases in 16 tries to lead his team. Araki was used as a defensive substitute in the outfield and at shortstop. In 1998, the 20-year-old played 7 games for Chunichi but had just one at-bat, appearing as a pinch-runner and defensive sub. The next year, he went 1 for 4 in 16 games in a similar role; in four steal attempts, he was only successful once. In 2000, Araki remained a substitute, playing 40 games but only getting 12 plate appearances (2 for 10, 2 sacrifice flies, 3 SB in 3 tries). He spent 34 games in the outfield. Increased role Araki became a semi-regular in 2001 and produced at a .338/.384/.438 clip with 13 steals and 9 times caug ...
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Second Baseman
In baseball and softball, second baseman, abbreviated 2B, is a fielding position in the Infielder, infield, between Baseball field#Second base, second and Baseball field#First base, first base. The second baseman often possesses quick hands and feet, needs the ability to get rid of the ball quickly, and must be able to make the pivot on a double play. In addition, second basemen are usually right-handed; only four left-handed throwing players have ever played second base in Major League Baseball since 1950. In the numbering system used to record defensive plays, the second baseman is assigned the number 4. Good second basemen need to have very good range since they have to field balls closer to the first baseman who is often holding runners on, or moving towards the base to cover. On a batted ball to Right fielder, right field, the second baseman goes out towards the ball for the relay. Due to these requirements, second base is sometimes a primarily defensive position in the mod ...
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1997 In Baseball
Champions Major League Baseball *World Series: Florida Marlins over Cleveland Indians (4-3); Liván Hernández, MVP *American League Championship Series MVP: Marquis Grissom ** American League Division Series * National League Championship Series MVP: Liván Hernández ** National League Division Series *All-Star Game, July 8 at Jacobs Field: American League, 3-1; Sandy Alomar Jr., MVP Other champions * Caribbean World Series: Aguilas Cibaeñas (Dominican Republic) *College World Series: LSU * Cuban National Series: Pinar del Río over Villa Clara *Japan Series: Yakult Swallows over Seibu Lions (4-1) * Korean Series: Haitai Tigers over LG Twins * Big League World Series: Broward County, Florida * Junior League World Series: Salem, New Hampshire *Little League World Series: Linda Vista, Guadalupe, Mexico * Senior League World Series: San Francisco, Venezuela * Taiwan Series: Uni-President Lions over China Times Eagles * Central American Games: Panama Awards an ...
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Greg LaRocca
Gregory Mark LaRocca (born November 10, 1972) is an American former Major League Baseball (MLB) second baseman who played for the San Diego Padres and Cleveland Indians between 2000 and 2003. He also played in the Nippon Professional Baseball league from 2004 to 2010. Biography LaRocca attended Manchester High School West in Manchester, New Hampshire and the Isenberg School of Management at University of Massachusetts Amherst. In 1993, he played collegiate summer baseball with the Orleans Cardinals of the Cape Cod Baseball League. He was drafted by the San Diego Padres in the 10th round (262nd overall) of the 1994 MLB Draft. Major League Baseball Minor Leagues (1994–1999) LaRocca played for Low-A Spokane Indians and High-A Rancho Cucamonga Quakes. The 1995 season was split between High-A Rancho Cucamonga Quakes and AA Memphis Chicks. The entire 1996 season was played for AA Memphis Chicks. LaRocca played all of 1997 for AA Mobile BayBears. The 1998 season was played for A ...
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Toshihisa Nishi
is a Japanese former professional baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball games, bat-and-ball sport played between two team sport, teams of nine players each, taking turns batting (baseball), batting and Fielding (baseball), fielding. The game occurs over the course of several Pitch ... player. External links * 1971 births Living people Baseball people from Ibaraki Prefecture Japanese expatriate baseball players in the United States Asian Games medalists in baseball Baseball players at the 1994 Asian Games Asian Games gold medalists for Japan Medalists at the 1994 Asian Games Nippon Professional Baseball infielders Waseda University alumni Yomiuri Giants players Yokohama BayStars players Nippon Professional Baseball Rookie of the Year Award winners Lancaster Barnstormers players 1994 Baseball World Cup players {{Japan-baseball-infielder-stub ...
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Norihiro Akahoshi
is a retired Nippon Professional Baseball player from Kariya, Aichi, Japan. He played as an outfielder for the Hanshin Tigers. Akahoshi announced his retirement on December 9, 2009. During the 2009 season, he was first deactivated in early July after sustaining a neck injury. Then, on September 12, his last game, Akahoshi aggravated a spinal disc herniation A disc herniation or spinal disc herniation is an injury to the intervertebral disc between two vertebrae, usually caused by excessive strain or trauma to the spine. It may result in back pain, pain or sensation in different parts of the body, ... when he dove headfirst in an attempt to catch a ball. He was diagnosed with spinal damage and has experienced pain in his neck and lower back as well as numbness in his hands and feet since. References External links * * Living people 1976 births People from Kariya, Aichi Baseball people from Aichi Prefecture Asia University (Japan) alumni Japanese baseball player ...
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Central League
The or , also known as the for sponsorship reasons, is one of the two professional baseball leagues that constitute Nippon Professional Baseball in Japan. The winner of the league championship plays against the winner of the Pacific League in the annual Japan Series. It currently consists of six teams from around the country. Unlike the Pacific League, designated hitters are not used during Central League home games. History The Central League was founded in 1949 with eight teams: four holdovers from the previous Japanese Baseball League — the Chunichi Dragons, the Hanshin Tigers, the Yomiuri Giants, and the Shochiku Robins (formerly the Taiyō Robins) — and four new teams — the Hiroshima Carp, the Kokutetsu Swallows, the Nishi Nippon Pirates, and the Taiyō Whales. The Nishi Nippon Pirates existed for one season — they placed sixth in 1950, and the following season merged with the also Fukuoka-based Nishitetsu Clippers (a member of the Pacific League) to ...
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Hirokazu Ibata
Hirokazu Ibata (Japanese:井端 弘和, born May 12, 1975) is a Japanese professional baseball coach and former player in Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB). He is currently the manager of the Japanese national baseball team. Baseball career Ibata played second base for the Yomiuri Giants and short stop for the Chunichi Dragons The are a professional baseball team based in Nagoya, the chief city in the Chūbu region of Japan. The team plays in the Central League of Nippon Professional Baseball. They have won the Central League pennant nine times (most recently in 2011 ... but is able to play at other positions. After retiring at the end of the 2015 season, Ibata took up new Giants' manager, Yoshinobu Takahashi's invitation to join his coaching staff. References External links * * 1975 births Living people Asia University (Japan) alumni Baseball designated hitters Chunichi Dragons players Japanese baseball coaches Japanese baseball players Nippon Prof ...
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2004 In Baseball
Headline events of the year *The Boston Red Sox win their first World Series since , ending the Curse of the Bambino. *With 262 hits, Ichiro Suzuki of the Mariners breaks George Sisler's record of 257. Suzuki also sets the record for most singles in a season, with 225. *2004 also marked the final year of the Montreal Expos, who relocated at season's end to Washington, D.C., and become known as the Washington Nationals. *For the first time in Japanese professional baseball history, players in Nippon Professional Baseball went on strike for two days because of the 2004 Nippon Professional Baseball realignment. Champions Major League Baseball *Regular Season Champions *World Series Champion – Boston Red Sox *Postseason – October 4 to October 27 Click on any series score to link to that series' page. Higher seed has home field advantage during Division Series and League Championship Series. American League has home field advantage during World Series as a result of Amer ...
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2003 In Baseball
Headline events of the year *The Florida Marlins become World Series champions, beating the New York Yankees, 4-2. *The Detroit Tigers had one of the worst records in baseball history, going 43-119, a .265 winning percentage. *The Chicago Cubs just missed advancing to their first World Series since 1945, as they blew a 3-1 series lead against the Marlins in the 2003 NLCS. *The Oakland Athletics blew a 2-0 series lead against the Boston Red Sox in the 2003 ALDS, making it four straight years they lost the ALDS in five games, including an 0-9 mark in games in which they could have clinched the series. *The Yankees beat the Red Sox in a thrilling ALCS, highlighted by Aaron Boone's walk-off home run in the 11th inning in Game 7 off Tim Wakefield. Champions Major League Baseball *Regular Season Champions *World Series Champion – Florida Marlins *Postseason – September 30 to October 25 Click on any series score to link to that series' page. Higher seed has home field advanta ...
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2002 In Baseball
Champions Major League Baseball *Regular Season Champions *World Series Champion – Anaheim Angels *Postseason – October 1 to October 27 Click on any series score to link to that series' page. Higher seed has home field advantage during Division Series and League Championship Series. The American League Champion has home field advantage during World Series as a result of the pre-2003 "World Series#Structure, alternating years" rule. *Postseason MVPs **2002 World Series, World Series MVP – Troy Glaus **2002 American League Championship Series, ALCS MVP – Adam Kennedy **2002 National League Championship Series, NLCS MVP – Benito Santiago *2002 Major League Baseball All-Star Game, All-Star Game, July 9 at Miller Park (Milwaukee), Miller Park – Tie game, 7–7 (11 inn.); no MVP selected **Home Run Derby, July 8 – Jason Giambi, New York Yankees Other champions *2002 Caribbean Series, Caribbean World Series: Tomateros de Culiacán (Mexico) *2002 College World Series, C ...
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Kazuyoshi Tatsunami
is a former Japanese professional baseball infielder and manager. He played in Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB) for the Chunichi Dragons from to 2009. He was drafted in the first round in the NPB Draft. Career Playing career Tatsunami holds the all-time NPB double record with 487, and is a member of the Meikyukai (Association of Great Players, or Golden Players Club). After the 2009 season, Tatsunami retired, having seen his skills and playing time diminish for the last few seasons. He retired with a career .285 batting average, 171 home runs, 1,037 RBI, and 2,480 hits. On 15 January 2019, Tatsunami was inducted into the Japanese Baseball Hall of Fame for his achievements as a player. Coaching career On 13 October 2021, it was confirmed that Tatsunami has been approached to become the new manager of the Chunichi Dragons The are a professional baseball team based in Nagoya, the chief city in the Chūbu region of Japan. The team plays in the Central League of Nippon Pro ...
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2001 In Baseball
Champions Major League Baseball *Regular Season Champions *World Series Champion – Arizona Diamondbacks *Postseason – October 9 to November 4 Click on any series score to link to that series' page. Higher seed has home field advantage during Division Series and League Championship Series. The National League Champion has home field advantage during the World Series as a result of the pre-2003 " alternating years" rule. American League is seeded 1-3/2-4 as a result of the AL regular season champion (Seattle Mariners) and the AL wild card (Oakland Athletics) coming from the same division. National League is seeded 1-3/2-4 as a result of the NL regular season champion (Houston Astros) and the NL wild card (St. Louis Cardinals) coming from the same division. *Postseason MVPs **World Series MVP – Randy Johnson and Curt Schilling ** ALCS MVP – Andy Pettitte **NLCS MVP – Craig Counsell *All-Star Game, July 10 at Safeco Field: American League, 4–1; Cal Ripken Jr., MVP ** ...
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