is a Japanese former

professional baseball Professional baseball is organized baseball in which players are selected for their talents and are paid to play for a specific team or club system. It is played in baseball league, leagues and associated farm teams throughout the world. Moder ...

right-handed

pitcher In baseball, the pitcher is the player who throws ("Pitch (baseball), pitches") the Baseball (ball), baseball from the pitcher's mound toward the catcher to begin each play, with the goal of out (baseball), retiring a batter (baseball), batter, ...

. He played in

Nippon Professional Baseball is a professional baseball league and the highest level of baseball in Japan. Locally, it is often called , meaning simply ''Professional Baseball''; outside of Japan, NPB is often referred to as "Japanese baseball". The roots of the league ...

(NPB) for the Fukuoka Daiei Hawks/Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks.

Playing career

Mahara played in the

2006 World Baseball Classic The 2006 World Baseball Classic (WBC) was the inaugural tournament between national baseball teams that included players from Major League Baseball. It was held from March 3 to 20 in stadiums in or around Tokyo, Japan, and the American cities o ...

. Originally a starter, Mahara was converted to a closer partway through 2005 season and has been an efficient closer since then. His best season was in 2007, when Mahara broke the team record for saves by recording 38 and also recording a 1.47 ERA. The previous record-holder was Rodney Pedraza, who had 35 saves in 2000. Mahara did not blow a save until late in the season, when Orix Buffaloes slugger

Tuffy Rhodes Karl Derrick "Tuffy" Rhodes (born August 21, 1968) is a retired American professional baseball player. He played six years in Major League Baseball in the US, and thirteen years in Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB) in Japan. Rhodes is the all-t ...

cracked a walk-off home run in the bottom of the 9th at

Skymark Stadium or officially Hotto Motto Field Kobe is a baseball park in Kobe Sports Park, Kobe, Japan. It is primarily used for baseball, and is one of two home fields for the Orix Buffaloes, the other being the Kyocera Dome Osaka. The Kobe stadium is oc ...

. With the exception of the 2008 season when he missed half the season due to injury, Mahara has recorded at least 22 saves each year since 2005. In 2011, he was in a slump and become losing pitcher in two games in Nippon Series. In 2012, he was injured and he didn't play any games. He was traded to

Orix Buffaloes The are a Nippon Professional Baseball team formed as a result of the 2004 Nippon Professional Baseball realignment by the merger of the Orix BlueWave of Kobe, Hyōgo Prefecture, Japan, and the Osaka Kintetsu Buffaloes of Osaka, Osaka Prefecture ...

in the off season.

Coaching career

On October 8, 2024, Mahara was announced as the new general manager of the Hinokuni Salamanders of the independent Kyushu Asia League.

References

External links

NPB.com
1981 births Living people Sportspeople from Kumamoto Japanese baseball players Nippon Professional Baseball pitchers Fukuoka Daiei Hawks players Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks players Orix Buffaloes players 2006 World Baseball Classic players 2009 World Baseball Classic players World Baseball Classic players of Japan {{Japan-baseball-pitcher-stub