is a Japanese
professional baseball pitcher for the
Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks of
Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB).
He previously played for the
Yomiuri Giants.
Professional career
Yomiuri Giants
On October 26, 2017, Kuwahara was drafted first round pick by the
Yomiuri Giants in the
2017 Nippon Professional Baseball draft
The 2017 Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB) Draft was held on October 26, , for the 53rd time at the Grand Prince Hotel Takanawa to assign amateur baseball players to the NPB. It was arranged with the special cooperation of Taisho Pharmaceutical ...
.
On May 31, 2018, Kuwahara pitched his debut game in the
interleague play against the
Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters. On June 14, in the interleague play against the
Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks, he became the winning pitcher for the first time. He pitched 5 games in the his rookie year.
Kuwahara pitched only 14 games in three seasons. on July 4, 2020, he became the winning pitcher for the first time in two years in a game against the
Chunichi Dragons, but on August 12, he fractured his right elbow and underwent surgery.
On December 8, 2020, the Giants re-signed him as a
developmental player In Major League Soccer, in addition to the senior roster, each team can carry a developmental roster of a certain number of young players whose contracts do not count against the salary cap. The allowable size of developmental rosters has varied th ...
with an estimated salary of 13.2 million yen.
On August 30, 2021, the Giants re-signed Kuwahara as a
registered player under control. However, he did not have a chance to pitch in the first league, and on December 9, he was re-signed as a developmental player for 10.6 million yen.
On March 11, 2022, Kuwahara re-signed as a registered player under control. In 2022 season, Kuwahara pitched in a career-high 49 games as a
setup man, finished the regular season with a 3-2
win–loss record, 13
holds
A hold (abbreviated HLD, H or HD) is awarded to a relief pitcher who meets the following three conditions:
:1. Enters the game in a save (baseball), save situation; that is, when all of the following three conditions apply:
:: (a) He appears i ...
, and a 5.16
ERA
An era is a span of time defined for the purposes of chronology or historiography, as in the regnal eras in the history of a given monarchy, a calendar era used for a given calendar, or the geological eras defined for the history of Earth.
Compa ...
.
In 2023 season, Kuwahara only had a chance to pitched five games in the first league, and the Giants released him on October 28.
Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks
On November 28, 2023, Kuwahara signed as a developmental player with the
Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks.
References
External links
Career statistics - NPB.jp- Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks Official site
1998 births
Living people
Baseball people from Nara Prefecture
Japanese baseball players
Nippon Professional Baseball pitchers
Yomiuri Giants players
Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks players
{{japan-baseball-pitcher-stub