Masataka Yoshida hit two home runs for his Red Sox on Sunday, the best day yet of his fresh and promising MLB career.
The Mets have won all four games started by Kodai Senga, he of the famed “ghost fork” pitch that’s flummoxed hitters in Japan and now in the United States. Seiya Suzuki started his second season with the Cubs on the IL, but he’s batting .324 with a 145 OPS+ in his first nine games as a healthy ballplayer.
And, of course, Shohei Ohtani is doing things only Shohei Ohtani can.
MORE: Why we should never normalize Shohei Ohtani
Everywhere you look, it seems, there’s a player who first achieved success playing in Japan making an impact on the 2023 MLB season. The World Baseball Classic this spring showed that more NPB stars are arriving soon, too. So that got us thinking about their potential places in history, which led to the question: Who are the best players from Japan in MLB history?
Everyone knows about Ichiro Suzuki, of course, and Hideo Nomo, Yu Darvish and Hideki Matsui are well known to baseball aficionados. But the list of players from Japan who have made an impact on the sport in North America — some just for a season or two, some from more than a decade — is impressive.
So today we’re going to take a look at the 10 best MLB careers by players from Japan, along with a couple of notable names who left a lasting legacy.
10. Kazuhiro Sasaki, 2000-03
Career numbers of note: 129 saves, 3.14 ERA, 9.8 K/9, 3.7 bWAR
Best season: 2002. 37 saves, 2.52 ERA, 2.93 FIP, 10.8 K/9
In Sasaki’s last three years in Japan before joining the Mariners for the 2000 season, he posted a 0.97 ERA, with 102 saves and 211 strikeouts and only 76 hits allowed in 139 1/3 innings for the Yokohama Bay Stars. Sasaki didn’t quite match those numbers in Seattle — to be fair, that bar was incredibly high — but he was immediately one of MLB’s best closers, winning the AL Rookie of the Year award in 2000 and making the AL All-Star team in 2001 and 2002. Remember, 2001 was the year Seattle won 116 games, and Sasaki had 45 saves, with a 3.24 ERA. He spent time on the DL in 2003, though, and with off-the-field issues, returned to Japan for the 2004 season.
9. Hisashi Iwakuma, 2012-17
Career numbers of note: 16.9 bWAR, 883 2/3 innings, 714 strikeouts, 1.9 BB/9
Best season: 2013. 3rd in Cy Young voting, 33 starts, 2.66 ERA/3.44 FIP, 7.0 bWAR
Fun fact: Iwakuma was actually posted after the 2010 season and the A’s secured the rights to negotiate with him, but he turned down their four-year, $15.25 million offer and stayed in Japan. He missed some time with an injury that year, and when he did head to North America after the 2011 season, it was on a much smaller deal with Seattle, though he said it felt like a better fit. Seems he was right. Iwakuma was effective in his “rookie” year, making 16 starts and 14 relief appearances and compiling a 3.16 ERA. The next year, he was one of the best pitchers in the majors, and in 2014 his control was better than ever; Iwakuma had 154 strikeouts and only 21 walks on the season. A shoulder injury in 2017 ended his time in the majors, at 36.
8. Masahiro Tanaka, 2014-20
Career numbers of note: 17.5 bWAR, 991 strikeouts, 3.74 ERA, 3.91 FIP
Best season: 2014. 20 starts, 2.77 ERA/3.04 FIP, 9.3 K/9, 6.71 K/BB, 3.1 bWAR
Tanaka had not just one, but TWO seasons with a 1.27 ERA in Japan, so the hype around his arrival as an MLB pitcher was immense. He signed with the Yankees for seven years and $155 million and was outstanding to start his career, with a 2.51 ERA in his first two starts, before he was shut down with elbow soreness. He returned to make two starts in September. Takana was a regular part of the Yankees’ rotation through the 2020 season. He earned two All-Star nods and finished seventh in the 2016 AL Cy Young voting.
7. Koji Uehara, 2009-17
Career numbers of note: 13.5 bWAR, 95 saves, 10.7 K/9
Best season: 2013. 1.09 ERA/1.61 FIP, 21 saves, 101 strikeouts, 74 1/3 innings
Uehara had an exceptional career, but we just have to talk about that 2013 season, folks. It was his first in Boston, as he was entering his Age 38 season, so even though he’d been good in limited action in Texas the year before, expectations might have been a bit tempered. Boy, did he ever exceed those. You see his overall numbers above, but in the last three months of the season, Uehara posted a 0.22 ERA — one earned run in 40 1/3 innings — with only 12 hits and two walks allowed, while striking out 52 batters. He pitched in 13 of Boston’s 16 games that postseason, recording an 0.66 ERA while recording seven saves and a win. He closed out Games 4-5-6 against the Cardinals to give the Red Sox the World Series title.
6. Hiroki Kuroda, 2008-14
Career numbers of note: 21.6 bWAR, 3.45 ERA/3.61 FIP, 1,319 innings
Best season: Flip a coin, because ...
Just as rock-solid of a career as you’re ever likely to see. He made his MLB debut at 33 years old, and for seven seasons he was a stalwart for the Dodgers and Yankees. He made at least 31 starts in six of the seven seasons — the outlier was 20 starts (and one relief appearance) in 2009. He had a low ERA of 3.07 and a high ERA of 3.76, and it’s a similar story with FIP, a low of 3.26 and a high of 3.86. He didn’t walk many batters, relied on weak contact putting the ball in play and letting his defense work, and took the ball every time his name was called. Just a wonderful, though often-overlooked, MLB career.
5. Hideki Matsui, 2003-12
Career numbers of note: 175 homers, 760 RBIs, 118 OPS+, .282/..360/.462, 21.2 bWAR
Best season: 2004. 162 games, 31 homers, 108 RBIs, .912 OPS, 5.0 bWAR
Matsui came to the Bronx and was immediately the run-producer the Yankees were hoping for, eclipsing the 100-RBI plateau in four of his first five seasons with the club, missing out only in 2006 when he spent 100-plus games on the DL. His most enduring memory, though, was his final series wearing a Yankees uniform. He was damn near unstoppable in the 2009 World Series, batting .615 with three homers and eight RBIs in the six games it took for the Yankees to wrap up the championship. That wasn’t out of the ordinary, either. Matsui was at his best when it mattered most, finishing with a career .312 average, .933 OPS, 10 homers and 39 RBIs in 56 career postseason games.
4. Hideo Nomo, 1995-2008
Career numbers of note: 21.8 bWAR, 123 wins, 4.24 ERA, 1,918 strikeouts, 1976 1/3 innings
Best season: 1995. NL Rookie of Year, 13-6, 2.54 ERA, 191 1/3 innings, 235 strikeouts, 124 hits
Nomo was a sensation from the moment he arrived in Los Angeles, allowing just one hit in five shutout innings in his debut, then striking out 14 Pirates in his fourth start and 16 more Pirates in his ninth start. His windup instantly became the fascination of every kid on a little league field or in a backyard game, with the arms stretched high, leading into the back turn and the explosive fastball — it truly was a moment of unique baseball beauty. And even though Nomo was never again quite as good as he was those first two years with the Dodgers — he finished fourth in the NL Cy Young voting in 1995 and 1996 — he was still better than most people realize. From 1999 to 2003 (his Age 30 to 34 years), he posted a bWAR of 2.3 or higher, with at least 176 innings each season.
3. Yu Darvish, 2012-present
Career numbers of note: 96 wins, 1,813 strikeouts, 3.49 ERA, 10.8 K/9, 30.9 bWAR
Best season: 2013. 2nd in AL Cy Young, 2.83 ERA/3.28 FIP, 6.2 H/9, 11.9 K/9, 277 strikeouts
Darvish was already a legend in Japan when he came to the majors for the 2012 campaign with the Rangers, his Age 25 season. In seven seasons with the Nippon Ham Fighters, Darvish had a 1.99 ERA, with 1,250 strikeouts in 1,268 1/3 innings. Remarkably, maybe, he’s been an even better strikeout pitcher vs. MLB hitters, leading the AL with 277 in 2013, as he became the first pitcher from Japan to finish as high as second place in the Cy Young voting. And he actually finished just one spot ahead of another pitcher from Japan, Seattle’s Hisashi Iwakuma, a 32-year-old veteran in his second MLB season.
Darvish’s ability to baffle MLB hitters is truly amazing. Among pitchers in MLB history with at least 1,500 innings, Darvish’s strikeouts-per-nine innings ratio of 10.8 is second only to Chris Sale (11.1) and a notch ahead of Max Scherzer (10.7) and Randy Johnson (10.6). It’s truly elite company, and he doesn’t look to be slowing down anytime soon, even at 36 years old.
2. Shohei Ohtani, 2018-present
Career numbers of note: 26.6 combined bWAR, 132 homers, 139 OPS+, 67 stolen bases as hitter; 2.79 ERA, 11.4 K/9, 479 strikeouts as pitcher.
Best season: 2021. 46 homers, 26 SB, 157 OPS+, 4.9 bWAR as batter. 3.18 ERA, 10.8 K/9, 4.1 bWAR as pitcher
By the time he’s done, Ohtani might just be the greatest player ever to wear an MLB uniform, but that long, unlikely path would have to be paved with multiple more MVP trophies (or Cy Young awards) and at least one World Series title. He’s off to a good start, though, having already turned in two of the most incredible seasons we’ve ever seen. For now, though, he’s still behind Ichiro on this list, because Ichiro is the absolutely legend, and Ohtani is “just” a legend in the making.
It’s splitting hairs between 2021 and 2022 when choosing the best season, but we’re going to use “impact” as the tiebreaker. Ohtani might have been just a bit better in 2022, but none of us had ever seen anything like what he did in 2021 (which we at TSN dubbed the greatest season in sports history), so that’s somehow less of an impact. It shouldn’t be, I know. And why do I get the feeling that what he does in 2023 — especially on the mound — will leave no debate about his “best season” so far?
1. Ichiro Suzuki, 2001-19
Career numbers of note: 59.9 bWAR, 3,089 hits, 509 stolen bases, .311/.355/.402
Best season: 2001. AL MVP, Rookie of Year, .350 average, 56 stolen bases, 242 hits, 127 runs
Statistically, you could make a compelling argument that Ichiro’s 2004 season was his “best” season, with a higher batting average (.372), on-base percentage (.414) and bWAR (9.2), but in terms of impacts — on the field and on the sport in general — there are few seasons that rival Ichiro’s MLB debut season. He won the AL MVP and Rookie awards, led the Mariners to 116 victories and officially shifted the franchise out of the Ken Griffey Jr./Alex Rodriguez era.
Even as incredible as Shohei Ohtani has been in his short career, Ichiro still sits atop this list. He topped 200 hits each of his first 10 seasons in the majors — through his Age 36 season, including an MLB-record 262 in 2004 — and reached the sacred 3,000-hit plateau, despite recording 1,278 hits in Japan and not making his MLB debut until he was already 27 years old. He’s on the very, very short list of the most influential and successful players ever to play baseball, on a global scale.
Lasting legacies
Daisuke Matsuzaka, 2007-14: He was truly a star his first two seasons in Boston, including his 18-3, 2.90 ERA in 2008. Injuries derailed his promising career, though.
Tadahito Iguchi, 2005-08: He started his MLB career with two solid seasons for White Sox, and I still have no idea how he made this throw.
Kenta Maeda, 2016-active: A compelling argument could be made that he deserved a spot in the top 10. Just a brilliant starter, still getting it done in Minnesota.
So Taguchi, 2002-09: Still a fan favorite in St. Louis, for reasons any Cardinals fan would be happy to tell you if you get the chance to listen.
Kaz Matsui, 2004-10: Homered in first MLB at-bat, on Opening Day 2004, but never became the star many expected.
Masanori Murakami, 1964-65: The first player from Japan to play in the majors; the lefty had a 3.43 ERA in 89 1/3 innings for the Giants before returning to Japan at 22 years old.
Akinori Iwamura, 2007-10: His play at second base was a huge part of Tampa Bay’s incredible run to the World Series in 2008.
Hideki Irabu, 1997-2000: Not every memorable career is memorable in a positive way.
