Shintaro Fujinami
Fujinami with the Tigers in 2016
Free agent
Pitcher
Born: (1994-04-12) April 12, 1994
Sakai, Osaka, Japan
Bats: Right
Throws: Right
Professional debut
NPB: March 31, 2013, for the Hanshin Tigers
MLB: April 1, 2023, for the Oakland Athletics
NPB statistics
(through 2022 season)
Win–loss record57–54
Earned run average3.41
Strikeouts1,011
Holds11
MLB statistics
(through 2023 season)
Win–loss record7–8
Earned run average7.18
Strikeouts83
Teams
Career highlights and awards
  • 3× NPB All-Star (2013-15)
  • NPB All-Star Game MVP (2015 Game 1)
  • Central League strikeout leader (2015)

Shintaro Fujinami (藤浪 晋太郎, Fujinami Shintarō, born April 12, 1994) is a Japanese professional baseball pitcher who is a free agent. He has previously played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Oakland Athletics and Baltimore Orioles, and in Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB) for the Hanshin Tigers.

Amateur career

Fujinami started playing Little League Baseball for the Takeshirodai Club, then played for the Osaka Senboku Boys upon entering Miyayamadai Junior High, where he pitched as fast as 142 km/h (88 mph). He also pitched for the national team in the 16U(AA) Baseball World Championship. He graduated grade school at 180 cm (5'11"), and junior high at 194 cm (6'4" 3/4).[1] He and his father were avid fans of the Yomiuri Giants.[2]

In 2010, Fujinami entered Osaka Toin High School. In his final year in 2012 he led Tōin as their ace pitcher at the Japanese High School Baseball Invitational Tournament and Japanese High School Baseball Championship, where the school won both competitions.[3] During the Summer Koshien tournaments, he pitched two consecutive complete shutout games in both the semi-finals and finals (only surrendering two hits in each game), recorded the fastest pitch of 153 km/h (95 mph) and tied the tournament record for the most strike-outs in the finals match (14).[4][5] He finished the tournament with a 1.07 ERA in 76 innings, and 90 strikeouts.[6] In the fall, he again pitched for the national team in the 25th 18U(AAA) Baseball World Championship where he recorded a 1.11 ERA in over 24 innings, and got selected into the tournament's Best Nine.[7] In addition, he received the 2012 MVP Award by the International Baseball Federation (IBAF) under the 18 & below category for his exemplary performance for the year.[8]

Professional career

Hanshin Tigers

Fujinami with the Tigers in 2013

Fujinami was the number 1 pick of the Tigers, Buffaloes, Marines, and the Swallows in the 2012 Nippon Professional Baseball draft. Hanshin won the four-way lottery and assigned him jersey number 19.

He made his debut on March 31, 2013, the third game of the season and the earliest-ever appearance by a rookie drafted out of high school. He recorded the loss by pitching six innings and allowing both runs in a 2-0 loss against the Tokyo Yakult Swallows at Jingu Stadium.[9]

He was due to make his second start on April 7 against the Hiroshima Toyo Carp but was replaced by Minoru Iwata who was unable to pitch in the rained-out game the day before. Instead, he made his next appearance as a relief pitcher.[10][11] He made his second start on April 14 against the Yokohama DeNA BayStars and recorded his first professional win, pitching six scoreless innings.[12] Fujinami was the fifth pitcher drafted out of high school in NPB history to record his first pro victory the year after they won a Koshien tournament and the first in that group to also record their first pro victory at Koshien Stadium. He is also the first pitcher out of high school in franchise history to record their first pro victory at Koshien[13] and the first CL rookie out of high school to record ten or more victories in a season since Yutaka Enatsu in 1967.[14]

Fujinami quickly gained popularity and was the leading vote getter amongst Central League starting pitchers for the 2013 NPB All-Star Series, with more than 96,000 votes.[15] He started the second game of the All-Star series and pitched two scoreless innings.[16] In the top of the sixth inning, he played a prank on Nippon Ham's Sho Nakata, a former senior at Osaka Tōin, by throwing 2 very slow balls over his head, which prompted Nakata to throw his bat and jokingly take a few steps toward the mound. Fujinami ended up striking out Nakata.[17]

He finished his rookie year at 10-6, with 125 strikeouts and a 2.75 ERA in 23 starts.[18]

Fujinami pitched his first career complete game in a July 15 contest against the Dragons with a 13-strikeout effort and only a single run allowed.[19] During a September 15 game against the Carp at Koshien, he hit 157 km/h (98 mph) on the radar gun and set a new personal high and tied the franchise high for velocity. Tomoyuki Kubota set the original record on June 21, 2005.[20][21] Four days later, he earned his 10th victory of the season and became the first pitcher out of high school to record double-digit wins in his first two NPB seasons since Daisuke Matsuzaka in 1999–2000 (16 and 14 wins). The last pitcher to accomplish the feat in the Central League (and in franchise history) was Yutaka Enatsu in 1967–1968 (12 and 25 wins). In the same game, he recorded his sixth RBI of the season, tying Tetsuro Kawajiri's 1996 record of RBIs by a Hanshin pitcher.[22]

Fujinami totaled 11 victories for the season, with an ERA of 3.53 and 172 strikeouts in 163 innings. His fastball averaged 149.7 km/h, according to Data Stadium, second only to Shohei Ohtani's 152.5 km/h among starters, and he had an 8.2 swinging strike percentage. While his cutter boasts an 18.7% swinging strike rate, his forkball generated an even higher rate of 26.0%, with batters hitting .222 off it. His 2.81 fielding independent pitching (FIP) average was the best in the Central League, while his batting average on balls in play was .335, nearly 30 points above the league average.[18]

Fujinami's 221 strikeouts led the league in 2015. Fujinami also led the league with 7 complete games and 4 shutouts after recording just 2 complete games and no shutouts in his first two seasons. He finished tied for second in the league with 14 wins (in 28 starts) against just 7 losses. His 2.40 ERA ranked fifth in the Central League. He also set several career bests in 2015, including starts, innings (199), wins, ERA, complete games, shutouts, strikeouts, and strikeouts per 9 innings (10.0)

Fujinami's 2016 season was not as successful as his previous one. In 26 starts, he had just 7 wins against 11 losses with a 3.25 ERA. In 169 innings pitched, he allowed 152 hits, including a career-high 11 home runs. He recorded 176 strikeouts.

Oakland Athletics

On December 1, 2022, the Tigers posted Fujinami to Major League Baseball (MLB), giving clubs 30 days to negotiate with him, and necessitating a compensatory fee if a deal was reached.[23]

On January 13, 2023, Fujinami signed a one-year, $3.25 million contract with the Oakland Athletics of Major League Baseball (MLB).[24] After making four starts for Oakland, in which he had a 0–4 record and 14.40 ERA with 12 strikeouts in 15 innings, Fujinami was moved to the bullpen.[25]

Baltimore Orioles

On July 19, 2023, Fujinami was traded from the Athletics to the Baltimore Orioles in exchange for Easton Lucas.[26][27] He allowed a seventh-inning leadoff first-pitch homer to José Siri in his one frame out of the bullpen in his Orioles debut in a 3–0 loss to the Tampa Bay Rays at Tropicana Field two nights later on July 21.[28] He pitched a perfect tenth inning to earn his first MLB save in a 5–3 win over the Seattle Mariners at T-Mobile Park on August 13.[29] He would earn his second career save against the Angels on September 5, inducing a fly ball and striking out two batters in the tenth inning of a 5-4 Orioles win. He became a free agent following the season.

Playing style

Fujinami has a large frame for a pitcher, listed at 6 ft 6 in and 215 lb.[30] With a three-quarters delivery, he throws a fastball topping out at 103 mph,[31] a splitter, and a solid mid-to-high 80s slider.[32][33][34] The splitter has a high whiff rate in his arsenal.[35]

References

  1. ↑ アマチュア野球 vol.33 (in Japanese). 日刊スポーツ出版社(Nikkan Sports Publishing). 2012. pp. 4–8. ISBN 978-4-8172-5526-6.
  2. ↑ "実は巨人ファンだった"浪速のダル"藤浪". Tokyo Sports Web. 2012-10-31. Retrieved 2012-10-31.
  3. ↑ "Tigers rookie Fujinami makes history but loses debut". The Japan Times Online. The Japan Times. 2013-04-01. Retrieved 2014-07-12.
  4. ↑ "大阪桐蔭が春夏連覇／甲子園決勝戦詳細". Nikkan Sports. 2012-08-23.
  5. ↑ "大阪桐蔭春夏連覇 藤浪14Ｋ完封／甲子園". Nikkan Sports. 2012-08-24.
  6. ↑ "藤浪 松坂以上の奪三振率、「伝説の左腕」に匹敵". Sports Nippon. 2012-08-24.
  7. ↑ "藤浪と森が「オールスターチーム」に選出". Sports Nippon. 2012-09-08.
  8. ↑ "阪神・藤浪が年間最優秀選手 国際野球連盟表彰". Sanspo Web. 2012-04-14. Retrieved 2013-04-14.
  9. ↑ "Tigers rookie Fujinami makes history but loses debut". The Japan Times Online. The Japan Times. 1 April 2013. Retrieved 12 July 2014.
  10. ↑ "仰天指令!! 虎 藤浪, 中継ぎスタンバイ(Astounding Order! Tigers' Fujinami on relief standby)". Sankei Sports. 7 April 2013. Archived from the original on 11 October 2014. Retrieved 12 July 2014.
  11. ↑ "藤浪がプロ初救援で2イニング1失点(Fujinami allows 1 run in 2 innings in pro relief debut)". Nikkan Sports News. 8 July 2013. Retrieved 12 July 2014.
  12. ↑ "虎・藤浪、聖地でプロ初勝利！スクイズも決めた (Fujinami's first pro win at the holy land)". Sanspo Web. Sankei Sports. 2013-04-14. Archived from the original on 11 October 2014. Retrieved 12 July 2014.
  13. ↑ "藤浪 ６回零封初勝利 ウイニングボールは「両親に」". Sports Nippon. 2013-04-15.
  14. ↑ "藤浪 10勝目！江夏以来46年ぶりのセ新人２桁勝利". Sports Nippon. 2013-08-31.
  15. ↑ "Fujinami tops fan votes for All-Star series". The Japan Times Online. The Japan Times. 1 April 2013. Retrieved 12 July 2014.
  16. ↑ "藤浪危険球？中田先輩と乱闘コント(Fujinami pitches a dangerous ball to his senior Nakata)". Nikkan Sports. Nikkan Sports. 2013-07-21. Retrieved 2014-07-12.
  17. ↑ Coskrey, Jason (2013-07-20). "MVP Arai, solid pitching guide CL All-Stars to Game 2 victory". The Japan Times Online. The Japan Times. Retrieved 2014-07-12.
  18. 1 2 Coskrey, Jason (2015-03-07). "Tigers' Fujinami may be ready to roar". The Japan Times Online. The Japan Times. Retrieved 2015-04-27.
  19. ↑ "Fujinami strikes out 13, notches first career complete game". The Japan Times. 2013-04-01. Retrieved 2014-07-12.
  20. ↑ "阪神 藤浪で連敗脱出 気合の自己最速157キロ、甲子園初完投". Sports Nippon. 13 September 2014.
  21. ↑ "Daily Sports 9/13/2014". Daily Sports. 13 September 2014.
  22. ↑ "松坂以来１４年ぶり！藤浪、高卒１年目から２年連続２桁勝利". Sports Nippon. 19 September 2014.
  23. ↑ "Flamethrower Shintaro Fujinami posted by Japan's Hanshin Tigers, could be MLB reliever". cbssports.com. Retrieved June 29, 2023.
  24. ↑ "A's Agree to Terms with RHP Shintaro Fujinami on One-Year Contract". mlb.com. Retrieved 2023-01-13.
  25. ↑ "A's move struggling starter Shintaro Fujinami to bullpen". espn.com. 25 April 2023. Retrieved 2023-04-25.
  26. ↑ "Orioles acquire right-hander Shintaro Fujinami from A's for minor leaguer". ESPN.com. Reuters. July 19, 2023. Retrieved July 21, 2023.
  27. ↑ Rill, Jake (July 19, 2023). "Orioles acquire reliever Fujinami from A's". MLB.com. Retrieved July 21, 2023.
  28. ↑ Rill, Jake. "A little turnabout drops O's back into first-place tie," MLB.com, Friday, July 21, 2023. Retrieved August 5, 2023.
  29. ↑ Rill, Jake. "Mullins robs a HR, then hits one in crazy late-game sequence," MLB.com, Sunday, August 13, 2023. Retrieved August 14, 2023.
  30. ↑ Nippon Professional Baseball Organization. (1994-04-12). "Fujinami,Shintaro（Hanshin Tigers） | Players | Nippon Professional Baseball Organization". Npb.jp. Retrieved 2022-07-13.
  31. ↑ https://www.si.com/mlb/braves/analysis/atlanta-braves-free-agent-target-pitcher-shintaro-fujinami
  32. ↑ "Scouts Split On Japan's Shohei Ohtani, Shintaro Fujinami". baseballamerica.com. Retrieved 2014-02-26.
  33. ↑ "幸運・不運だった投手は 統計学的にプロ野球分析". Nihon Keizai Shimbun. 2014-11-12. Retrieved 2014-11-12.
  34. ↑ "阪神藤浪出たっ 自己最速157キロ". nikkansports.com. Nikkan Sports. 2014-09-12. Retrieved 2014-09-15.
  35. ↑ "Flamethrower Shintaro Fujinami posted by Japan's Hanshin Tigers, could be MLB reliever". December 2022.
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