Hiroki Kuroda facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Hiroki Kuroda黒田 博樹 |
|||
|---|---|---|---|
Kuroda with the Hiroshima Toyo Carp
|
|||
| Pitcher | |||
| Born: February 10, 1975 Osaka, Japan |
|||
|
|||
| Professional debut | |||
| NPB: April 25, 1997, for the Hiroshima Toyo Carp | |||
| MLB: April 4, 2008, for the Los Angeles Dodgers | |||
| Last appearance | |||
| MLB: September 25, 2014, for the New York Yankees | |||
| NPB: 2016, for the Hiroshima Toyo Carp | |||
| NPB statistics | |||
| Win–loss record | 124–105 | ||
| Earned run average | 3.55 | ||
| Strikeouts | 1,461 | ||
| MLB statistics | |||
| Win–loss record | 79–79 | ||
| Earned run average | 3.45 | ||
| Strikeouts | 986 | ||
| Teams | |||
|
|||
| Career highlights and awards | |||
|
|||
 Baseball Hall of Fame |
|||
| Induction | 2024 | ||
| Medal record | ||
|---|---|---|
| Men's baseball | ||
Representing  Japan |
||
| Olympic Games | ||
| Bronze | 2004 Athens | Team |
Hiroki Kuroda (黒田 博樹, Kuroda Hiroki, born February 10, 1975) is a Japanese former professional baseball pitcher. He played in Japan's top league, Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB), for the Hiroshima Toyo Carp from 1997 to 2007.
Later, he played in Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States. He was with the Los Angeles Dodgers from 2008 to 2011 and the New York Yankees from 2012 to 2014. After his time in the MLB, he returned to the Carp to finish his career in Japan.
In Japan, Kuroda won the Best Nine Award in 2005. He also had the best ERA (a measure of how well a pitcher prevents runs) in the NPB in 2006. He earned a bronze medal at the 2004 Summer Olympics while playing for the Japanese national baseball team.
Contents
Early Life and Baseball Beginnings
Hiroki Kuroda was born in Osaka, Japan, on February 10, 1975. His father, Kazuhiro Kuroda, was also a professional baseball player. He played for the Nankai Hawks.
Hiroki went to Uenomiya High School in Osaka. He then attended Senshu University in Tokyo, where he continued to play baseball.
Playing Career Highlights
Starting in Japan: Nippon Professional Baseball
Kuroda joined the Hiroshima Toyo Carp in 1996. He was a second-round draft pick, meaning he was one of the top players chosen by a team. Early in his career, another player named Toshikazu Sawazaki got more attention. However, Kuroda slowly became a strong and reliable starting pitcher for his team.
From 2001, Kuroda won more than 10 games for three years in a row. In 2003, he became the team's opening-day starter, which is a big honor. In 2005, he led the Central League with 15 wins. He also won the Best Nine Award and the Golden Glove, which are awards for top players.
Kuroda continued to do well in 2006. He finished the season with a very low 1.85 ERA, showing he was one of Japan's best pitchers. He was also known for pitching very well against the Yomiuri Giants, earning him the nickname "Giants Killer."
In 2006, Kuroda was chosen to play for Japan in the 2006 World Baseball Classic. This is a big international tournament. Sadly, he got injured during practice and had to leave the team.
Kuroda became a free agent in 2006. This meant he could choose to sign with any team. The Hiroshima Toyo Carp usually didn't try to keep players who became free agents. But Kuroda was so important that they offered him a special deal to stay. He agreed to a contract that allowed him to negotiate with Major League Baseball teams later if he wanted to. He also promised he would only play for the Carp in Japan.
Kuroda's decision to stay with the Carp was very popular with fans. They showed their support by holding up signs with his jersey number, 15. However, Kuroda really wanted to win a championship. The Carp team was not doing well, which made him think about playing in the major leagues.
In 2007, Kuroda reached 100 career wins. After the season, he decided to try playing in the Major Leagues. He became a free agent, which meant he could talk to any MLB team directly. On December 12, 2007, he signed a contract with the Los Angeles Dodgers.
Playing in America: Los Angeles Dodgers
Kuroda started his MLB career strong. In his first game for the Dodgers, he pitched well and earned his first win in American baseball.
On July 7, 2008, Kuroda had an amazing game against the Atlanta Braves. He pitched seven perfect innings, meaning no batter reached base. He ended up pitching a one-hitter, allowing only one player to get a hit in the whole game. This was a very rare and impressive achievement.
.jpg)
Kuroda made his first postseason appearance in the MLB in October 2008. He pitched very well, helping the Dodgers win their playoff series. He continued to pitch effectively in the next round of the playoffs.
In 2009, Kuroda was the Dodgers' opening day starter again. However, he faced several injuries that season. Despite missing time, he still made 20 starts.
On August 15, 2009, Kuroda was hit in the head by a fast line drive (a hard-hit ball) during a game. He had to leave the field on a stretcher and spent the night in the hospital. Luckily, he was okay and released the next morning.
In 2010, Kuroda had a great season, pitching a career-high number of innings and strikeouts. He became a free agent again but chose to re-sign with the Dodgers for another year. In 2011, there was talk of him being traded, but he used his "no-trade clause" to stay with the Dodgers. This clause allowed him to refuse a trade. He finished the 2011 season with his best career ERA.
Moving to New York: New York Yankees
On January 13, 2012, Kuroda signed a one-year contract with the New York Yankees. He had a very successful first year with the Yankees, winning 16 games.
After his good performance, the Yankees re-signed Kuroda for another year. In 2013, he started the season very strong, leading the American League in ERA. His pitching speed slowed down later in the year, but he still had a good season. He continued to pitch well in 2014. After the 2014 season, he decided to return to Japan. Kuroda never had an ERA higher than 3.76 during his entire MLB career, which shows how consistent he was.
Coming Home: Return to Japan
On December 26, 2014, it was announced that Kuroda would return to his old team, the Hiroshima Toyo Carp, for the 2015 season. He was 40 years old when he rejoined the Carp after seven seasons in the MLB.
Even at 40, Kuroda had one of his best seasons. He had a great ERA and was chosen for the 2015 All-Star Game. He was 19 years older than the opposing pitcher, Shohei Ohtani, showing his amazing longevity in the sport.
Kuroda signed another contract to play for the Carp in 2016, becoming the highest-paid player in the NPB at age 41. He had a good season, and Hiroshima reached the 2016 Japan Series, which is like the championship series in Japan. After the series, Kuroda announced his retirement from baseball.
Pitching Style
Hiroki Kuroda used a mix of five different pitches. His main pitch was a shuuto, which is similar to a sinker. He threw it very fast, often between 90 and 94 miles per hour. This pitch helped him get many ground balls from batters.
His other important pitch was a slider. He also threw a four-seam fastball, a splitter, and sometimes a curveball. He was very good at mixing his pitches to keep batters guessing.
Family Life
Kuroda is married to Masayo. They have two daughters named Hinatsu (born in 2002) and Wakana (born in 2005).
See also
In Spanish: Hiroki Kuroda para niños
