Hiroto Saiki (才木 浩人, Saiki Hiroto, born November 7, 1998) is a Japanese professional baseball pitcher for the Hanshin Tigers of the Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB).
| Saiki Hiroto | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Hanshin Tigers – No. 35 | |
| Pitcher | |
| Born: November 7, 1998 Kobe, Hyōgo Prefecture | |
Bats: Right Throws: Right | |
| NPB debut | |
| October 5, 2017, for the Hanshin Tigers | |
| NPB statistics (through September 24, 2023) | |
| Win–loss | 20-17 |
| Earned run average | 2.81 |
| Strikeout | 248 |
| Teams | |
| |
Early baseball career edit
Hiroto started baseball early when he played catcher for his school's team in his first grade. He specialized as a pitcher in junior high, and helped his team win championships and runner ups in his hometown's local tournaments.[1][2]
He then went on to become the ace pitcher of Suma Shofu High School, where in his 2nd year, he led the team to win runner-up in the prefectural tournament. Despite his team never making it to either Spring Koshien or Summer Koshien, his 140 km/h fastball caught the attention of both NPB and MLB scouts alike.[3][4]
Professional career edit
Hanshin Tigers selected Saiki on the 3rd round of the 2016 NPB draft.[5] He signed a 50 million yen contract with the Tigers, with an estimated 6 million yen annual salary. He was assigned the jersey number 35.[6]
On December 2, 2020, he become a free agent.[7] On December 8, 2020, Saiki re-signed with the Tigers.[8]
Playing Style edit
Standing at 189 cm, Saiki is a right-handed pitcher whose arsenal consists of fastballs clocked at a maximum of 157 km/h, sliders, curveballs and splitters.[9] In addition, he also has recently started throwing a cutter.[10] He aims to follow the footsteps of his teammate and fellow high-school draft Shintaro Fujinami who is known for his high velocity pitches.[6]
References edit
- ^ "阪神能見のイチ押し 須磨翔風・才木「藤浪超え」だ - 野球 : 日刊スポーツ". Nikkan Sports. 2016-12-05. Retrieved 2016-12-05.
- ^ "阪神3位 須磨翔風・才木「藤浪さんいつか超える". Sports Nippon. Retrieved 2017-10-21.
- ^ "兵庫・須磨翔風の187センチ右腕・才木「私立には絶対負けない」". Sports Hochi. Archived from the original on 2016-11-13. Retrieved 2016-12-05.
- ^ "【兵庫】「藤浪２世」須磨翔風・才木、2回戦で散る…日米12球団25人のスカウトは絶賛". Sports Hochi. Archived from the original on 2016-10-28. Retrieved 2016-12-05.
- ^ "阪神タイガース 選択選手一覧". NPB.jp 日本野球機構 (in Japanese). Retrieved January 9, 2021.
- ^ a b "阪神ドラフト3位・才木が仮契約 「1年目の藤浪さんに近づければ」". Daily Sports. 2017-03-03.
- ^ "2020年度 自由契約選手". NPB.jp 日本野球機構 (in Japanese). Retrieved January 9, 2021.
- ^ "育成選手契約について". 阪神タイガース 公式サイト (in Japanese). December 8, 2020. Retrieved January 9, 2021.
- ^ ""雑草"阪神・才木Ｇ倒プロ１勝 "高校ビッグ４"に「プロでは負けたくない」". Sports Nippon. Retrieved 2018-05-28.
- ^ "阪神・才木、新球習得だ！小さく変化…香田投手Ｃ直伝「カットボール」". Sankei Sports. 2017-11-15. Retrieved 2017-11-15.
External links edit
- NPB stats
- Career statistics and player information from Baseball Reference (Minors)