Hitoki Iwase
| Hitoki Iwase | |
|---|---|
 Iwase with the Chunichi Dragons | |
| Pitcher | |
| Born: November 10, 1974 Nishio, Aichi, Japan | |
Batted: Left Threw: Left | |
| NPB debut | |
| April 2, 1999, for the Chunichi Dragons | |
| Last NPB appearance | |
| October 12, 2018, for the Chunichi Dragons | |
| Career statistics | |
| Win-Loss | 59–51 |
| Earned run average | 2.31 |
| Saves | 407 |
| Strikeouts | 841 |
| Teams | |
| Career highlights and awards | |
| |
| Member of the Japanese | |
 Baseball Hall of Fame | |
| Induction | 2025 |
| Last updated on: January 16, 2025 | |
| Olympic medal record | ||
|---|---|---|
| Men's Baseball | ||
 |
Athens 2004 | Team Competition |
Hitoki Iwase (岩瀬 仁紀, born November 10, 1974) is a Japanese former professional baseball pitcher. He played in Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB) from 1999 to 2018 for the Chunichi Dragons. He holds the NPB record for career saves and mound appearances.[1]
In 2005, he marked 46 saves with a 1.88 ERA, renewing the single-season save record previously set by Kazuhiro Sasaki. This was subsequently broken by Dennis Sarfate of the Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks in 2017.
He was chosen to play on the Japanese Olympic baseball team for the 2004 Summer Olympics, and won a bronze medal. In the 2007 Japan Series, he saved a perfect game with eight innings thrown by Daisuke Yamai.
In 2008, he was selected to play on the Japanese Olympic baseball team for the 2008 Summer Olympics. In group stage against South Korean Olympic baseball team, his pitch was hit by Kim Hyunsoo, which resulted in a loss. In the semifinal round against the South Korean team, his pitch was hit by Lee Seung-Yeop, leading to a two-run homerun. This again led to another loss. His overall performance in the 2008 Summer Olympics included three defeats and an ERA of 13.75.
On 16 January 2025, Iwase was inducted into the Japanese Baseball Hall of Fame.[2]
References
[edit]- ^ "Dragons closer Hitoki Iwase formally announces plan to retire after season". October 2, 2018.
- ^ Coskrey, Jason (January 16, 2025). "Ichiro voted into Japanese Baseball Hall of Fame". Retrieved January 16, 2025.
External links
[edit]- Career statistics from Baseball Reference (Minors)
- Career statistics - NPB.jp
- Japanese league stats and info of Hitoki Iwase
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- 1974 births
- Living people
- People from Nishio, Aichi
- Baseball people from Aichi Prefecture
- Nippon Professional Baseball pitchers
- Chunichi Dragons players
- Baseball players at the 2004 Summer Olympics
- Baseball players at the 2008 Summer Olympics
- Olympic baseball players for Japan
- Olympic bronze medalists for Japan
- Olympic medalists in baseball
- Medalists at the 2004 Summer Olympics
- Nippon Professional Baseball pitchers who have pitched a perfect game
- Japanese Baseball Hall of Fame inductees
- 21st-century Japanese sportsmen
- Japanese baseball pitcher stubs
- Japanese Olympic medalist stubs