TALENT.
Kazuhisa Ishii
Kazuhisa Ishii
1992-2001 : Tokyo Yakult Swallows 2002-2004 : Los Angeles Dodgers 2005: New York Mets 2006-2007 : Tokyo Yakult Swallows 2008-2013 : Saitama Seibu Lions Drafted 1st round in 1991 by the Yakult Swallows and as Starting pitcher he leads the team to 6 League titles and 5 Japan Series. Signed with the Los Angeles Dodgers from 2002 and moved back to Swallows in 2006. After moving to Seibu Lions in 2008, he became the fastest pitcher to record 2000 strikeouts in his 11th-year career in NPB. Retired in 2013 and became active as a broadcaster and TV personality and became part of the Yoshimoto Team in 2014. In 2018 September, he became a GM for the Tohoku Rakuten Eagles. 
Akinori Ootsukai
Akinori Ootsuka
1997-2002 : Osaka Kintetsu Buffalos 2003 : Chunichi Dragons 2004 – 2005 : San Diego Padres 2006-2007 : Texas Rangers Drafted 2nd round by the Kintetsu Buffalos in 1996. Assigned as a closer from 1st year and recorded the most saves in the league in the 1998 season. Signed with the San Diego Padres in 2004 then traded to Texas Rangers in 2006. Contributed as a closer in 1st WBC tournament and helped the Japan team to win the championship. Signed with BC Leagues’ Shinano Grandserows in 2013 and became part pitcher, part manager, a part pitching coach in 2014. Became Chunichi Dragon’s minor league pitching coach in 2015. In 2016 he became a manager for the WBSC U-23 Japan team. Currently while employed under Chunichi Dragons, he is dispatched as Padres’ 3A coaching staff.
Shingo Takatsu
Shingo Takatsu
1991-2003 : Tokyo Yakult Swallows 2004-2005 : Chicago Whitesox 2005 : New York Mets 2006-2007 : Tokyo Yakult Swallows 2020 – Present : Manager of Tokyo Yakult Swallows Drafted in 3rd round by the Yakult Swallows in 1990. As a Sinker Specialist, he became one of the best closers in Japan receiving the best pitcher award 4 times. Entered the Chicago White sox in 2004 as a closer. He then became the first player to play in 4 different countries including Korea and Taiwan. In 2011 he entered BC Leagues’ Niigata Albirex and lead the team as part coach, a part pitcher in 2012. After retiring in 2012, he became the Yakult Swallow’s Pitching coach in 2014, Manger for the minor league in 2016, and became the head manager of the team in 2020.
Denney Tomori
Denney Tomori
1992-1996 : Yokoama Dena Baystars 1997-2002 : Saitama Seibu Lions 2003-2004 : Yokohama Baystars 2005 : Boston Redsox (AAA) 2006-2007 : Chunichi Dragons Drafted in 1st round by Yokohama Whales straight from Kounan High School in 1986. Traded to Seibu Lions in 1997 and contributed to League championship as an ace reliever. Signed with the Boston Red Sox in 2005 and returned to NPB’s Chunichi Dragons in 2006. Retired in 2008 and trained as a coach under Boston Red Sox while being a commentator on TV. Became Pitching Coach for the Yokohama Baystars from 2012 for 2 years. At Chunichi Dragons, he was the Pitching coach from 2014 to 2017. In 2018 he became an international scout for the team and currently a scout member for the Yomiuri Tokyo Giants.
Takashi Saito
Takashi Saito
1992-2005 : Yokohama Dena Baystars 2006-2008 : Los Angeles Dodgers 2009 : Boston Redsox 2010 : Atlanta Braves 2011 : Milwaukee Brewers 2021 : Arizona Diamondbacks 2013-2015 : Tohoku Rakuten Eagles 2020 : Pitching Coach of Tokyo Yakult Swallows Drafted in 1st round by the Taiyo Whales in 1991 and won the best pitcher award in 1998 Japan Series. In 2006, he became a closer as the Los Angeles Dodgers. From 2009, played for the Boston Red Sox, Atlanta Braves, Milwaukee Brewers, and the Arizona Diamondbacks for 1 year and served as a reliever. Signed with the Tohoku Rakuten Golden Eagles in 2013 and lead the team to their 1st ever championship. Retired in 2015 and became part of the scout team for the San Diego Padres from 2016. From 2017 while being part of the Pacific Rim operation team, he also worked as a commentator for the MLB games (for Japan). In 2020 he became the pitching coach for the Tokyo Yakult Swallows.
Hiroki Kuroda
Hiroki Kuroda
1997–2007 : Hiroshima Toyo Carp 2008-2001 : Los Angeles Dodgers 2012-2014 : New York Yankees 2015-2016 : Hiroshima Toyo Carp Drafted in 1st round by the Hiroshima Toyo Carps in 1996. In 2004, he won the bronze medal at Athens Olympic as a reliever. He recorded the most wins in 2005 and recorded the lowest ERA in 2006. He became the Los Angeles Dodgers in 2007 and became the New York Yankees in 2012. In 2014 he became the first Japanese pitcher to record double-digit wins for 5 seasons in a row. In 2015, he rejected big contract offers from the MLB and returned to his home team Hiroshima Carps. In 2016, Carps became League champion and #15 became the retired number. In his 20 years career, he recorded 203 wins and pitched a total of 2240.2 innings.
Kosuke Fukudome
Kosuke Fukudome
1999-2007 : Chunichi Dragons 2008-2011 : Chicago Cubs 2011 : Cleveland Indians 2012 : Chicago Whitesox 2013-2020 : Hanshin Tigers 2021 : Chunichi Dragons Drafted 1st round by the Chunichi Dragons in 1998. He became the starter from 1st year in the league and lead the team to the championship in the same year. In 2004, won Bronze at Athens Olympic. He entered the Chicago Cubs in 2008 and Cleveland Indians in 2011 and Chicago White Sox the following year. He returned to NPB as Hanshin Tigers in 2013 and recorded 2000 total hits in 2016 as well as his 2nd cycle hits in his career. In 2017, he became the oldest player ever from Tigers to enter the camp at age 40 and hit a home run as the oldest player ever in Climax Series that year.
Junichi Tazawa
Junichi Tazawa
2009-2016 : Boston Redsox 2017-2018 : Miami Marlins 2018 : Los Angeles Angels 2020: Saitama Musashi Heat Bears (BC League) 2021: Wei Chuan Dragons CPBL League Entered company team of Japan’s largest oil company ENEOS in 2005. Pitched in 19 games in Industrial League in 2008 and received the highest honor award from the JABA Tokyo in the same year. In 2008, he signed a contract with the Boston Red Sox. He overcame Tommy Johns surgery in 2010 and returned to the league in 2011. He dedicated as main relief in 2012 and won his first World Series in 2013. Signed with Miami Marlins in 2017 and became the first Japanese Major League player to pitch over 50 games for 5 straight seasons. In 2018, he signed with the Los Angeles Angels. Signed minor league contract with the Chicago Cubs in 2019 and Cincinnati Reds in 2020. He returned to Japan in the same year and signed a contract with BC Leagues’ Saitama Musashi Heat Bears.
Norichika Aoki
Norichika Aoki
2004-2011 : Tokyo Yakult Swallows 2012-2013 : Milwaukee Brewers 2014 : Kansas City Royals 2015 : San Francisco Giants 2016 : Seattle Mariners 2017 : Houston Astros 2017 : Toronto Blue Jays 2017 : New York Mets 2018-2021 : Tokyo Yakult Swallows Drafted in the 4th round by the Tokyo Yakult Swallows. He then received multiple awards for most hits, best hitting average, most on-base %, most steals, golden glove awards, and more. He also became the first player to reach 200 hits for 2 seasons. In 2012, signed with the Milwaukee Brewers where he became the face of the franchise and move to Kansas City Royals, San Francisco, Seattle Mariners, and Houston Astros from 2014-2017. He also reached 2000 total hits in 2017. In 2018 he returned to Yakult Swallows.
Kazuhisa Makita
Kazuhisa Makita
2011-2017 : Seibu Lions 2018-2019: San Diego Padres 2020-2021 : Tohoku Rakuten Eagles After Pitching for the Heisei International University and company team for the Nippon Express, he got drafted in the 2nd round by the Saitama Seibu Lions. In 1st Season, he recorded 22 saves and became ROY. Following the season, he became a starting pitcher and recorded team-high 13 wins. After a successful run during the 2017 WBC, he decided to challenge the MLB. In 2018, he signed a contract with the San Diego Padres and fought through the minor leagues in 2019. In 2020, he signed with the Tohoku Rakuten Golden Eagles.
Munetaka Murakami
Munetaka Murakami
2018-2021 : Tokyo Yakult Swallows Despite not appearing in Koshien his 2nd and 3rd year of high school, he still got drafted straight out of Highschool by the Tokyo Yakult Swallows in the first round in the 2017 NPB Draft. In 2018, he became the first Yakult player to obtain monthly MVP in minor league as a high school graduate since 2001. 2019 season became his break-out season as he recorded most HR(36) and RBI(96) as a 2nd-year player coming in from high school. In 2020, he had the best on-base percentage in the league. 