Hiroki Sanada

Hiroki Sanada (真田 裕貴)

• Bats Right, Throws Right
• Height 5' 11", Weight 185 lb.

• High School Himeji Technical High School

• Born February 7, 1984 in Osaka, Osaka Japan

BR Register page

Biographical Information

Hiroki Sanada pitched in Nippon Pro Baseball and for the Japanese national team.

Sanada was drafted by the Yomiuri Giants in the first round of the 2001 NPB draft. He started 12 games with a 3.73 ERA in his rookie season, and also collected 6 wins. Sanada then made it onto Japan's roster for the 2002 Intercontinental Cup. He went 2-0 with a 3.00 ERA and 13 K in 12 IP, beating Venezuela's Danilo León and Italy's Massimiliano Masin. He tied for the most wins in the tourney with Ifreidi Coss, Roger Deago, José Ibar, Ki-pyo Kim, Yadel Martí and Jose Reinoso, and led Japan in whiffs.

The Hyogo native slumped to 5.40 ERA in 30 appearances in 2003. The Giants demoted him in 2004, so he only had 6 appearances combined in the next two seasons. He came back to the big club in 2006, and he had a 3.86 ERA in 25 appearances. His pitching declined a little as his ERA rose to 4.58 in 17 appearances in 2007. The Giants then traded him to the Yokohama BayStars for Kazunari Tsuruoka after the 2007 season.

Sanada had a 4.91 ERA in 26 games in the first season with the BayStars. He improved and won the setup man spot for closer Shun Yamaguchi in 2009. The Hyogo native was 5-4 and notched 19 holds with a 3.88 ERA in that season. He was 5th in the Central League with 68 games pitched, between Ryuji Yokoyama and Takuya Asao. He was still a solid reliever in 2010, collecting 16 holds with a 3.88 ERA in 62 appearances (8th in the CL). He slumped to 4.22 ERA in 53 games in 2011.

Sanada became a free agent in 2012, and the Giants signed him again. However, he only pitched a single game then underwent a season-ending ankle surgery. The Giants released him after that season. Sanada then joined the Brother Elephants of the CPBL, and he shined there. In 2013, Sanada became the main setup man for the Elephants, and broke the CPBL record for most holds in a season with 32 (he still hold it until 2023). He also attended the CPBL All-Star Game, but Da-Hung Cheng blasted a 2-run homer off him in the 9th inning. He came back to the Swallows in 2014. Sanada recorded a 7.71 ERA in 16 1/3 innings, and the Swallows released him again. He then joined the Fukushima RedHopes of the Baseball Challenge League and announced his retirement after the 2016 season.

Overall, Sanada was 24-28, notched 41 holds with a 4.42 ERA and pitched 437 1/3 innings in 12 seasons in NPB.

Sources

• NPB site
• Wiki Japan
• Taiwan Baseball Wiki
• Defunct IBAF site