Hiroki Yamamura

Hiroki Yamamura (山村 宏樹)

• Bats Right, Throws Right
• Height 5' 11", Weight 163 lbs.

• High School Kofu Kogyo High School

• Born May 2, 1976 in Kai, Yamanashi, Japan

BR register page

Biographical Information

Hiroki Yamamura pitched in Nippon Pro Baseball for 13 years.

Yamamura was drafted by the Hanshin Tigers in the first round of the 1994 NPB draft. He spent most of his first 4 seasons in the NPB Farm Leagues, only pitching 15 games with the big club. Yamamura said that he was bullied by veteran Shin Nakagomi in 1999, and the Tigers released him after this season.

The Kintetsu Buffaloes then signed him, and Yamamura soon joined their rotation. He was selected into the 2000 NPB All-Star Games, and replaced Shingo Ono in the 3rd inning of Game 3. Yamamura gave up a single to Hideki Matsui, plunked Kazuhiro Kiyohara and forced Tomoaki Kanemoto to ground out. Hisashi Ogura then relieved him, and Matsui scored on Leo Gómez's sacrifice fly. He ended up 6-9 with a 5.01 ERA in 2000, and ranked 10th in ERA in the Pacific League (1.73 behind Nobuyuki Ebisu).

The Yamanishi native was 7-6 with a 5.83 ERA in 2001, and the Buffaloes won the PL pennant. Yamamura only had one appearance in the 2001 Nippon Series, replacing Iori Sekiguchi and allowing one run in 1 2/3 innings due to Mitsuru Manaka's homer. The Buffaloes were defeated by the Yakult Swallows in 5 games. Yamamura still struggled in the next three seasons, so he only pitched 22 games combined. He was then assigned to the newly-founded Rakuten Golden Eagles after the 2004 season.

Rakuten didn't have many starters, so Yamamura secured a spot in the rotation. However, his ERA rose to 5.64 in 2005, and he even tied the NPB record for allowing 4 homers in a inning. He still started 22 games despite his 5,35 ERA in 2006, and that was the worst mark among PL pitchers who were qualified for ERA title.

He was moved to bullpen in 2007, and Yamamura recorded a solid 3.26 ERA in 34 games with 10 holds. However, he suffered a right shoulder injury, so he missed the next two seasons. Yamamura came back in 2010 and had a 3.26 ERA in 36 games, but his ERA rose to 4.50 in 21 games in 2011. The veteran missed the 2012 season due to right hand injury, then he announced his retirement.

Overall, Yamamura was 31-44 with a 5.01 ERA, collected 20 holds, struck out 330 and pitched 671 1/3 innings in 13 years in the NPB.

Related Sites

• Wiki Japan
• NPB.com Bio
• 2000 NPB All-Star Game