Keiji Takahashi

Keiji Takahashi (高橋 奎二)

• Bats Left, Throws Left
• Height 5' 10", Weight 161 lb.

• High School Heian High School

• Born May 14, 1997 in Kameoka, Kyoto Japan

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Biographical Information

Keiji Takahashi has been an All-Star pitcher in Nippon Pro Baseball.

He was a third-round pick of the Yakult Swallows in the 2015 NPB draft. He didn't pitched many games in 2017 due to left shoulder injuries. The talented southpaw debuted on September 5, 2018. He pitched 5 innings with 5 runs allowed and ended up with a no-decision.

Takahashi was 4-6 with a terrible 5.76 ERA in 2019, but he then improved instantly in the next year, and recorded a 3.94 ERA in 9 starts. 2021 is the first effective season as a starter for Takahashi, as he was 4-1 with a 2.87 ERA in 13 starts. He pitched in Game 2 of 2021 Japan Series, shut out the Orix Buffaloes, and became the first pitcher in the Swallows' history to collect his first career shutout in a Nippon Series.

The Kyoto native was selected into the 2022 NPB All-Star Game for the first time in his career. He relieved Shosei Togo in the 5th inning. Kenta Imamiya hit a lead-off single, but Takahashi then forced Akito Takabe to ground into a double play, and retired Yuki Yanagita to end his work in the event. He finished 8-2 with 2.63 ERA in 102 2/3 innings pitched in this year. Had he qualified, his ERA would have ranked 6th in the CL. He again dazzled in the Japan Series, throwing six shutout innings in Game 3 of the 2022 Japan Series to beat Hiroya Miyagi. Yakult won fall in seven, though, failing to repeat. He got one second-place vote for the 2022 CL MVP.

He then made Japan's roster for the 2023 World Baseball Classic. He pitched one game for the champs, relieving Yoshinobu Yamamoto in the 5th with a 7-0 lead over Australia. He whiffed Aaron Whitefield, got Rixon Wingrove on a liner and Jarryd Dale on a grounder. In the 6th, he retired Robbie Perkins. Ulrich Bojarski singled to ruin his perfect debut but he recovered to fan Jordan McArdle then get Alex Hall to end the inning. Taisei Ota succeeded him.

His repertoire includes a slider, change-up, curveball, cutter and fastball (peak 96 mph).