Kentaro Kuwahara

Kentaro Kuwahara (桑原 謙太朗)

• Bats Right, Throws Right
• Height 6' 0", Weight 176 lbs.

• School Nara Sangyo University
• High School Tsuda Gakuen High School

• Born October 29, 1985 in Nabari, Mie, Japan

BR register page

Biographical Information

Kentaro Kuwahara played in Nippon Pro Baseball for 13 years.

Kuwahara won a MVP in college and threw a perfect game against the Nara University. He was drafted by the Yokohama BayStars in the third round of the 2007 NPB draft, and he soon joined the rotation as a rookie. He was 3-6 with a 4.74 ERA in his rookie year. However, Kuwahara was injured in 2009, so he only pitched 11 games, though he did have a 1.76 ERA. He struggled as he recorded a 6.13 ERA in 18 relief outings in 2010, then the BayStars traded him with Ikki Shimamura to the Orix Buffaloes for Nonaka Shingo. Kuwahara spent most of his seasons with the Orix farm team, only pitched 22 games combined for their big club. The Buffaloes then traded him to the Hanshin Tigers for Hirokazu Shiranita after the 2014 season.

The Mie native still only pitched 6 games with the big club in 2015, and spent the whole 2016 season in the ni-gun. Kuwahara broke out in 2017, when he notched a league-leading 39 holds with a solid 1.51 ERA, and won the Central League Most Valuable Setup Pitcher Award along with his teammate Marcos Mateo. However, he struggled in the Climax Series, allowing 6 runs in a inning to the BayStars and got the loss. He set the NPB record for most runs allowed in a single inning in the Climax Series. Kuwahara was still reliable as he collected 32 holds with a 2.68 ERA in 2018, but he injured his right elbow in the next season. After only having 26 appearances combined in the next three seasons, Kuwahara announced his retirement after the 2021 season.

Overall, Kuwahara was 15-13, collected 78 holds with a 3.61 ERA, struck out 277 and pitched 317 innings in 13 years in the NPB.

Related Sites

• Wiki Japan
• NPB.com Bio