Masanobu Okubo

Masanobu Okubo (大久保 勝信)

• Bats Right, Throws Right
• Height 6' 2", Weight 183 lb.
• School Ritsumeikan University
• High School Hidaka High School

• Born September 13, 1976 in Gobo, Wakayama Japan

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Biographical Information

Pitcher Masanobu Okubo played in Nippon Pro Baseball from 2001 to 2010, excusively with the Orix Blue Wave/Orix Buffaloes of the Pacific League except for brief stints in ni-gun. He was used solely as a reliever during his career.

He was at his best during his first few seasons, especially as a rookie in 2001 when he went 7-5, 2.68 in 53 games, with 14 saves. He became the team's closer midway through the season, replacing Dae-Sung Koo. He saved another 10 games in 2002, but then missed all of 2003 and all but one game in 2004, after undergoing an operation on his pitching elbow, then came back to post seasons of 22 and 15 saves in 2005 and 2006. In 2005, his joint excellent performance teaming up with Tsuyoshi Kikuchihara and Daisuke Kato earned the trio the nickname "KKO". His 2006 season ended mid-year because of pain in his shoulder, and his performance declined after that. He was no longer his team's closer, tore his Achilles' heel in 2008 and eventually ended up spending more time in the minors than with the senior team. He called it a career after the 2010 season, explaining that the pain in his right elbow was too much for him to keep pitching.

On September 26, 2001, he ended his otherwise excellent rookie season on a poor note, when he gave up only the 6th pinch-hit, come-from-behind, sayonara grand slam in NPB history, when Hirotoshi Kitagawa took him deep, clinching the Pacific League title for the Kintetsu Buffaloes. He still won the NPB Rookie of the Year Award in the Pacific League that year. On June 14, 2009, he was in the middle of a very unfortunate 6th inning for Orix: in a game against the Yakult Swallows, as the third of four pitchers who combined to give up a record 11 straight hits. He followed Yoshihisa Hirano and Akio Shimizu on the miund and was unable to retire anyone (although one baserunner was caught on a rundown). The last batter he faced was Shinichi Takeuchi, who made it 9 straight hits. He turned the ball over to Takashi Kamoshida, who allowed a walk, an grand slam and a double before finally recording an out. Yakult scored 10 runs in the inning and won the game, 14-10.