Naoyuki Naito

Naoyuki Naito (内藤 尚行) (Gyaos)

• Bats Right, Throws Right
• Height 6' 2", Weight 213 lbs.

• High School Toyokawa High School

• Born July 24, 1968 in Toyokawa, Aichi, Japan

BR register page

Biographical Information

Naoyuki Naito pitched in Nippon Pro Baseball for 11 years.

Naito was selected by the Yakult Swallows in the third round of the 1987 NPB draft, and he spent his rookie year in the NPB Farm Leagues, only pitching 3 games with the big club. He joined the bullpen in 1988, and he had a 2.05 ERA in 22 appearances. Naito had his career year in 1989, having a 12-5 record and 8 saves with a 2.82 ERA as a swingman. He ranked 5th in the Central League in saves (20 behind Tsunemi Tsuda) and 5th in wins (8 behind Takashi Nishimoto and Masaki Saito). Naito also attended the 1989 NPB All-Star Game 1, and he pitched 2 innings with a solo shot allowed to Kazunori Yamamoto and 4 strikeouts (against Hideyuki Awano, Hiromi Matsunaga, Yasuo Fujii and Koji Akiyama).

The Toyokawa native was 10-8 with 6 saves in 1990, but his ERA rose to 4.08. He was 6th in saves, 35 behind Tsuyoshi Yoda. Naito was also selected into the 1990 NPB All-Star Game, but he turned down the invitation due to injury. He was 3-6 with a 5.57 ERA as a starter in 1991, and he was named the closer of the Swallows in 1992. Naito bounced back and notched 10 saves with a 3.55 ERA in 1992, and he was 6th in saves (16 behind Yutaka Ono). He had a 3.41 ERA in 17 games in 1993, but his ERA rose to 4.98 in 12 games in 1994.

The Swallows then traded him to the Chiba Lotte Marines for Susumu Aoyagi, and Naito was 3-1 with a 4.89 ERA in 1995. His ERA was 6.30 in 4 games in 1996 for the Marines, and he was traded with Kouji Mori to the Chunichi Dragons for Tsuyoshi Yoda and Kenji Yoshitsuru. Naito only pitched 6 games for the Dragons, and he announced his retirement after the 1997 season.

Naito's repertoire includes a fastball (peak 88.2 mph), slider and forkball.

Overall, Naito was 36-29 with a 3.96 ERA, collected 29 saves in 195 games, struck out 454 and pitched 604 innings in 11 years in NPB.

Related Sites

• Wiki Japan
• NPB.com Bio
• 1989 NPB All-Star Game