Noriyuki Shiroishi

Noriyuki Shiroishi (城石 憲之)

• Bats Right, Throws Right
• Height 6' 0", Weight 162 lb.

• School Aoyama Gakuin University
• High School Kasukabe Kyoei High School

• Born April 17, 1973 in Omiya, Saitama Japan

BR register page

Biographical Information

Infielder Noriyuki Shiroshi played for 15 seasons in Nippon Pro Baseball.

Shiroishi dropped out of college after one month as he did not get along with his teammates. He then worked at a gas station. He tried out for the Yakult Swallows and failed to make the team. He played for Toshiba in the industrial leagues. After a tryout with the Nippon Ham Fighters, the Fighters picked him in the 5th round in the 1994 NPB draft.

Shiroishi debuted on October 3, 1995. The next day, he got his first hit, off Kento Sugiyama. He was 2 for 3 with a run in two games that year and 1 for 5 with a run in 1996, then 0 for 1 in 1997. He was then traded to Yakult for Toshihiro Noguchi.

In 1998, Shiroishi hit .289/.333/.444 in 44 games. On September 15, he got his first homer, taking Ken Kadokura deep. He backed up Shinya Miyamoto at short and was third-string at second base.

Shiroishi played 86 games in 1999 but hit only .140/.200/.183. He split second base for Yakult with Toshifumi Baba, Katsuyuki Dobashi and Hatsuhiko Tsuji. That performance reduced his time drastically, to 8 games in 2000 (he went 3 for 14 with a walk and a double) and 31 in 2001 (.250/.270/.333). He did not appear in the 2001 Japan Series, won by Yakult.

Shiroishi replaced Dobashi as the second base starter in 2002 and hit .248/.289/.400 with 8 homers in 230 AB while recovering from a dislocated left elbow early in the campaign. It was his best season power-wise.

Backing up Dobashi at second and Ken Suzuki at third in 2003, Noriyuki fielded .992. He also hit .261/.330/.380 in 117 games, not a bad performance for a backup infielder. He fell to .213/.254/.273 in 119 games in 2004 while fielding .990; he split second with Dobashi and backed up Miyamoto at short.

Starting at second for Yakult in 2005, Shiroishi hit .256/.296/.329. He hit .231/.320/.292 in a backup role to Miyamoto in 2006 as Greg LaRocca and Hiroyasu Tanaka were now Yakult's main second sackers.

In 2007, the veteran put up a .211/.239/.303 line in 81 games. He was 1 for 21 in 41 games in 2008 and 1 for 1 in 2009, then retired.

Overall, Shiroishi had hit .234/.283/.324 in 817 games in NPB.

Shiroishi had once been criticized by Atsuya Furuta for being too selfish. Noriyuki took the criticism to heart and became more team-oriented. He was eventually named Yakult's union representative. After his playing career ended, the Swallows kept him on as a defense and baserunning coach.

Source: Japan Baseball Daily