Ryoji Moriyama

Ryoji Moriyama (森山 良二)

• Bats Right, Throws Right
• Height 6' 0", Weight 184 lb.

• School University of Kitakyushu
• High School Fukuoka University Ohori High School

• Born July 20, 1963 in Kitakyushu, Fukuoka Japan

BR register page

Biographical Information

Ryoji Moriyama is a former Pacific League Rookie of the Year.

Moriyama was just 7-14 in college before dropping out; he would sign with Ono Foods in the industrial leagues. The Seibu Lions took him in the first round of the 1986 NPB draft. Moriyama was 1-0 with a 1.69 ERA in four outings for the Lions in 1987. He tossed one shutout inning in the 1987 Japan Series, won by Seibu.

In 1988, he joined a star-studded rotation featuring Hisanobu Watanabe, Kimiyasu Kudoh, Osamu Higashio and Taigen Kaku and went 10-9 with a 3.46 ERA. Moriyama just missed joining Kaku, Higashio and Kudoh among the PL's top 10 in ERA. He was named Rookie of the Year. He then had his biggest game in game four of the 1988 Japan Series, going the distance in a two-hit shutout of the Chunichi Dragons to help Seibu take the title. Chunichi's offense that year included Kazuyoshi Tatsunami, Gary Rajsich and Hiromitsu Ochiai.

That was it for Moriyama, who faded quickly from his bright beginning. He was rocked for 7 runs and 11 hits in 5 1/3 IP in 1989, was 0-1 with a 8.56 ERA in 1990, allowed two runs in 8 2/3 IP in 1991 and had a 0-1, 7.59 record in 1992. All four seasons, he allowed an average over .300.

Winless since his rookie year, Moriyama was traded to the Yokohama BayStars. He improved to 2-3, 5.20 in 1993 and 1-0, 3.95 in 1994 before finishing up with a 0-1, 4.35 campaign in 1995.

Overall, Moriyama had gone 14-15 with a 4.21 ERA in 86 games in Nippon Pro Baseball, with over 2/3 of the wins coming in his one memorable year.

Ryoji later was a coach for Yokohama, Seibu and the Rakuten Golden Eagles. He managed the Fukuoka Red Warblers in the Kyushu-Shikoku Island League in 2008-2009.

Sources: Japan Baseball Daily, Taiwan Baseball Wiki