Shinji Taninaka

Shinji Taninaka (谷中 真二)

• Bats Right Throws Right
• Height 5' 9", Weight 176 lb.

• High School Kindai Sensyu High School

• Born May 15, 1973 in Hannan, Osaka Japan

BR register page

Biographical Information

Shinji Taninaka pitched in Nippon Pro Baseball for 14 years.

Taninaka was drafted by the Seibu Lions in the 3rd round of the 1996 NPB draft, and he had a 4.68 ERA in 14 games in his first season. His ERA was 2.87 in 6 games in 1998, and he went 1-2 with a 4.05 ERA in 1999. Taninaka recorded a 3.25 ERA in 32 appearances in 2000, and he was traded to the Hanshin Tigers for Hiroshi Hirao. He joined the rotation in 2001, and he was 7-3 with a 3.21 ERA. Taninaka then went 5-8 with a 3.43 ERA in 2002, but he slumped to 3-3 with a 5.88 ERA in 2003.

The Tigers traded him with Hidemitsu Saito to the Orix BlueWave for Rui Makino and Ikuro Katsuragi after the 2003 season, and he struggled again as his ERA was 7.20 in 24 games in 2004. Taninaka was then assigned to the newly-founded Rakuten Golden Eagles, and he pitched 21 games with a 8.17 ERA in 2005. His ERA was 5.13 in 20 games in 2006, and he was released after the 2007 season. The Lions signed him back, and Taninaka had a 2.77 ERA in 11 games in 2008. He pitched 1 1/3 innings combined with a run allowed in 2 games in the 2008 Nippon Series, and the Lions beat the Yomiuri Giants in 7 games. Taninaka only pitched 10 games combined in the next two seasons, and he announced his retirement in 2010.

Overall, Taninaka was 21-25 with a 4.55 ERA, struck out 236 and pitched 502 innings in 14 seasons in NPB.

Sources

• Wiki Japan