Tetsuhiro Monna

From BR Bullpen

Tetsuhiro Monna (門奈 哲寛)

  • Bats Left, Throws Left
  • Height 5' 10", Weight 176 lb.

BR register page

Biographical Information[edit]

Tetsuhiro Monna pitched in Japan, Croatia and the Netherlands.

Monna set a Tokyo Metropolitan University League with 18 strikeouts in a game. He was a second-round pick of the Yomiuri Giants in the 1992 NPB draft. He debuted with Yomiuri in 1993, going 1-2 with a 2.70 ERA. He struck out 57 in 60 innings while allowing 46 hits and 27 walks. He fell to 0-1, 4.70 in 1994 with 11 walks and 9 strikeouts in 15 1/3 innings and did not pitch in NPB in 1995. In 1996, Monna had a 6.14 ERA in five games. He finished his NPB career with a 1-3, 3.38 record. Yomiuri released him following the 1999 season. He tried to get a job with a MLB organization but could not.

Monna signed with ADO. In 2000, he had a 2.60 ERA, 10th in Hoofdklasse. He was 4th in innings pitched (100 1/3), second in strikeouts (120, behind Petter Vesterlund), tied for 6th in saves (2) and tied Rikkert Faneyte and Orlando Stewart for the lead with 6 complete games. In 2002, Monna led Hoofdklasse in innings (129 2/3), tied for 8th with 2 saves and was again second in strikeouts (117, trailing Patrick Beljaards by 10).

Monna then went to Croatia and played for their national team. In the 2003 European Championship, he was 2-0 with a 1.80 ERA and 26 strikeouts in 20 innings; the rest of the staff went 1-4. He led the event in innings pitched, tied for the win lead and led in strikeouts. In the 2005 European Championship, Monna again led in strikeouts (18 in 17 IP). He was 1-1 with a 0.53 ERA, the only Croatian pitcher to get a win, outdueling Karl Knutsson in a pitching duel with Sweden. That season, he led the Croatian league with 13 home runs, showing his batting ability.

After retiring as a player, Monna became a translator and batting practice pitcher for the SoftBank Hawks.

Sources[edit]