Koji Uehara, baseball player, 2009-2017

Koji Uehara

Born: 4/3/1975 in Osaka, Osaka, Japan

MLB Debut: 2009-04-08 | Final Game: 2017-09-02

Bats: R | Throws: R | Height: 6'2" | Weight: 195 lbs

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Biography

Koji Uehara was a Japanese professional baseball pitcher who made a significant impact in Major League Baseball (MLB) from 2009 to 2017. Born in 1975, Uehara transitioned from a successful career in Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB) to the major leagues, where he became known for his exceptional control and effectiveness as a reliever. Throughout his career, he posted a record of 22-26, an impressive earned run average (ERA) of 2.66, and amassed 572 strikeouts. His ability to close games was highlighted by his 95 saves, underscoring his pivotal role in the bullpen for the teams he played for. Uehara's contributions were particularly notable during the 2013 postseason when he was named the American League Championship Series (ALCS) Most Valuable Player, solidifying his reputation as a clutch performer. He was selected as an All-Star once during his career, further demonstrating his status as one of the premier relief pitchers of his era. Uehara's playing style, characterized by a deceptive delivery and a sharp splitter, made him a formidable opponent in high-pressure situations. As a key figure in the evolution of Japanese players in MLB, he paved the way for future generations, illustrating the growing globalization of the game during the 21st century.

Career Pitching Statistics

W L G GS CG SHO SV IP H ER HR BB SO ERA Pitcher PIV
22 26 436 12 0 0 95 480.7 350 142 60 78 572 2.66 0

Career ERA 2.66 vs. league average 4.05 across their career seasons — 34.4% better than league average.

Season-by-Season Pitching

Year Team Lg W L G GS CG SHO SV IP H ER BB SO ERA Lg ERA Pitcher PIV
2009 BAL AL 2 4 12 12 0 0 0 66.7 71 30 12 48 4.05 4.32 (+6%) 1283.5
2010 BAL AL 1 2 43 0 0 0 13 44.0 37 14 5 55 2.86 4.08 (+30%) 1867.6
2011 BAL AL 1 1 43 0 0 0 0 47.0 25 9 8 62 1.72 3.94 (+56%) 1643.2
2011 TEX AL 1 2 22 0 0 0 0 18.0 13 8 1 23 4.00 3.94 (-1%) -137.8
2012 TEX AL 0 0 37 0 0 0 1 36.0 20 7 3 43 1.75 4.01 (+56%) 1463.7
2013 BOS AL 4 1 73 0 0 0 21 74.3 33 9 9 101 1.09 3.87 (+72%) 4258.6
2014 BOS AL 6 5 64 0 0 0 26 64.3 51 18 8 80 2.52 3.74 (+33%) 1067.4
2015 BOS AL 2 4 43 0 0 0 25 40.3 28 10 9 47 2.23 3.96 (+44%) 1547.5
2016 BOS AL 2 3 50 0 0 0 7 47.0 34 18 11 63 3.45 4.19 (+18%) 808.7
2017 CHC NL 3 4 49 0 0 0 2 43.0 38 19 12 50 3.98 4.36 (+9%) -

Career Batting Statistics

G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI SB BB SO AVG OBP SLG OPS PIV
436 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 0.000 0.333 0.000 0.333 0.0

Career AVG .000 vs. league average .255 across their career seasons — 100.0% below league average.

Career OBP .333 vs. league average .321 across their career seasons — near league average.

Career SLG .000 vs. league average .406 across their career seasons — 100.0% below league average.

Career OPS 0.333 vs. league average 0.728 across their career seasons — 54.2% below league average.

Season-by-Season Batting

Year Team Lg G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI SB BB SO AVG Lg AVG Lg OBP Lg SLG Lg OPS PIV
2009 BAL AL 12 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 1 0.000 — — — — 0.0
2010 BAL AL 43 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 — — — — 0.0
2011 BAL AL 43 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 — — — — 0.0
2011 TEX AL 22 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 — — — — 0.0
2012 TEX AL 37 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 — — — — 0.0
2013 BOS AL 73 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 — — — — 0.0
2014 BOS AL 64 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 — — — — 0.0
2015 BOS AL 43 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 — — — — 0.0
2016 BOS AL 50 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 — — — — 0.0
2017 CHC NL 49 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000 — — — — 0.0

Postseason Statistics

Playoff Career Batting

G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO AVG
19 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000

Playoff Batting by Year

Year Round Team G AB R H 2B 3B HR RBI BB SO AVG
2016 ALDS2 BOS 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000
2013 ALCS BOS 5 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000
2013 ALDS1 BOS 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000
2013 WS BOS 5 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000
2012 ALWC TEX 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000
2011 ALCS TEX 2 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000
2011 ALDS2 TEX 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 .000

Playoff Career Pitching

W L G GS SV IP H ER BB SO ERA
1 1 19 0 7 18.0 13 6 2 21 3.00

Playoff Pitching by Year

Year Round Team W L G GS SV IP H ER BB SO ERA
2016 ALDS2 BOS 0 0 2 0 0 2.0 1 0 0 1 0.00
2013 ALCS BOS 1 0 5 0 3 6.0 4 0 0 9 0.00
2013 ALDS1 BOS 0 1 3 0 2 3.0 1 1 0 4 3.00
2013 WS BOS 0 0 5 0 2 4.7 2 0 0 3 0.00
2012 ALWC TEX 0 0 1 0 0 1.0 0 0 0 3 0.00
2011 ALCS TEX 0 0 2 0 0 1.3 3 2 1 1 13.50
2011 ALDS2 TEX 0 0 1 0 0 0.0 2 3 1 0 0.00

Fielding Statistics

Career Fielding Totals by Position

Position G GS PO A E DP
P 436 12 16 38 2 1

Season-by-Season Fielding

Year Team Pos G GS PO A E DP
2009 BAL P 12 12 0 5 0 1
2010 BAL P 43 0 2 3 0 0
2011 BAL P 43 0 1 2 0 0
2011 TEX P 22 0 1 2 0 0
2012 TEX P 37 0 4 1 1 0
2013 BOS P 73 0 2 7 0 0
2014 BOS P 64 0 3 7 0 0
2015 BOS P 43 0 2 2 0 0
2016 BOS P 50 0 1 4 1 0
2017 CHN P 49 0 0 5 0 0

Career Games by Position

Position Games
Pitcher 436

Awards & Honors

Year Award Notes
2013 ALCS MVP

Salary History

Year Team League Salary
2016 BOS AL $9,000,000
2015 BOS AL $9,000,000
2014 BOS AL $5,000,000
2013 BOS AL $4,250,000
2012 TEX AL $4,000,000
2011 BAL AL $3,000,000
2010 BAL AL $5,000,000
2009 BAL AL $5,000,000
Total Career Earnings $44,250,000

Award Voting History

Year Award League Finish Points Won Points Max Votes First
2013 Cy Young Award AL 7th 10.0 210 0
2013 Most Valuable Player AL 19th 2.0 420 0