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Mutsuo Minagawa
was a Japanese professional baseball pitcher. Listed at 5' 10" , 162 lb. , Minagawa batted and threw right handed. He was born in Yonezawa, Yamagata.Japan Pacific League Register Statistics and History ''Baseball Reference''. Retrieved on August 14, 2016. A tough three quarters, side arm pitcher, Minagawa spent 18 seasons in the Pacific Coast League during three different decades spanning 1954–1971, all of them with the , w ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Pitcher
In baseball, the pitcher is the player who throws ("pitches") the baseball from the pitcher's mound toward the catcher to begin each play, with the goal of retiring a batter, who attempts to either make contact with the pitched ball or draw a walk. In the numbering system used to record defensive plays, the pitcher is assigned the number 1. The pitcher is often considered the most important player on the defensive side of the game, and as such is situated at the right end of the defensive spectrum. There are many different types of pitchers, such as the starting pitcher, relief pitcher, middle reliever, lefty specialist, setup man, and the closer. Traditionally, the pitcher also bats. Starting in 1973 with the American League(and later the National League) and spreading to further leagues throughout the 1980s and 1990s, the hitting duties of the pitcher have generally been given over to the position of designated hitter, a cause of some controversy. The Japanese Central Le ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Best Nine Award
The Best Nine Award is awarded annually to the best player at each position in both the Central League and Pacific League of Japanese professional baseball as determined by a pool of journalists. History While the Best Nine Award was first presented to players following the season, it was not until (after World War II) that it became an annual award. After the Japanese Baseball League was divided into Central and Pacific leagues in 1950, the award was presented to nine players from each league. Following the Pacific League's adoption of the DH rule in , ten players (including the best designated hitter) have been chosen for the Best Nine Award in the Pacific League alone each year. Selection process Journalists vote on the best pitcher, catcher, first baseman, second baseman, third baseman, shortstop, and three outfielders (typically chosen on merit of best offensive numbers, with the exception of pitchers) in each of the two leagues. As is the case with the Silver Slugger Aw ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Relief Pitcher
In baseball and softball, a relief pitcher or reliever is a pitcher who enters the game after the starting pitcher is removed because of fatigue (medical), fatigue, ineffectiveness, injury, or ejection (sports), ejection, or for other strategic reasons, such as inclement weather delays or pinch hitter substitutions. Relief pitchers are further divided informally into various roles, such as Closer (baseball), closers, setup men, middle relief pitchers, left-handed specialist, left/right-handed specialists, and long relievers. Whereas starting pitchers usually pitch count, throw so many pitches in a single game that they must rest several days before pitching in another, relief pitchers are expected to be more flexible and typically pitch in more games with a shorter time period between pitching appearances but with fewer innings pitched per appearance. A team's staff of relievers is normally referred to Metonymy, metonymically as a team's bullpen, which refers to the area where th ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Walks Plus Hits Per Inning Pitched
In baseball statistics, walks plus hits per inning pitched (WHIP) is a sabermetric measurement of the number of baserunners a pitcher has allowed per inning pitched. WHIP is calculated by adding the number of walks and hits allowed and dividing this sum by the number of innings pitched.MLB Glossary – Walks and hits per inning pitched (WHIP) ''MLB.com. Retrieved on September 13, 2016. WHIP reflects a pitcher's propensity for allowing batters to reach base, therefore a lower WHIP indicates better performance. While ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Shutout
In team sports, a shutout ( US) or clean sheet ( UK) is a game in which one team prevents the other from scoring any points. While possible in most major sports, they are highly improbable in some sports, such as basketball. Shutouts are usually seen as a result of effective defensive play even though a weak opposing offense may be as much to blame. Some sports credit individual players, particularly goalkeepers and starting pitchers, with shutouts and keep track of them as statistics; others do not. American football A shutout in American football is uncommon but not exceptionally rare. Keeping an opponent scoreless in American football requires a team's defense to be able to consistently shut down both pass and run offenses over the course of a game. The difficulty of completing a shutout is compounded by the many ways a team can score in the game. For example, teams can attempt field goals, which have a high rate of success. The range of NFL caliber kickers makes it possible ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Starting Pitcher
In baseball (hardball or softball), a starting pitcher or starter is the first pitcher in the game for each team. A pitcher is credited with a game started if they throw the first pitch to the opponent's first batter of a game. Starting pitchers are expected to pitch for a significant portion of the game, although their ability to do this depends on many factors, including effectiveness, stamina, health, and strategy. A starting pitcher in professional baseball usually rests three, four, or five days after pitching a game before pitching in another. Therefore, most professional baseball teams have four, five or six starting pitchers on their rosters. These pitchers, and the sequence in which they pitch, is known as the ''rotation''. A team's best starter is known as the ace, and is almost always the first man to pitch in the rotation. In modern baseball, a five-man rotation is most common. In contrast, a pitcher who enters the game after the first pitch of the game is a re ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Innings Pitched
In baseball, innings pitched (IP) are the number of innings a pitcher has completed, measured by the number of batters and baserunners that are put out while the pitcher is on the pitching mound in a game. Three outs made is equal to one inning pitched. One out counts as one-third of an inning, and two outs counts as two-thirds of an inning. Sometimes, the statistic is written 34.1, 72.2, or 91.0, for example, to represent innings, innings, and 91 innings exactly, respectively. Runners left on base by a pitcher are not counted in determining innings pitched. It is possible for a pitcher to enter a game, give up several hits and possibly even several runs, and be removed before achieving any outs, thereby recording a total of zero innings pitched. Alternatively, it is possible for a pitcher to enter a situation where there are two runners on base and no outs. He could throw one pitch that results in a triple play, and for that one pitch he would be credited with a full inning ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Earned Run Average
In baseball statistics, earned run average (ERA) is the average of earned runs allowed by a pitcher per nine innings pitched (i.e. the traditional length of a game). It is determined by dividing the number of earned runs allowed by the number of innings pitched and multiplying by nine. Thus, a lower ERA is better. Runs resulting from passed balls or defensive errors (including pitchers' defensive errors) are recorded as unearned runs and omitted from ERA calculations. Origins Henry Chadwick is credited with devising the statistic, which caught on as a measure of pitching effectiveness after relief pitching came into vogue in the 1900s. Prior to 1900—and, in fact, for many years afterward—pitchers were routinely expected to pitch a complete game, and their win–loss record was considered sufficient in determining their effectiveness. After pitchers like James Otis Crandall and Charley Hall made names for themselves as relief specialists, gauging a pitcher's e ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Nippon Professional Baseball
or NPB is the highest level of baseball in Japan. Locally, it is often called , meaning ''Professional Baseball''. Outside Japan, it is often just referred to as "Japanese baseball". The roots of the league can be traced back to the formation of the in Tokyo, founded in 1934, and the original circuit for the sport in the Empire two years later – Japanese Baseball League (1936–1949), and continued to play even through the final years of World War II. The league that is today's NPB for Japan was formed when that sports organization reorganized in 1950, creating two leagues with six teams each in the Central League and the Pacific League with an annual season-ending Japan Series championship play-off series of games starting that year. The NPB also oversees the Western League (Japanese baseball), Western League and the Eastern League (Japanese baseball), Eastern League, NPB's minor league, minor leagues. Since the first Japan Series in , the Yomiuri Giants have the most cha ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Screwball
A screwball is a baseball and fastpitch softball pitch that is thrown so as to break in the opposite direction of a slider or curveball. Depending on the pitcher's arm angle, the ball may also have a sinking action. The pitch is sometimes known as the scroogie or airbender. Carl Hubbell was one of the most renowned screwball pitchers in the history of Major League Baseball. Hubbell was known as the "scroogie king" for his mastery of the pitch and the frequency with which he threw it. Other famous screwball artists include Tug McGraw, inaugural Hall of Fame member Christy Matthewson, and Cy Young Award winners Mike Cuellar, Fernando Valenzuela, Mike Marshall, and Willie Hernández. Grip and action The baseball is held with the open end of the horseshoe shape (where the seams are closest together) facing upward. The thumb is placed just beneath the bottom of the horseshoe, the index finger is curled against the top of the thumb, forming a tight circle to the side of the ball. The ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Slider (baseball)
In baseball, a slider is a breaking ball pitch that tails laterally and down through the batter's hitting zone. It is thrown at a speed that is lower than a fastball, but higher than the pitcher's curveball. The break on the pitch is shorter than that of the curveball, and the release technique is 'between' those of a curveball and a fastball. The slider is similar to the cutter (baseball), cutter, a fastball pitch, but is more of a breaking ball than the cutter. The slider is also known as a yakker or a snapper. Slider continuum Depending on velocity, a pitch can fall anywhere on the continuum from "fastball" to "slider": * fastball » Cutter (baseball), cut fastball » hard slider » slider » slurve ** cut fastball: slower than fastball ** hard slider: slower than fastball ** slider: slower than fastball The difference between a slider and curveball is that the curveball delivery includes a downward yank on the ball as it is released in addition to the lateral spin appli ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Breaking Ball
In baseball, a breaking ball is a pitch that does not travel straight as it approaches the batter; it will have sideways or downward motion on it, sometimes both (see slider). A breaking ball is not a specific pitch by that name, but is any pitch that "breaks", such as a curveball, slider, or screwball. A pitcher who primarily uses breaking ball pitches is often referred to as a junkballer. A breaking ball is more difficult than a straight pitch for a catcher to receive as breaking pitches sometimes hit the ground (whether intentionally, or not) before making it to the plate. A curveball moves down and to the left for a right handed pitcher. For a left hand pitcher, it moves down and to the right. And blocking a breaking ball requires thought and preparation by the catcher. The pitcher then, must have confidence in the catcher, and the catcher in himself, to block any ball in the dirt; if there are runners on base, they will likely advance if the ball gets away from the catch ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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