is a Japanese former professional

baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each, taking turns batting and fielding. The game occurs over the course of several plays, with each play generally beginning when a player on the fielding tea ...

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 ...

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 ...

(NPB). He played for the Osaka / Hanshin Tigers from 1953 to 1963, the Tokyo / Lotte Orions from 1964 to 1972, and the

Taiyo Whales The are a professional baseball team in the Japanese Central League. Their home field is Yokohama Stadium, located in central Yokohama. The team has been known by several names since becoming a professional team in 1950. It adopted its current ...

in 1973. He is a member of the

Japanese Baseball Hall of Fame The is a museum which includes a library, reference rooms and . It first opened in 1959 next door to Korakuen Stadium in Tokyo, Japan. In 1988, the museum moved to a new site within the Tokyo Dome. The Hall of Fame and Museum was created as a ...

. A right-handed pitcher, Koyama threw hard and was known for his effective

slider Slider or Sliders may refer to: Arts * K.K. Slider, a fictional character within the ''Animal Crossing'' franchise * '' The Slider'', a 1972 album by T. Rex * ''Sliders'' (TV series), an American science fiction and fantasy television series * ...

and pinpoint control. He ranks third all-time in the NPB in wins (320), strikeouts (3,159), innings pitched (4,899), and shutouts (74). He won 20 or more games 7 separate times, was selected to eleven All-Star teams, and won the 1962

Eiji Sawamura Award The , commonly known as the Sawamura Award, is an honor bestowed upon the top starting pitcher in Nippon Professional Baseball each year. The award was originally established by Japanese magazine "Nekkyū" in 1947 to honor the career of Eiji Sawa ...

Biography

Koyama attended Takasago High School, and entered NPB at age 18, drafted by the

Osaka Tigers The Hanshin Tigers (Japanese: 阪神タイガース ''Hanshin Taigāsu'') are a Nippon Professional Baseball team playing in the Central League. The team is based in Nishinomiya, Hyōgo Prefecture, Japan, and is owned by Hanshin Electric Railway ...

. Koyama won 20 or more games three straight years from 1958 to 1960; in 1959 he led the

Central League The or is one of the two professional baseball leagues that constitute Nippon Professional Baseball in Japan. The winner of the league championship plays against the winner of the Pacific League in the annual Japan Series. It currently consist ...

in innings pitched, with 344. He had at least 200 strikeouts for 7 straight seasons from 1956 to 1962. In 1961 Koyama suffered his first losing season, going 11–22, leading the Central League in losses despite a stellar 2.41

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 ...

. In 1962, Koyama had 13 shutouts, including five in a row, on his way to a 27–11 record with a 1.66 ERA and the

Sawamura Award The , commonly known as the Sawamura Award, is an honor bestowed upon the top starting pitcher in Nippon Professional Baseball each year. The award was originally established by Japanese magazine "Nekkyū" in 1947 to honor the career of Eiji Sa ...

. He also led all of NPB in strikeouts, with 270. Unfortunately, he lost two games in that year's

Japan Series The Japan Series ( , officially the Japan Championship Series, ), also the Nippon Series, :File:2014_JS_logo.png is the annual championship series in Nippon Professional Baseball, the top baseball league in Japan. It is a best-of-seven series ...

, as the Tigers fell to the champion

Toei Flyers The are a Japanese professional baseball team based in Kitahiroshima, Hokkaidō. They compete in the Pacific League of Nippon Professional Baseball, playing the majority of their home games at ES CON Field Hokkaido. The Fighters also host a ...

. (Koyama ended up on the losing end of three

, never winning a championship.) In 1964, Koyama switched teams (and leagues) and went 30-12 for the Tokyo Orions, leading all of NPB in victories, with a 2.41. ERA. That year he had 25 complete games and led all of NPB in innings pitched, with . He won at least 20 games three straight years from 1964 to 1966 (although in 1965 he also lost 20 games). With 200+ wins, Koyama was a founding member of

Meikyukai The is one of the two baseball halls of fame in Japan, the other being the . The Meikyukai is a limited company for public benefit. Founded by Hall of Fame pitcher Masaichi Kaneda in 1978, the Meikyukai honors players born after 1926 (the begi ...

in 1978. He was elected to the

in 2001."Koyama named to Hall of Fame,"
''Japan Times'' (Jan. 13, 2001). On May 2, 1992,

Tsutomu Seki is a Japanese astronomer and discoverer of minor planets and comets, born in Kōchi, Japan. Career Tsutomu Seki is the Director of the Geisei Observatory in Kōchi, and in charge of the Comet Section of the Oriental Astronomical Associatio ...

discovered the minor planet 1992 JE, naming it "13553 Masaakikoyama" in honor of Koyama.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Koyama, Masaaki 1934 births Living people Baseball people from Hyōgo Prefecture Japanese Baseball Hall of Fame inductees Japanese baseball players Nippon Professional Baseball pitchers Hanshin Tigers players Tokyo Orions players Lotte Orions players Taiyō Whales players Japanese baseball coaches Nippon Professional Baseball coaches People from Akashi, Hyōgo

Biography

See also

References