Takahito Nomura (野村貴仁, born January 10, 1969) is a former Japanese

professional baseball Professional baseball is organized baseball in which players are selected for their talents and are paid to play for a specific team or club system. It is played in baseball league, leagues and associated farm teams throughout the world. Mod ...

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 ...

. He played for the

Orix BlueWave , styled as ORIX, is a Japanese diversified financial services group headquartered in Minato, Tokyo, and Osaka, Japan. ORIX offers leasing, lending, rentals, life insurance, real estate financing and development, venture capital, investment an ...

Yomiuri Giants The are a Japanese professional baseball team competing in Nippon Professional Baseball's Central League. Based in Bunkyo, Tokyo, they are one of two professional baseball teams based in Tokyo, the other being the Tokyo Yakult Swallows. They ...

, and

Nippon-Ham Fighters 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 ...

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), the

Milwaukee Brewers The Milwaukee Brewers are an American professional baseball team based in Milwaukee. They compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) National League Central, Central division. The Brewers are named for t ...

Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball organization and the oldest major professional sports league in the world. MLB is composed of 30 total teams, divided equally between the National League (NL) and the American League (AL), ...

(MLB), and the Macoto Cobras of the

Chinese Professional Baseball League The Chinese Professional Baseball League (CPBL; ) is the top-tier professional baseball league in Taiwan. The league was established in 1989 and played the first season in 1990. CPBL eventually absorbed the competing Taiwan Major League in 20 ...

(CPBL). Nomura played under the name Takaki Nomura from 2000 to 2003. Nomura was one of the relief pitchers in the

Pacific League The or is one of the two professional baseball leagues constituting Nippon Professional Baseball in Japan. The winner of the league championship competes against the winner in the Central League for the annual Japan Series. It currently consis ...

during his early career, and his team won two championships (1995 and 1996) with his contributions from the bullpen. He was valued as a left-handed reliever, and was known for his wide curve. However, he was only effective for his first 7 seasons (1991–1997), and has gone downhill ever since.

Biography

Nomura was drafted in the third round of the 1990 draft by the

. He pitched well as a reliever, and recorded a 0.98 ERA pitching in 37 games in 1995, greatly contributing to his team's championship that year. He pitched over 50 games in 1996 and 1997, occasionally making saves. He was traded to the

in exchange for

Masao Kida is a Japanese former baseball pitcher. He played in Major League Baseball from -, and -. He is currently the manager for the Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters farm team in Nippon Professional Baseball's Eastern League. Biography Kida was drafted in ...

in 1998, but could not continue his previous success. He pitched in 40 games in 2001, but his pitching remained inconsistent, and was released after the season. He joined the

in 2002, pitching in 21 games, and became the first player to wear the number 95 in the Majors, and the only one to do so until Trevor Rogers in 2020. He marked an 8.56 ERA, and was released again at the end of the season. He returned to Japan, signing with the

, but only made 6 appearances. He joined the Macoto Cobras of the

CPBL The Chinese Professional Baseball League (CPBL; ) is the top-tier professional baseball league in Taiwan. The league was established in 1989 and played the first season in 1990. CPBL eventually absorbed the competing Taiwan Major League in 20 ...

in 2004, making a single start. After retiring, Nomura returned to his hometown of Kōchi.

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Nomura, Takahito 1969 births Japanese expatriate baseball players in the United States Nippon Professional Baseball pitchers Living people Major League Baseball pitchers Major League Baseball players from Japan Milwaukee Brewers players Nippon Ham Fighters players Orix BlueWave players People from Kōchi, Kōchi Baseball people from Kōchi Prefecture Yomiuri Giants players