Hiroki Kokubo
From BR Bullpen
Hiroki Kokubo
- Bats Right, Throws Right
- Height 6' 0", Weight 194 lb.
- School Aoyama Gakuin University
- High School Seirin High School
- Born October 8, 1971 in Wakayama, Wakayama Japan
Hiroki Kokubo was a star infielder for the Daiei Hawks for years. He broke in with the team in 1994 and became a star in '95 when he hit .286/.366/.548 with 28 HR. He led the Pacific League in slugging, triples (9), and homers and made the PL Best Nine at second base. After an off-year in '96, he bounced back in 1997 with a line of .306/.366/.588. He led the PL in slugging by 32 points, drove in a league-best 114, tied with Tuffy Rhodes for the double lead with 37 and his 36 homers were one behind league leader Nigel Wilson. He again made the Best Nine at second base.
1998 was not a good year for Kokubo. A tax fraud scandal that year led to several players losing practically the whole season. Kokubo was the most prominent player caught and he only played 17 games all year.
In '99, Kokubo returned but looked rusty. He hit .234/.323/.449 with 24 HR and this was less valuable as he was now a 1B/3B, moved off of second. The next season Kokubo moved full-time to third, where he has been located since. He returned to form with a .288/.340/.552 year, finishing third in the PL with 105 RBI but losing a Best Nine chase to Norihiro Nakamura. Kokubo was on his only Japan Series-winning team that year.
In 2001 Kokubo hit .290/.364/.600 with 44 HR, 108 R and 123 RBI for his best year in terms of raw stats but that was the year Rhodes was having his greatest season. Kokubo was 11 homers shy of the Kintetsu Buffaloes slugger, 62 points of slugging behind and 9 RBI short of Nakamura's league-leading figure.
Kokubo kept hammering away in '02. He hit .292/.375/.531 with 32 long balls. It would be his last year for the Hawks. He sat out the entire 2003 season with a knee injury he suffered during a home plate collision with Takumi Shiigi in spring training. The team didn't miss him, as Kenji Johjima, Nobuhiko Matsunaka and Tadahito Iguchi led a strong offense to a Japan Series victory.
Daiei, figuring it no longer needed Kokubo or his salary, traded him to the Yomiuri Giants for nothing. That's what we call a salary dump. The team's fans were irate over the move and flooded the phone lines with protests. Kokubo proved them right with a resurgent 2004 for Yomiuri, winning Comeback Player of the Year honors. He hit .314/.372/.641 with 41 HR (4 behind league leaders Rhodes and Tyrone Woods) and 96 RBI. His slugging was second in the league to Greg LaRocca, who played in a hitter's park. Amazingly, Kokubo still couldn't make his third Best Nine, as Kazuyoshi Tatsunami got the spot in the Central League. He was second on homers for a team that set a new Nippon Pro Baseball record.
In 2005 Kokubo kept driving them out - he hit .281/.361/.523 with 34 HR to go over 300 for his career (among the top 30 in NPB history despite missing all of one season and almost all of another). He was 4th in the Central in home runs and 9th in OPS. Kokubo had a realistic shot at the top 15 all-time in homers - he needs to keep on hitting 30+ for 5 more years.
The 2006 season was an okay one (.256/.325/.458, 19 HR in 88 G) though he missed two months after breaking his thumb. After the season, he re-signed with the Hawks. He battled a broken rib that year, which caused him to miss some time.
So far he has 2 40-HR seasons, 3 more 30-HR seasons and 3 more 20-HR seasons.
