Tsuyoshi Wada
From BR Bullpen
Tsuyoshi Wada
- Bats Left, Throws Left
- Height 5' 10", Weight 173 lb.
- School Waseda University
- High School Hamada High School
- Born February 21, 1981 in Konan, Aichi Japan
Tsuyoshi Wada had one of the finest college careers of any pitcher in Japanese history. He went 23-11 in college with an ERA under 2.00 and set a Tokyo Big Six University League record with 476 career strikeouts, destroying the record held by Hall-of-Famer Suguru Egawa. He once pitched 52 1/3 consecutive scoreless innings in college. In a 2000 All-Star series against top American college players, he threw three scoreless innings. In his last game, he lost in the finals of the top college tournament to Hiroshi Kisanuki.
In the 2002 World University Championship, Wada went 1-1 with a 1.20 ERA, allowing 6 hits in 15 innings and striking out 17. His only loss came against the USA in the semifinals, 2-1. Wada made the All-Tournament team as the top left-handed pitcher.
Wada was picked by the Daiei Hawks in the first round of the 2003 NPB draft. As a rookie, he went 14-5 with a 3.38 ERA and 195 K in 189 IP. He was second in the Pacific League in strikeouts, 20 behind Daisuke Matsuzaka, was tied for sixth in wins, second to Hisashi Iwakuma with nine complete games, tied Toshiya Sugiuchi and Matsuzaka for the shutout lead (2) and was tied with Sugiuchi for 4th in ERA. He claimed PL Rookie of the Year honors and made the All-Star team. In the 2003 Japan Series, he went 1-0 with a 1.80 ERA and pitched a complete-game victory in game seven to beat the Hanshin Tigers.
For an encore, Tsuyoshi went only 10-6, 4.35 and missed time to participate in the 2004 Olympics. He was 2-0 with a 1.50 ERA as one of the top pitchers in that Olympic year and beat Australia in the bronze medal game, outdueling Mike Johnson 6-2. He did make his second All-Star team. With Daiei becoming the Softbank Hawks, Wada went 12-8 with a 3.27 ERA in 2005, making a third All-Star team. He was third in the PL with 167 K (behind Matsuzaka and Sugiuchi), tied for ninth in wins and 7th in ERA. His career line was 36-19, 3.59 after that year.
Representing Japan in the 2006 World Baseball Classic, the southpaw pitched two scoreless innings, allowing one hit and one strikeout. In 2006, as of September 19, he is 14-5 with a 2.88 ERA and ranks third in the league in wins, 7th in strikeouts (131), 8th in ERA and tied for third with three shutouts.
Wada throws a fastball in the low-90s, curveball, slider and excellent changeup. He tracks scouting reports on a laptop he always carries with him.
Primary Source: Japanbaseballdaily.com by Gary Garland
