Hiroto Takahashi

Hiroto Takahashi (髙橋 宏斗)

• Bats Right, Throws Right
• Height 6' 0", Weight 187 lb.

• High School Chukyo University Senior High School

• Born August 9, 2002 in Owariasahi, Aichi Japan

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Biographical Information

Hiroto Takahashi has pitched in Nippon Pro Baseball and been on the Japanese national team

Takahashi was the first-round pick of the Chunichi Dragons in the 2020 NPB draft; the scout was Shinichi Kondo. He had a 7.01 ERA in the Japanese minors in 2021. He debuted with the top club on March 30, 2022. He pitched 5 innings, allowed 4 runs and got his first career loss in that game. Takahashi's record was 6-7 with 2.47 ERA in his rookie year, and he ranked 3rd in strikeouts with 134, between Shinnosuke Ogasawara and Masato Morishita. He was 4th in voting for the 2022 CL Rookie of the Year behind Taisei Ota, Atsuki Yuasa and Hideki Nagaoka.

The Aichi native then made Japan's roster for the 2023 World Baseball Classic. In his debut, he relieved Yuki Matsui in the 9th with a 13-4 lead over South Korea. He struck out Kun-woo Park, then retired Baek-ho Kang and Eui-ji Yang to finish the game. His second game was against Australia, relieving Atsuki Yuasa in the 9th with a 7-1 lead. Alex Hall blasted a laed-off solo home run off Takahashi, but he still struck out Jake Bowey and Andrew Campbell between a ground out by Liam Spence. His last game was the WBC final against the United States. He replaced Shosei Togo with a 3-1 lead in the fifth. Mookie Betts hit an infield single, then Takahashi whiffed Mike Trout and Paul Goldschmidt. Although Nolan Arenado collected another hit, he still forced Kyle Schwarber hit a flyball to escape the jam. He also got his first hold in the event.

Takahashi extended his solid performance in 2023 season, and he was 7-11 with a 2.53 ERA. He led the league with 51 walks and 8 wild pitches, and he was 2nd in strikeouts (145, 29 behind Shota Imanaga), 3rd in losses (tied with Yuya Yanagi and Daichi Osera) and 7th in ERA (between Yanagi and Aren Kuri). He completed his first shutout against the Chiba Lotte Marines on June 13, and he was the youngest player in CL history to complete a shutout. Takahashi had a historic season in 2024. He attended the 2024 NPB All-Star Game, but he allowed 2 runs in an inning in Game 2 and he got the loss; he had an ERA under .7 at the time. He went 12-4 with a 1.38 ERA, and he broke Shigeru Sugishita's Chunichi team record for lowest ERA in a season. He only allowed a single home run in 143 2/3 innings, and he set the NPB record for fewest homers allowed while meeting the ERA title innings qualifier. Kazuhisa Inao and Brian Wolfe had held the record with 2. He easily won the CL ERA title, and he was 4th in wins (tied with Shosei Togo) and 4th in strikeouts (130, tied with Shoki Murakami). He won 30 points in the MVP voting, and he ranked 7th between Munetaka Murakami and Hiroto Saiki.

The ace of Chunichi then made it onto Japan's roster for the 2024 Premier 12. He started against South Korea, and he fanned 8 in 4 innings; he allowed a RBI single to Chang-ki Hong in the 2nd inning and a solo shot to Dong-won Park in the 4th inning. Takahashi was then named the starter versus the USA, and he pitched 4 shutout innings with 8 strikeouts. Japan won Silver in the event, and Takahashi tied Chihiro Sumida for the event lead with 16 strikeouts. He was 8-10 with a 2.83 ERA in 2025 season, but he again led the league with 9 wild pitches. Takahashi ranked 2nd in Ks (138, 6 behind Murakami), 2nd in hits allowed (145, 13 behind Hiroki Tokoda), 2nd in innings (171 2/3, 3 2/3 behind Murakami), 2nd in complete games (3, 3 behind Tokoda), 10th in wins (tied with Togo, Kojiro Yoshimura and Taisei Ohta) and 9th in ERA (between Takahiro Matsuba and Tokoda).

Takahashi represented Japan in the 2026 World Baseball Classic. He started against the Czech Republic, and he pitched 4 2/3 shutout innings with 5 strikeouts. He began 2026 on a rough note and was demoted to the minors.