Kengo Takeda

Kengo Takeda (武田 健吾)

• Bats Right, Throws Right
• Height 6' 0", Weight 171 lbs.

• High School Jiyugaoka High School

• Born April 18, 1994 in Chikugo, Fukuoka Japan

BR register page

Biographical Information

Outfielder Kengo Takeda played in Nippon Pro Baseball for 9 years.

Takeda was drafted by the Orix Buffaloes in the 4th round of the 2012 NPB draft, and he spent most of his first four seasons in the NPB Farm Leagues; he only got 50 at-bats combined for the top team. He also represented Japan in the 2014 U-21 Baseball World Cup (.276/.300/.310) and 2016 U-23 Baseball World Cup. In the latter event, he hit .455/.526/.636 with 10 RBI; he tied Ronald Rivera for 3rd with 15 hits, tied Guy Edmonds and Zac Shepherd for 6th in RBI, tied Norberto Obeso for 8th with 21 total bases and tied Rivera and Sandy Bermudez for 3rd in average. He joined Yusuke Masago and Byung-wook Lim as the All-Star outfielders.

He finally got some chances after Yoshio Itoi left the team in 2017, and he played 97 games with a .295/.321/.362 batting line. He then recorded a .221/.245/.316 batting line in 69 games in 2018, but he only got 8 at-bats in 2019 before the Buffaloes traded him with Takahiro Matsuba to the Chunichi Dragons for Masato Matsui and Yusuke Matsui on June 30. Takeda went 5-for-35 in the rest of the season, and he hit .182/.246/.218 in 82 games in 2020. He struggled again in 2021 as his batting line was .132/.154/.263 in 93 games, and the Dragons released him.

Overall, Takeda hit .223/.253/.293 with 109 hits and 4 homers in 9 seasons in NPB.

Sources

• Wiki Japan
• 2014 U-21 Baseball World Cup
• 2016 U-23 Baseball World Cup