Yasuhiko Yabuta

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Yasuhiko Yabuta (薮田 安彦)

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Biographical Information[edit]

Yasuhiko Yabuta was a reliever in Japan and the major leagues. He played for the Kansas City Royals.

After high school, Yabuta played in the industrial leagues for Shin Nittetsu Hirohata. He throws a fastball and slider. In 1995, he was picked in the second round of the 1995 NPB draft by the Chiba Lotte Marines. Debuting with the Marines the next year, Yabuta went 4-6 with a 3.62 with the only shutout in his first 10 seasons. In 1997, the right-hander had a 5-9, 3.94 sophomore season then slipped further the next few years to 2-9, 4.84 in '98 and 5-4, 4.89 in '99. He allowed 21 runs in 18 innings for Chiba Lotte in 2000 and 2002, presumably either injured or in ni-gun most of the year and in between went 4-6, 3.88 in 2001. 2003 yielded a 5.90 ERA and a 5-6 record. In '04, though, Yasuhiko went 3-4 with two saves and a 2.79 ERA in a Pacific League-leading 66 outings.

Yabuta had a 7-4, 3.07 season with two saves in 2005, and he was selected into the 2005 NPB All-Star Game; he pitched a shutout inning in Game 2. He pitched two scoreless innings in the 2005 Japan Series, fanning four in two appearances. Yabuta was picked to play for Japan in the 2006 World Baseball Classic. In the classic, he pitched in four games for the champs, allowing two baserunners and one run in 4 1/3 IP, striking out five. In 2006, he was 4-2 with one save and a 2.62 ERA. Yabuta posted a 4-6, 2.44 record with 38 holds and 4 saves in 58 games in 2007. He tied Tadahiro Ogino for 4th in the Pacific League in games pitched, and he won the NPB Most Valuable Setup Pitcher Award. He attended the 2007 NPB All-Star Game, and he pitched a shutout inning in Game 1 but then allowed a 2-run shot to Alex Ramirez in Game 2.

A free agent after 2007, Yabuta drew some interest from MLB teams. He signed for two years and about $5 million with the Kansas City Royals. On March 28, 2008, near the end of spring training, he was hit by a line drive off his leg, suffering a contusion but not serious injury. Yabuta made his MLB debut in a 6-4 loss to the Twins. He replaced Ron Mahay in the bottom of the 8th and pitched one scoreless inning. He retired Justin Morneau on a grounder and gave up a Delmon Young single. Jason Kubel then grounded into an inning-ending double play. He was 1-3 with a 4.78 ERA in his first MLB season, but his ERA rose to 13.50 in 12 relief outings in 2009. Yabuta also had a 3.55 ERA in 26 appearances for the AAA Omaha Royals, and he became a free agent.

Yabuta returned to the Marines as their setup man, and he collected 28 holds with a 3.15 ERA in 63 appearances. He was 4th in appearances (tied with Yoshihisa Hirano) and 5th in holds (tied with Yoshihiro Ito and Yoshinori Tateyama). Yabuta completed 5 2/3 shutout innings combined in 4 games in the 2010 Nippon Series, and the Marines beat the Chunichi Dragons in 7 games. When Hiroyuki Kobayashi left the team, Yabuta was named Chiba Lotte's new closer in 2011, and he collected 31 saves with a solid 1.75 ERA in 53 appearances. He was 3rd in saves (between Mamoru Kishida and Kazuhisa Makita) and 10th in appearances (tied with Hisashi Takeda, Takehito Kanazawa and Brian Falkenborg). Yabuta's ERA rose to 3.34 with 26 saves in 61 relief outings in 2012, and he was 6th in games (tied with Koji Aoyama) and 3rd in saves (between Hideaki Wakui and Aoyama). He announced his retirement after that season, and he was an assistant coach for Kanto Gakuin University from 2018 to 2024.

Overall, Yabuta was 48-72 with a 3.81 ERA, collected 67 saves and 112 holds in 520 appearances, struck out 710 and pitched 1,009 1/3 innings in 15 seasons in NPB. As of 2024, he was 35th in holds (between Frank Herrmann and Takehiko Oshimoto) and 86th in appearances (between Tetsuya Shiozaki and Takashi Suzuki in NPB history.

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