Yasuyuki Nakai

Yasuyuki Nakai (中井 康之)

• Bats Right, Throws Right
• Height 5' 11", Weight 176 lb.

• High School Saikyo High School

• Born August 7, 1954 in Kyoto, Kyoto Japan
• Died August 9, 2014 in Kanagawa Prefecture Japan

BR Register page

Biographical Information

Yasuyuki Nakai played in Nippon Pro Baseball for 6 years

Nakai was drafted as a pitcher by the Yomiuri Giants in the first round of the 1972 NPB draft, but he was placed in the minors before he was turned into an outfielder in 1978. Nakai led the Eastern League in batting and RBI that year, and he debuted against the Hanshin Tigers on April 7, 1979. He crushed a homer against Kazuyuki Yamamoto on April 11, 1979, and he was the first Giants batter to hit a homer in his first career at-bat. Nakai hit .257/.286/.392 in 92 games in '79 season, but he slumped to .179/.258/.250 in 1980. He bounced back in 1981 as his batting line was .276/.290/.414 in 84 games (31 at-bats), and he went 2-for-9 with 2 runs in the 1981 Nippon Series. The Giants beat the Nippon Ham Fighters in 6 games, and Nakai won his only title. He struggled in 1982 as he went 1-for-14, then he played 72 games with a 5-for-31 record in 1983. Nakai only played 9 games in 1984, and he announced his retirement.

Overall, Nakai hit .211/.254/.314 with 39 hits and 3 homers in 6 seasons in NPB. He played 390 games in his career but only got 208 plate appearances.

Sources

• Wiki Japan