Former Los Angeles Dodgers pitcher Hiroki Kuroda was inducted into the Japanese Baseball Hall of Fame on Thursday, being honored alongside catcher Motonobu Tanishige and umpire Tomoichi Tanimura.
Kuroda joined the Dodgers in December 2007 on a three-year, $35.3 million contract after a successful career with the Hiroshima Karp where he pitched 11 seasons.
In his first season with the Dodgers, Kuroda established himself as a quality starting pitcher at the MLB level, posting a 3.73 ERA in 183.1 innings.
He ended up spending four years with the Dodgers where he pitched to a 3.45 ERA across 699 innings from age 33 through 36.
Following his stint with the Dodgers, Kuroda joined the New York Yankees, where he still proved to be a strong option with a 3.44 ERA over three seasons and 620 innings pitched.
Congratulations Hiroki Kuroda on your induction into the Japanese Baseball Hall of Fame! pic.twitter.com/el9a0i0UHj
— Los Angeles Dodgers (@Dodgers) January 18, 2024
After his final season with the Yankees, Kuroda returned to Japan and pitched two more seasons at age 40 and 41.
In his age 40 season, Kuroda posted a 2.55 ERA in 169.2 innings, and he finished off his final season in professional baseball in 2016 with a 3.09 ERA in 151.2 innings.
A picture of consistency, Kuroda pitched 20 years and held a 3.51 ERA across his career, throwing 3,354.1 innings.
In his 13 seasons in Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB), he pitched to a 3.55 ERA, while in his seven Major League seasons, he owns a 3.45 ERA.
In addition to his regular season success, Kuroda was solid throughout his playoff career. He made five starts in the postseason and gave up three runs or fewer in five of them.
However, in the 2009 National League Championship against the Philadelphia Phillies, he allowed six runs in just 1.1 innings, which spikes his career postseason ERA to 3.94 in 29.2 innings.
Dodgers congratulate Hiroki Kuroda
After Kuroda was named to the Japanese Hall of Fame, the Dodgers shared a congratulatory message to the right-hander.
“The Los Angeles Dodgers congratulate former pitcher Hiroki Kuroda for being named to the 2024 class of the Japanese Baseball Hall of Fame.
“Kuroda posted a 3.45 ERA and made 114 starts in four seasons with the Dodgers and was the winning pitcher in Game 3 of both the 2008 NLDS and the 2008 NLCS.
“Kuroda garnered tremendous respect in all corners of the Dodger clubhouse and went on to pitch three more seasons for the Yankees before returning to Japan and finishing his career with the Hiroshima Carp.”
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