loading
  • 6/011:05PM
  • St. Louis STL
  • Texas TEX
  • 6/011:35PM
  • Milwaukee MIL
  • Philadelphia PHI
  • 6/011:35PM
  • Boston BOS
  • Atlanta ATL
  • 6/011:35PM
  • Chicago CWS
  • Baltimore BAL
  • 6/011:37PM
  • Oakland OAK
  • Toronto TOR
  • 6/011:40PM
  • Los Angeles LAA
  • Cleveland CLE
  • 6/011:40PM
  • Colorado COL
  • New York NYM
  • 6/011:40PM
  • San Francisco SF
  • Miami MIA
  • 6/012:10PM
  • Tampa Bay TB
  • Houston HOU
  • 6/012:10PM
  • Detroit DET
  • Kansas City KC
  • 6/012:20PM
  • Cincinnati CIN
  • Chicago CHC
  • 6/014:10PM
  • Washington WSH
  • Arizona AZ
  • 6/014:10PM
  • Minnesota MIN
  • Seattle SEA
  • 6/015:10PM
  • Pittsburgh PIT
  • San Diego SD
  • 6/017:10PM
  • New York NYY
  • Los Angeles LAD
World Baseball Network
  • MLB
  • WBC
  • International
    • Americas
      • Venezuela
      • El Salvador
      • Mexico
      • Puerto Rico
      • Dominican Republic
      • Cuba
      • Serie del Caribe
    • Asia
      • South Korea
      • Japan
    • Europe
      • Germany
      • Italy
    • Oceania
      • Australia
  • Minors
    • Minors
      • Appalachian League
      • Arizona Fall League
      • Double-A Eastern League
      • Double-A Southern League
      • Double-A Texas League
      • Florida Complex League
      • High-A Midwest League
      • High-A Northwest League
      • High-A South Atlantic League
      • Northwoods League
      • Single-A California League
      • Single-A Carolina League
      • Single-A Florida State League
      • Triple-A Pacific Coast League
  • Indi
    • Indi
      • American Association
      • Atlantic League
      • Can-Am League
      • Frontier League
      • Pioneer League
  • NCAA
  • // Ohtani
  • // Watch

Service-Disabled Veteran Owned Small Business


  About 2 minutes reading time.

Nori Aoki Set To Retire After 2024 NPB Season

 Alex Ortiz - World Baseball Network  |    Sep 13th, 2024 6:00pm EDT

With the NPB season about to wrap up, current Yakult Swallows and former MLB outfielder Nori Aoki will hang up the spikes at the end of the year. Aoki logged 21 professional seasons between Japan and the United States.

The 42-year-old made his NPB debut at 22 back in 2004 as a member of the Yakult Swallows. He would spend 2004-11 with the Swallows, with six seasons where he had an average above .300, hitting 84 home runs and 385 RBIs while stealing 163 bases. After the 2011 season, he would be posted for MLB teams. Aoki signed a two-year contract with the Milwaukee Brewers with an option for a third year.

Aoki had a stellar rookie season, hitting .288, crushing ten home runs, 50 RBIs, swiping 30 bases, and playing in 151 games. Aoki finished fifth in the N.L. Rookie of the Year voting. Ultimately, Aoki wrapped up his Brewers career in 2013 when he was traded to the Kansas City Royals for the 2014 season for reliever Will Smith.

He continued hitting strongly with the Royals, posting a .288 average, but only hit one home run along with 43 RBIs, stealing 17 bases. He would help the Royals to reach the 2014 World Series, where they would lose to the San Francisco Giants in seven games. Aoki only hit .195 in the postseason.

From 2015-17, Aoki played in the Giants, Mariners, Astros, Blue Jays and Mets organizations. In six MLB seasons, Aoki had a career .285 average, hit 33 home runs, 219 RBIs, and 774 hits in 758 games played in the MLB.

The Mets would release Aoki at the end of the 2017 season. Aoki would return to Japan to play with the Yakult Swallows on a three-year deal. In 2018, Aoki recorded his 4.000th at-bat in NPB. At the time, Aoki’s career batting average was .328, which then qualified as NPB’s lifetime batting champion. He was also selected to the 2018 NPB All-Star Game.

As for the 2024 season, Aoki played 61 games with the Swallows, only hitting .186 in 113 at-bats, driving in nine RBIs. Overall, in the NPB, Aoki played in 1,713 games and held a career .313 average, 145 home runs, 667 RBIs, and 177 stolen bases.

______

WBN NBP: https://worldbaseball.com/league/japan/

Photo Credit: Norichika Aoki #11 of the New York Mets stands in the dugout during the ninth of a game against the Philadelphia Phillies at Citizens Bank Park on September 30, 2017 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Rich Schultz/Getty Images)

author avatar
Alex Ortiz - World Baseball Network
See Full Bio

Category: World Baseball Network

Tags: Japan, Nippon Professional Baseball, Nori Aoki, NPB

  You May Also Like

NPB: Orix Buffaloes Trade for Pitcher Sho Iwasaki
  9 hours ago -   Japan, Nippon Professional Baseball, Orix Buffaloes, Sho Iwasaki
Shohei Ohtani First to Reach 20 HRs, Chases 4th MVP Award
  3 days ago -   Japan, Los Angeles Dodgers, MLB, Shohei Ohtani
MLB International Player of the Week: Seiya Suzuki, OF, Chicago Cubs
  5 days ago -   Chicago Cubs, Hiroshima Toyo Carp, Japan, Major League Baseball, Nippon Professional Baseball, Seiya Suzuki
Oscar Gonzalez Agrees to Deal with Rakuten Eagles
  2 weeks ago -   NPB, Oscar Gonzalez, Rakuten Eagles
Japanese Female Pitcher Ayami Sato Debuts In Canada’s Intercounty Baseball League
  3 weeks ago -   Ayami Sato, Intercounty Baseball League, Japan, Toronto Maple Leafs, women's baseball
NPB Trade: SoftBank Hawks send Infielder Richard Sunagawa to Yomiuri Giants for Yuto Akihiro Ryusei Ohe
  3 weeks ago -   Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks, Japan, Nippon Professional Baseball
International MLB Player of the Week – Tomoyuki Sugano, SP, Baltimore Orioles
  4 weeks ago -   Baltimore Orioles, Japan, Major League Baseball, Nippon Professional Baseball, Tomoyuki Sugano, Yomiuri Giants
Rising Stars in KBO, NPB and LMB in 2025
  4 weeks ago -   KBO, LMB, NPB, Players to Watch
Tweets by WorldBaseball_

Newsletter Signup

"*" indicates required fields

Name*
  • About Us
  • Advertise to Baseball Enthusiasts Across the Globe Now
  • Contact
  • Learn About the History of Baseball
  • How We Protect Your Privacy
Covered by one or more copyrights including:
Copyright © 2025 World Baseball Network LLC. All Rights Reserved.

Follow Us

Menu
  • MLB
  • WBC
  • International
  • Minors
  • Indi
  • NCAA
  • // Ohtani
  • // Watch
International
  • Americas
  • Asia
  • Europe
  • Oceania
Americas
  • Venezuela
  • El Salvador
  • Mexico
  • Puerto Rico
  • Dominican Republic
  • Cuba
  • Serie del Caribe
Asia
  • South Korea
  • Japan
Europe
  • Germany
  • Italy
Oceania
  • Australia
Minors
  • Minors
Minors
  • Appalachian League
  • Arizona Fall League
  • Double-A Eastern League
  • Double-A Southern League
  • Double-A Texas League
  • Florida Complex League
  • High-A Midwest League
  • High-A Northwest League
  • High-A South Atlantic League
  • Northwoods League
  • Single-A California League
  • Single-A Carolina League
  • Single-A Florida State League
  • Triple-A Pacific Coast League
Indi
  • Indi
Indi
  • American Association
  • Atlantic League
  • Can-Am League
  • Frontier League
  • Pioneer League

Notifications