The winner of WBN’s International Player of the Week is Rakuten Eagles left-handed pitcher Takahisa Hayakawa in Nippon Professional Baseball in Japan. Hayakawa dominated in a 3-0 win against the Orix Buffaloes on August 13 at the Kyocera Dome Osaka.
Hayakawa, 26, is the Ace of the Rakuten Eagles and pitched a complete shutout with nine strikeouts in 121 pitches. He gave up just two hits and two walks to the Orix Buffaloes. It was his first complete game shutout of the season and his second time throwing a complete game in 2024.
His season stats are 126.1 innings, 127 strikeouts, and an ERA of 2.35. He also does an excellent job of limiting walks and home runs, with 1.9 walks per nine innings and 0.3 home runs per nine innings.
The Rakuten Eagles drafted him in the first round of the 2020 NPB draft, and he has pitched in the NPB for four seasons with them. His career numbers are 542.1 innings, 507 strikeouts, and an ERA of 3.05.
Hayakawa made four starts in the Australian Baseball League for Perth Heart in the 2023-2024 season. His numbers were excellent, with 46 strikeouts in 27 innings and an ERA of 1.00. He pitched a complete shutout with 13 strikeouts against the Adelaide Giants on December 22, 2023.
Hayakawa has competed with Team Japan in the Asia Professional Baseball Championship. This was highlighted by five perfect innings against Australia in a 10-0 win on November 18, 2023, in the Tokyo Dome. Team Japan won the Asia Professional Baseball Championship 4-3 finals against South Korea.
It’s unknown if Hayakawa would pursue an MLB career, but he would need five more years of NPB service time before he can ask to be posted.
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WBN NPB: https://worldbaseball.com/league/japan/
Photo Credit: Pitcher Takahisa Hayakawa #15 of Japan throws in the 3rd inning during the Asia Professional Baseball Championship game between Australia and Japan at Tokyo Dome on November 18, 2023 in Tokyo, Japan. (Photo by Gene Wang/Getty Images)
