Edwin Jackson
Jackson pitching for the Detroit Tigers in 2009
Washington Nationals – No. 33
Starting pitcher
Born: (1983-09-09) September 9, 1983 (age 28) Neu-Ulm, Bavaria, West Germany
Bats: Right	Throws: Right
MLB debut
September 9, 2003 for the Los Angeles Dodgers
Career statistics (through May 27, 2012)
Win-loss record	61–62
Earned run average	4.41
Strikeouts	851
Teams
Los Angeles Dodgers (2003–2005) Tampa Bay Devil Rays / Rays (2006–2008) Detroit Tigers (2009) Arizona Diamondbacks (2010) Chicago White Sox (2010–2011) St. Louis Cardinals (2011) Washington Nationals (2012–present)
Career highlights and awards
All-Star (2009) Pitched a no-hitter on June 25, 2010 against the Tampa Bay Rays. World Series champion (2011)

Edwin Jackson (born September 9, 1983, in Neu-Ulm, Bavaria, West Germany) is an American professional baseball pitcher for the Washington Nationals. During his Major League Baseball (MLB) career, Jackson has played for the Los Angeles Dodgers (2003–2005), Tampa Bay Devil Rays / Rays (2006–2008), Detroit Tigers (2009), Arizona Diamondbacks (2010), Chicago White Sox (2010–2011), and St. Louis Cardinals (2011). Jackson was an All-Star in 2009 and threw a no-hitter on June 25, 2010.

Early life[link]

Jackson's father, Edwin Jackson, Sr., a military cook, was stationed in Germany at the time of his birth. Jackson is one of 27 major league players who were born in Germany. He spent the first eight years of his life in Germany until spending the rest of his youth in Columbus, Georgia.^[1][2] Jackson attended Shaw High School in Columbus, Georgia from 1997–2001. While attending Shaw High School, Jackson played outfield for the Raider baseball team. His Senior year, Jackson helped lead the Raiders baseball team to the 2001 GHSA AAAA State Championship title over Columbus High School in Columbus, Georgia.

Baseball career[link]

Los Angeles Dodgers[link]

Jackson was drafted by the Dodgers in the sixth round of the 2001 MLB entry draft.^[3][4] He was originally drafted as an outfielder but the Dodgers converted him into a pitcher.^[4] There was a time when Jackson was regarded as one of the premiere pitching prospects in baseball (after posting sub-4.00 ERAs in AA and the majors at age 19 in 2003), but poor showings in AAA and MLB after that season ended his status as a "can't-miss" prospect.^{[citation needed]} He made his major league debut on September 9, 2003, his 20th birthday. In that game, he pitched 6 innings, giving up just one run and out-pitched Cy Young Award winner Randy Johnson to earn his first career major league victory.

Tampa Bay Rays[link]

Jackson pitching for the Tampa Bay Rays in 2008.

On January 14, 2006, Jackson and left-handed pitcher Chuck Tiffany were traded to Tampa Bay for pitchers Danys Baez and Lance Carter. In 2006, Jackson pitched in 23 games, mostly in middle relief, and posted a 5.45 ERA in 36⅓ innings.

In 2007, Jackson became a full-time starter for the Rays. He began the season poorly, going 1–9 with a 7.23 ERA in 17 games over 74⅔ innings. Jackson managed to rebound somewhat after the All-Star break, posting a 4–6 record and a 4.48 ERA over 15 games, all of them starts. His season highlight came in a start against the Texas Rangers on August 11, in which he recorded a complete game shutout, allowing only four hits and one walk while striking out eight. Jackson finished the season with a 5–15 record and an ERA of 5.76.

In 2008, Jackson assumed the number four spot in the Rays' starting rotation out of spring training. He finished the season with a 4.42 ERA. Jackson tied with James Shields to lead the Rays with 14 victories, which also tied the record for most wins by a Rays pitcher.^[5]

Detroit Tigers[link]

On December 10, 2008, Jackson was traded to the Detroit Tigers in exchange for outfielder Matt Joyce.^[6]

Jackson made his Tigers debut on April 7, 2009, against the Toronto Blue Jays. He allowed one run in 7⅓ innings, and received a no decision in Detroit's 5–4 loss.^[7] He earned his first victory with Detroit on April 18 against the Seattle Mariners, pitching 7⅔ scoreless innings.^[8]

Jackson was selected to represent Detroit in the 2009 All-Star Game along with teammates Curtis Granderson, Justin Verlander, and Brandon Inge. He pitched a scoreless fifth inning for the AL, retiring Yadier Molina, Ryan Zimmerman, and Hanley Ramírez on four pitches.^[9][10]

As of the end of July, opposing batters were hitting .216 against him, which was the lowest batting average in the league; he was followed by Matt Garza (.222), Jarrod Washburn (.224), and Scott Feldman (.228).^[11]

Jackson is one of a minority of MLB starting pitchers who relies almost exclusively on two pitches, a mid-90's fastball and an effective power slider.^[12]

Arizona Diamondbacks[link]

Jackson batting for the White Sox in 2011 spring training.

On December 9, 2009 Jackson was traded to the Arizona Diamondbacks as part of a three team trade that brought Austin Jackson, Phil Coke, Max Scherzer, and Daniel Schlereth to the Tigers. Jackson hit his second Major League home run off Jack Taschner against the Pittsburgh Pirates on April 11, 2010.^[13]

On June 25, 2010, Jackson no-hit his former team, the Tampa Bay Rays, 1–0, at Tropicana Field.^[14] It was only the second no-hitter in Diamondbacks' history, the other being Randy Johnson's perfect game on May 18, 2004. It was also the fourth of the 2010 season, and the third time the Tampa Bay Rays have been no-hit in less than 12 months. Jackson had a very rough start to the game, walking a total of eight batters as well as hitting B.J. Upton with a pitch. Overall, Jackson allowed nine batters on base and got out of a bases loaded jam in the 3rd inning. Mark Reynolds, Tony Abreu, and Adam LaRoche (whose second-inning home run accounted for the game's only run) helped Jackson as they provided impressive defense. He threw 149 pitches in the entire game.^[15] Jackson became the first German-born pitcher to throw a no-hitter, the first African American to do so since Dwight Gooden in 1996, and the first African American to do so for a National League team since Bob Gibson in 1971.^[16]

Chicago White Sox[link]

On July 30, 2010, the Diamondbacks traded Jackson to the Chicago White Sox for Daniel Hudson and David Holmberg.^[17]

When the Diamondbacks traded Jackson to the White Sox he became the first pitcher in the Majors to be traded away in the same season that he pitched a no-hitter since Cliff Chambers pitched a no-hitter for the Pittsburgh Pirates against the Boston Braves in 1951.

St. Louis Cardinals[link]

Jackson during the 2011 World Series parade

On July 27, 2011, Jackson was traded to the Toronto Blue Jays with Mark Teahen for Jason Frasor and Zach Stewart. The Blue Jays then traded Jackson to the St. Louis Cardinals later that day, along with Octavio Dotel, Marc Rzepczynski and Corey Patterson for Colby Rasmus, P. J. Walters, Trever Miller and Brian Tallet.^[18][19][20]

On July 29, 2011, Edwin Jackson pitched his first game as a Cardinal and threw 7 strong innings, leading St. Louis to a blowout win over their rivals the Chicago Cubs.

Washington Nationals[link]

On February 2, 2012 Jackson agreed to a 1 year deal with the Nationals.

Pitching style[link]

Jackson throws a number of pitches with some regularity. His four-seam fastball has excellent velocity, averaging about 95 mph. He also has a two-seamer with similar velocity. His primary weapon against right-handed hitters is a hard slider in the upper 80s. Against left-handed hitters, he often uses a changeup (85-89) and occasionally a curveball (78-81).^[21]

See also[link]

	Biography portal
	Baseball portal

• List of Major League Baseball no-hitters

References[link]

External links[link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Edwin Jackson

• Career statistics and player information from MLB, or ESPN, or Baseball-Reference, or Fangraphs, or The Baseball Cube, or Baseball-Reference (Minors)

F. P. Santangelo
Santangelo in 2011.
Outfielder
Born: (1967-10-24) October 24, 1967 (age 44) Livonia, Michigan
Batted: Switch	Threw: Right
MLB debut
August 2, 1995 for the Montreal Expos
Last MLB appearance
October 7, 2001 for the Oakland Athletics
Career statistics
Batting average	.245
Home runs	21
Runs batted in	162
Teams
Montreal Expos (1995–1998) San Francisco Giants (1999) Los Angeles Dodgers (2000) Oakland Athletics (2001)

Frank-Paul Santangelo (born October 24, 1967 in Livonia, Michigan), is a former American professional baseball player from the University of Miami, Sacramento City College and Oak Ridge High School (El Dorado Hills, California). Santangelo played in the Major leagues from 1995 to 2001. During his career, Santangelo played for the Montreal Expos, San Francisco Giants, Los Angeles Dodgers, and Oakland Athletics.

Career[link]

Santangelo was drafted in 1989 by the Montreal Expos organization and rose through the minor leagues, reaching the AAA with the Indianapolis Indians in 1992. He joined the AAA Ottawa Lynx the following year when the Expos changed AAA affiliation and wound up playing three seasons for Ottawa before making his major league debut in August 1995. Santangelo became the first player in Ottawa Lynx history to have his number, 24, retired.

Santangelo finished fourth in the National League in Rookie of the Year voting in 1996. He played six different positions while posting a .277 average with 7 HR and 56 RBI. He was hit by 11 pitches, starting a four year streak of being in the top 10 in the NL in that category. He played in three seasons afterwards, one with each of the Giants, Dodgers and Athletics, joining each team through free agency.

In his MLB career, Santangelo played in 665 games with 415 hits, 21 home runs, and 162 RBIs. His career batting average was .245.

During his career, left field and center field were Santangelo's most frequent positions, though he also played at least one game each at second base, third base, shortstop, right field, and designated hitter. Santangelo, a switch hitter, was once hit by pitches from both sides of the plate in the same game.

Broadcasting career[link]

Santangelo formerly was a sports radio talk show host for the "The Rise Guys" show on KHTK-1140 AM in Sacramento. On November 21, 2008, he finished his show and was immediately fired, after a period of low ratings.^[1]

On March 1, 2010, Santangelo became the host of San Francisco's KNBR-680 AM SportsPhone680 in the 7-10 p.m time slot. He also worked as a reporter and fill-in game announcer for Giants broadcasts on CSN Bay Area and the Giants Radio Network.

On January 6, 2011, Santangelo was named the color analyst for the Washington Nationals' telecasts on MASN, returning to the organization with whom he spent over half his playing career (the Montreal Expos relocated to Washington, D.C. in 2005). He was paired with play-by-play announcer Bob Carpenter. After Santangelo's first season as a broadcaster with the Nationals, Washington Post Sports Columnist Tracee Hamilton noted that the Carpenter-Santangelo team improved over 2011,^[2] and Post Sports Blogger Dan Steinberg wrote about Santangelo's performance and how he sought to be educational, not outrageous, in the broadcast booth.^[3]

Mitchell Report[link]

Following the release of the Mitchell Report in which he was named by Kirk Radomski as having used Deca-Durabolin, HGH, and testosterone, Santangelo confirmed he used HGH on two occasions in 1997 and 2000 to rehab from a quadriceps and knee injury but denied the other allegations, including telling teammate Adam Piatt that Radomski "will get you what you need." ^[4]

Personal life[link]

He is married to Playboy Playmate Michelle McLaughlin.^[5]

References[link]

External links[link]

• Career statistics and player information from Baseball-Reference, or Fangraphs, or The Baseball Cube, or Baseball-Reference (Minors)
• Baseball Almanac - F.P. Santangelo Stats

This article may require cleanup to meet Wikipedia's quality standards. No cleanup reason has been specified. Please help improve this article if you can; the talk page may contain suggestions. (June 2010)

Yu Darvish
Darvish in 2012 spring training.
Texas Rangers — No. 11
Starting pitcher
Born: (1986-08-16) August 16, 1986 (age 25) Habikino, Osaka, Japan
Bats: Right	Throws: Right
Professional debut
NPB: June 15, 2005 for the Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters
MLB: April 9, 2012 for the Texas Rangers
NPB statistics
Win–loss record	93–38
Earned run average	1.99
Strikeouts	1,259
MLB statistics (through May 27, 2012)
Win-loss record	7-2
Earned run average	3.25
Strikeouts	66
Teams
Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters (2005–2011) (NPB) Texas Rangers (2012–present) (MLB)
Career highlights and awards
2× Pacific League MVP (2007, 2009) 2007 Eiji Sawamura Award 3× Pacific League strikeout title (2007, 2010, 2011) 2× Pacific League ERA title (2009, 2010) 2× Pacific League Best Nine Award (2007, 2009) 2× Pacific League Mitsui Golden Glove Award (2007, 2008) 2006 Asia Series MVP 5× NPB All-Star Game (2007–2011) 2007 Pacific League Climax Series MVP
Last update: 8 December 2011

Medal record
Competitor for  Japan
Men’s Baseball
World Baseball Classic
Gold	2009 Los Angeles	Team
Asian Baseball Championship
Gold	2007 Taichung	Team

Yu Darvish (also spelled Yū Darvish) (Japanese: ダルビッシュ 有;^[1] born August 16, 1986, in Habikino, Osaka) is a Japanese starting pitcher for the Texas Rangers.

Darvish pitched in the 2008 Beijing Olympics as well as the 2009 World Baseball Classic as a member of the Japanese national team.^[2] He was considered by many to be the best pitcher in Japanese professional baseball prior to his arrival in Major League Baseball in 2012.^[3]

Early life[link]

Darvish was born in Habikino, Osaka, to an Iranian father, Farsad Darvishsefat, and a Japanese mother, Ikuyo.^[4] His parents met at Eckerd College, a liberal arts school in St. Petersburg, Florida, where his father played for the college soccer team.^[5][6] His grandfather was a travel agent in Iran, and sent Farsad to the United States in 1977 to attend high school in Berkshire County, Massachusetts, where he also raced competitively in motocross.

Darvish began playing baseball in second grade and led his team to the quarter-finals of the national tournament as well as a third-place finish in the international tournament as a member of the Habikino Boys. He was scouted by over 50 high schools while in junior high, but opted to attend Tohoku High School, a noted baseball powerhouse that produced players such as former Seattle Mariners and Yokohama BayStars closer Kazuhiro Sasaki and current Arizona Diamondbacks reliever Takashi Saito, in northern Sendai.

High school career[link]

Darvish became Tohoku High's ace pitcher by the fall of his first year (the equivalent of tenth grade in the United States) and led his team to four straight appearances in national tournaments held at Koshien Stadium in his junior and senior years, twice in the National High School Baseball Invitational Tournament held in the spring and twice in the National High School Baseball Championship in the summer.

Darvish led his team to the finals of the 85th National High School Baseball Championship in the summer of 2003, but gave up four runs to Joso Gakuin High School (whose No. 3 hitter, second baseman Katsuhiko Saka, currently plays for the Hanshin Tigers), the Ibaraki champions, in a complete game loss.

Darvish attracted national attention when he pitched a no-hitter against Kumamoto Technical High School in the first round of the 76th National High School Baseball Invitational Tournament as a senior on March 26 2004.^[7] Though the team lost in the quarter-finals despite stellar outings by Darvish and sidearmer Kenji Makabe (currently with Honda Motor Company's industrial league team), many saw Darvish as the best high school pitcher in the country by that time. He pitched 12 games and put up a 7-3 record with 87 strikeouts in 92 innings pitched and a 1.47 ERA in his four national tournament appearances, and posted a 1.10 ERA for his high school career, striking out 375 in 332⅓ innings (67 appearances).

2004 draft[link]

Darvish was scouted extensively by Major League teams, such as the then Anaheim Angels and Atlanta Braves, even while in junior high. As he entered his senior year of high school, the Angels, Los Angeles Dodgers and New York Mets had all expressed interest in signing him,^[8] but Darvish's intent remained to play for a Japanese professional team instead.

Darvish was considered one of the best high school pitchers in the 2004 NPB amateur draft along with Yokohama Senior High School right-hander Hideaki Wakui (later picked by the Seibu Lions) and Akita Municipal Akita Commercial High School right-hander Tsuyoshi Sato (Hiroshima Toyo Carp). While the Fighters, Carp, Chunichi Dragons, Fukuoka Daiei Hawks and Orix BlueWave all considered selecting Darvish with their first-round pick in the final months, the Fighters were one of the few teams that chose not to forgo the first round in exchange for signing a college or industrial league player prior to the draft. This enabled them to land Darvish with their first-round pick in the November 17 draft,^[9] signing him to a base salary of 15 million yen, a signing bonus of 100 million yen and additional performance-based incentives (the equivalent of what a first-round college or industrial league player would normally receive) on December 17.

Professional career[link]

2005[link]

Darvish received further publicity when he was caught smoking in a pachinko parlor on an off-day during his first Spring Training in 2005, despite not being old enough to legally smoke nor to gamble at the time. The incident prompted his high school to suspend him, and the Fighters to place him under probation for an indefinite period of time and order him to participate in community service.^[10]

Despite his suspension, Darvish made his professional debut later that season, taking the mound in an interleague game against the Carp on June 15. Though he gave up back-to-back solo home runs in the ninth, he pitched 8+ innings on those two runs alone and earned the win,^[11] becoming the 12th pitcher in NPB history to earn a win in one's professional debut as a rookie straight out of high school. He recorded his first complete game win on August 6 against the Lions and his first complete game shutout on September 18, holding the Tohoku Rakuten Golden Eagles to just two hits and becoming only the 14th pitcher in NPB history to throw a complete game shutout as a rookie out of high school. He finished the season with a 5-5 record in 14 starts, throwing 94⅓ innings with an ERA of 3.53.

2006[link]

Darvish had a breakout year in 2006, compiling a 12-5 record with 115 strikeouts and a 2.89 ERA.^[12][13] In particular, he went 10-0 after May 30, playing a leading role in the Fighters' first Pacific League title since 1981 (his win streak lasted until April 14 of the following season, when it reached 12-0) and contributing to their first championship since 1961 in the Japan Series over the Dragons. Darvish was chosen to take the hill for the first game of each of the Pacific League playoffs, Japan Series, and the 2006 Asia Series (played between the champions of Japan, China, Taiwan, and South Korea at the end of the season). Darvish, then 20 years old, became the first pitcher to start a Japan Series game since 1987 while under the age of 21, and only the fifth pitcher in NPB history to win a Japan Series game at that age with his win in Game 5 of the series. He also won the Asia Series Most Valuable Player award.

2007[link]

Darvish pitching for the Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters in 2007.

Darvish was named the Fighters' starter for their 2007 season opener, becoming only the fourth pitcher in franchise history (including the Fighters' years as the Senators and Flyers) to start a season opener within three years of graduating high school (the other three pitchers all started season openers as rookies). He struck out 14 over nine innings in a no-decision in his second start against the Lions on March 30 (the game ended a 2-2 tie in extra innings) and 14 again in a complete game win in his next start against the Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks on April 7, becoming only the second pitcher in Japanese professional baseball history to strike out 14 or more batters in two consecutive starts.

Darvish went on to post a 15-5 record with a 1.82 ERA (falling just 0.003 points short of the league lead, which went to Chiba Lotte Marines left-hander Yoshihisa Naruse) for the year, limiting hitters to a .174 batting average against and leading the league with 210 strikeouts.^[14] He led the Fighters to their second consecutive league title, winning both of his starts in the second round of the Climax Series (playoffs) against the Marines.^[15][16]

Darvish took the mound in Game 1 of the Japan Series that followed on October 27 against the Dragons for the second straight year, pitching a 13-strikeout, complete game win in an intense pitchers' duel with then-Dragons ace Kenshin Kawakami (currently with the Atlanta Braves) and becoming only the third pitcher in Japan Series history to strike out 13 or more batters in a single game.^[17] With the Fighters down 3-1 and facing elimination, Darvish started Game 5 on November 1 and held the Dragons to one run over seven innings while striking out 11. However, the Fighters had no answer for opposing right-hander Daisuke Yamai and closer Hitoki Iwase, failing to get a single man on base and allowing the first perfect game in Japan Series history. (However, the game was not an official perfect game according to NPB regulations, which state that a perfect game must be thrown by a single pitcher.) The Dragons won the game 1-0, charging Darvish with the loss and becoming Japan Series champions.^[18] The 24 strikeouts that Darvish totaled in his two starts were the second-highest by any single pitcher in series history (and the highest in a series that went only five games).

Darvish was presented with both his first career Eiji Sawamura Award^[19] (being the first to meet or exceed guidelines for the award in all seven categories in 14 years) and his first Most Valuable Player award following the season. He also won the Golden Glove and Best Nine awards that year.

Darvish made his national team debut in the 2007 Asian Baseball Championship (which also functioned as the Asian qualifying tournament for the 2008 Beijing Olympics) against Chinese Taipei on December 3, 2007. Because Japanese law requires that a person holding dual citizenship choose a single nationality before their twenty-second birthday, Darvish had chosen to retain his Japanese citizenship so that he could play for the national team in the Olympics.^[20]

On December 22, Darvish re-signed with the Nippon Ham Fighters for 200 million yen plus payment at piece rates, up 128 million yen from 2006. At 21 years old, Darvish became the youngest player in Japanese baseball history to reach the 200 million yen mark.

2008[link]

In 2008, Darvish was named the Fighters' starter in the season opener for the second consecutive year, pitching a complete game shutout in that very game (the Fighters won 1-0). Even as his team struggled in the opening months of the season, Darvish continued to rack up wins at a pace that exceeded his own in the previous season. As the year went on, he and Eagles ace Hisashi Iwakuma emerged as the league leaders in both wins and ERA. On April 10, in their only match-up of the season, neither gave up a single hit through the first five innings. Iwakuma went the distance, throwing just 100 pitches and giving up just one run on three hits; yet Darvish topped this, throwing another complete game shutout on three hits and just 95 pitches in one of the best pitchers' duels of the season.^[21]

While he did not pitch the way he had hoped in the Olympics, Darvish promptly put up a perfect 5-0 record with a 1.29 ERA and two complete games in the five starts upon returning to the Fighters, leading them to a playoff berth in a heated race against the Marines. While the Fighters failed to make the Japan Series, Darvish took the mound in two playoff games, giving up one run in a complete game win in one and pitching a complete game shutout in another. Although he lost out to Iwakuma (who put up an astonishing 21-4 record) in wins, he finished second in all three Triple Crown categories, finishing the season with a 16-4 record, 1.88 ERA^[22] and 208 strikeouts. (It was his second straight year putting up an ERA under 2.00, throwing more than 200 innings, and striking out over 200 hitters despite missing time due to the Olympics.) Regardless, the Sawamura Award was presented to Iwakuma, and Darvish became just the second pitcher to clear the guidelines in all seven categories to not win the award (Suguru Egawa was the first in 1982).

Darvish took the mound in Game 1 of the first round of the Climax Series against the Orix Buffaloes on October 11, allowing nine hits but holding the team to one run while striking out 14 in a 4-1 complete game win.^[23] He started Game 2 of the second round against the Saitama Seibu Lions on October 18 and pitched a complete game shutout in a 5-0 win,^[24] but the Fighters lost the series 4-2 and fell short of their third straight appearance in the Japan Series.

On December 1, Darvish re-signed with the Nippon Ham Fighters for 270 million yen plus payment at piece rates, up 70 million yen from 2007.

2009[link]

Darvish started the Fighters' season opener for the third straight year in 2009, taking the mound in the game against the Eagles on April 3 in much-hyped match-up with the reigning Sawamura Award winner and World Baseball Classic teammate Hisashi Iwakuma. Darvish gave up three runs in the first inning but insisted on going the distance, giving up eight hits but allowing no runs from the second inning onward in a 121-pitch, complete game loss (Iwakuma held the Fighters to one run over six innings and was credited with the win).^[25] He had a stellar outing on April 24, striking out six straight and 11 overall en route to a four-hit, complete game shutout (his first of the season) over the Buffaloes,^[26] following it up by holding the Lions to one run and striking out 11 over nine innings in a no-decision in a match-up with fellow 22-year-old ace Hideaki Wakui on May 1 (the Fighters lost 2-1 in extra innings).

On August 22, Darvish was taken off the active roster for the first time in his career due to injury. The Fighters classified it as "shoulder fatigue," and the deactivation came after a career-worst start against the Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks, in which he went 8 innings, but gave up 6 earned runs on 10 hits in a losing effort. He was reactivated on September 13 after recovering at farm team, but in his second start back a week later against the Orix Buffaloes, Darvish gave up a career-high 7 walks in 5 innings, even though he only gave up 2 runs. Three days later he was deactivated again due to a combination of discomfort in his shoulder and a sore back.

Darvish was activated again just in time for the 2009 Japan Series against the Central League champion Yomiuri Giants, and he pitched Game 2 on November 1. He went 6 innings, giving up 2 runs on 7 hits, and also striking out 7 Giants. He became the winning pitcher, and the team won 4-2. The Yomiuri Giants would go on and win the championship series 4 games to 1. After the Japan Series, It was revealed that Yu had stress fracture of the right hand forefinger. Darvish said he first experienced pain after practice on Oct. 28 but kept it to himself. Also, he was unable to fully use the lower part of his body due to hip pains.

Darvish was presented his second Most Valuable Player and Best Nine awards at the end of the season. He became only the third player to have won 2 MVP awards in their first 5 years in the NPB, joining Kazuhisa Inao and Ichiro Suzuki. However, he lost out on his second Sawamura Award to Saitama Seibu Lions ace Hideaki Wakui.

On December 9, Darvish re-signed with the Nippon Ham Fighters for 330 million yen, up 60 million yen from 2009. At 23, Darvish became the youngest player in Japanese baseball history to reach the 300 million yen mark, along with being the highest-paid pitcher in the Pacific League presently.^[27]

2010[link]

Darvish's 2010 season was another strong individual performance, but he struggled to win as many games due to the Fighters troubles. The Fighters finished 74-67,^[28] but in fourth place. His opening day loss was reflective of his 2010 season; he pitched well but the team struggled. He began the 2010 season losing to the Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks on March 20. Darvish allowed two early unearned runs on his way to a complete game loss (5 runs allowed, 3 earned runs) striking out 13.^[29] The Fighters began the season with a 5-14-1 stretch that was put them with their worst winning percentage in five years.^[30] They struggled in all phases of play, but Darvish continued to pitch well. Even at this low point, he was leading the league in strikeouts even as the rest of the rotation was 3-9.^[30] Darvish struck out at least 10 hitters in each of his first five starts.^[31]

Darvish's 2010 season also was noticeable because speculation increased about his potential move (or posting) to Major League Baseball. Darvish was interviewed by The Associated Press where he announced his plans to review his options at the end of the season. He noted, "Right now, I'm just focused on helping my team win this season ... Once the season is over, I'll consider my future."^[32] The Associated Press noted that both his exposure to international play during the 2009 World Baseball Classic and recurring injuries both led him to consider leaving Japan. In addition to back problems he also missed a start in June with a sore right knee.^[32]

Despite the injuries and potential distractions, Darvish pitched well down the stretch. His last three starts were all complete games and he struck out 35 hitters in those 27 innings.^[31] Darvish finished the season with only a 12-8 record, but with a 1.78 ERA.^[33] He lead the league with 10 complete games, 222 strikeouts, a 1.01 WHIP. This was Darvish's fourth consecutive sub 2.00 ERA.

On October 18, 2010 Darvish posted on his blog that he would be returning to the Fighters for the 2011 season.^[34]

2011[link]

On January 6, 2011 Darvish agreed to a contract for the 2011 season that would make him the highest paid player in Japan.^[35] His salary was 500 million Japanese Yen (which on January 6 converted to $6,065,490 US dollars).^[36]

The 2011 Nippon Professional Baseball season was delayed by the Tohoku earthquake. Controversy emerged over when baseball should resume. Commissioner Ryozo Kato was criticized for comparing the resumption to the return of Major League Baseball ten days after the 9/11 terrorist attacks. Darvish was among the players who felt it was not appropriate to quickly return to baseball, ""I am a baseball player and a human being as well. I cannot think about baseball alone as I normally do."^[37] Darvish took part in efforts to raise funds for the relief efforts and personally donated 50,000,000 Yen (about $620,000 USD) to the Japanese Red Cross.^[38]

Eventually the teams agreed to play the full 144 game schedule, but the start of the season would be pushed back several weeks^[39] The season began on April 12, 2011 and Darvish started against the Saitama Seibu Lions. He struggled, allowing seven runs in seven innings and taking the loss.^[40]

This poor start would not reflect his overall performance. After that opening game he would not allow more than three runs in any of his starts. Darvish would win his next eight starts and thirteen of his next fourteen decisions.^[41] Darvish would finish with his strongest all-around season, winning 18 games and featuring a career-low 1.44 ERA. He also led the league with 28 starts, 232 innings, 276 strikeouts and a 0.82 WHIP. He also featured remarkable control, walking only 36 batters.^[42]

Despite his accomplishments, Darvish was not recognized with the best pitcher in Japan honor, the Sawamura Award. Three of the five-member committee voted to recognize Tohoku Rakuten Golden Eagles right-hander Masahiro Tanaka. Selection committee chief Masayuki Dobashi explained, "ERA is the best stat to evaluate pitchers ... Tanaka's ERA was a little better than that of Darvish. Tanaka also had more complete games than Darvish."^[43] Pitchers must qualify for the award by meeting seven criteria, 15 wins, a 2.50 ERA, 200 innings pitched, 10 complete games, 150 strikeouts, 25 appearances and a .600 winning percentage. Both Tanaka and Darvish met all of the criteria. Tanaka graciously noted, "I only had better numbers than him (Darvish) ... As a pitcher, I'm nowhere near his caliber."^[43]

The Nippon Ham Fighters were eliminated in the first round of the Pacific League playoffs, losing both games to the Saitama Seibu Lions. Darvish started game one of the series, going seven innings and allowing only one run on four hits, while striking out nine. After Darvish departed, Seibu scored one run in the 9th inning to send the game to extra innings and added three more to win the game in the 11th inning.^[44]

After being eliminated, speculation again increased about Darvish being posted to Major League Baseball. His pending divorce allegedly complicated this situation. Speculation centered on his wife's potential claims to a share of a new contract with an American team.^[45]

2012[link]

In press conference at Sapporo Dome on January 24, 2012, Darvish told more than 10,000 Fighters' fans why he decided to make a move to Major League Baseball.^[46]

Darvish was posted to Major League Baseball prior to the 2012 season,^[47] and is represented by agents Don Nomura and Arn Tellem. He added confirmation of the posting on his blog.^[48] MLB teams had until 14 December 2011 to submit a blind posting bid, and Hokkaido Nippon Ham Fighters had until 20 December to announce whether the bid was accepted or rejected. Announcement of acceptance of the highest bid, from the Texas Rangers, was made on 19 December EST. The bid was reported to be $51.7 million. The Rangers had 30 days to negotiate with Darvish, or he would return to Japan.^[49] On January 18, the Texas Rangers signed Darvish to a $60M dollar contract for six years with a player option to void the last year, fifteen minutes prior to a 4:00pm CST deadline. Rangers CEO Nolan Ryan commented that Darvish had shown more control than he did at Darvish's age.^[50]

Darvish's first start in the Majors came on April 9 against the Seattle Mariners. His first MLB Strikeout was to Dustin Ackley on a 2-2 80 mph curveball. The first MLB hit that he allowed was a single into left field by Ichiro Suzuki on a 2-2 96 mph fastball. He threw for 5 2/3 innings, giving up 8 hits, 5 runs, and 4 walks. However, he had 5 strikeouts. When Alexi Ogando came to relieve him in the 6th, Darvish got a standing ovation from the crowd.^[51]

Darvish's first start away from Rangers Ballpark in Arlington came on April 14 against the Minnesota Twins at Target Field. He pitched for 5 2/3 innings, allowing 9 hits, 4 walks, and 2 runs (one of which was unearned), while collecting 4 strikeouts. Despite the Rangers winning the game, it was a no decision for Darvish. Instead, teammate Robbie Ross picked up the win.^[52]

On April 24, in a game against the New York Yankees, Darvish pitched for 8 1/3 shutout innings, collecting 10 strikeouts, while allowing 7 hits and 2 walks. He gave up a hit to Nick Swisher with 1 out in the 9th. Joe Nathan, the Rangers' closer, relieved him and induced a ground-ball double play to get the save and secure the third win for Darvish. As Nathan came in, Darvish got a deafening ovation from the crowd. This game also marked the 7th time in MLB history that the two starting pitchers were both Japanese, with Hiroki Kuroda on the mound for the Yankees. The game was also televised in Japan.^[53]

On April 30, Darvish gave up his first MLB home run to Edwin Encarnación of the Toronto Blue Jays, in a game Texas won 4-1. Darvish improved to 4-0.^[54]

For his performances in April, Darvish was named the AL Rookie of the Month. Darvish went 4-0 with a 2.18 ERA and 33 strikeouts. His first loss came on May 6 against the Cleveland Indians.

International career[link]

2008 Beijing Olympics[link]

Named the ace of the Japanese national team by manager Senichi Hoshino in the 2008 Beijing Olympics,^[55] Darvish took the hill in Japan's first game of the preliminary round against Cuba on August 13, but was charged with the loss after giving up four runs in 4 innings.^[56] The subpar outing caused Hoshino to lose faith in him and scratch Darvish from the semi-finals that he had penciled him in for, sending Darvish to the mound only in situations that would have no bearing on Japan's fate in the tournament. Darvish started the last game of the preliminary round against the United States on August 20 and was brought in to mop up after the U.S. had taken a decisive lead in the bronze medal match, finishing the tournament 0-1 with a 5.14 ERA (albeit with 10 strikeouts in seven innings pitched).

2009 World Baseball Classic[link]

Darvish pitched in the 2009 World Baseball Classic as the de facto ace of the Japanese national team,^[57] starting the opening game against China on March 5. He pitched four innings, allowing one walk and no hits and striking out three as Japan beat China 4-0. However, pitching in a Major League stadium for the first time in his career, he struggled in his second outing of the tournament against South Korea on March 17, throwing five innings and giving up three runs (two earned) on four hits and a walk and ultimately being charged with the loss.^[58] His first career save would follow six days later, when he pitched the final inning of the semi-finals against the United States, yielding no runs and a single and striking out two as Japan won 9-4.^[59]

Darvish came on in relief in the bottom of the ninth inning of the championship game against South Korea with Japan leading 3-2. He struck out his first batter, walked the next two, struck out his next, and then gave up a tying two-out single before finishing the inning with another strikeout. However, Japan scored two runs in the top of the tenth inning to regain a 5-3 lead, and after giving up a leadoff walk in the bottom of the inning, Darvish retired the next three batters (striking out two of them) to clinch Japan's second consecutive tournament title.^[60] His WBC stats were 2-1 with a 2.08 ERA and 20 strikeouts in 13 innings.

Pitching style[link]

Darvish is a right-handed pitcher who throws from a three-quarter arm slot in a drop-and-drive motion^[61] with exceptionally large frame for Japanese baseball, listed at 6 ft 5 in and 215 lb. In NPB he threw a four-seam fastball whose usual speed is around 147 to 152 km/h (91 to 94 mph) and tops out at 156 km/h (97 mph) {Only 1 pitch measured 161 km/h (100 mph) in World Baseball Classic final in 2009}, as well as a hard slurve around 80 mph (130 km/h) with a vicious break.^[62][63] He complements these two with a wide repertoire of secondary pitches, including a two-seam fastball (sometimes described as a shuuto), cutter, curveball, and a splitter.

While Darvish uses both the set, or "stretch" position and the windup, he has been noted for pitching exclusively from the stretch at times, even when there is no one on base.^[64] While pitching from the windup is generally thought to add velocity to pitches, the set position allows pitchers more control over baserunners.^[65] In Darvish's case the set position often is used as a way of keeping his delivery in sync and consistent.^[64]

Prior to the 2006 season Darvish's "go to" pitch was a screwball, and he tends to rely more on his off-speed pitches than his fastball. After injuring his shoulder in a exhibition game start against the 2006 World Baseball Classic Japanese national team in February 2006, because of the strain the screwball had gradually been putting on his shoulder, he took the pitch out of his in-game repertoire and worked to develop his splitter until it became an equally effective pitch that would replace the screwball. He also has succeeded in increasing his fastball velocity from year to year.

Personal life[link]

	Biography portal
	Baseball portal
	Japan portal

On August 9, 2007, Darvish acknowledged reports of a relationship with the Japanese actress, Saeko, in a post-game interview. He also announced that they were planning to get married, and that Saeko was pregnant with their first child. The couple married in November 2007, in what Japanese tabloids reported was a shotgun wedding.^[66] They have two sons, but divorced in 2012.^[67]

Darvish established a humanitarian fund dedicated to the construction, installation, and maintenance of wells, well pumps, and rainwater storage facilities in developing countries called the "Yu Darvish Water Fund" in February 2007. He has announced plans to contribute to this fund by donating 100,000 yen each time he notches a regular season win. The fund is managed by the Japan Water Forum.

Darvish is the current spokesmodel for DyDo's D-1 COFFEE canned coffee line, succeeding former teammate Tsuyoshi Shinjo in this role.

References[link]

This article incorporates information from this version of the equivalent article on the Japanese Wikipedia.

External links[link]

Wikiquote has a collection of quotations related to: Yu Darvish

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Yu Darvish

• Career statistics and player information from MLB, or ESPN, or Baseball-Reference, or The Baseball Cube, or Baseball-Reference (Minors)
• Nippon Professional Baseball career statistics from Japanesebaseball.com
• Darvish Yu Official Site (Japanese)
• ダルビッシュ有 (Yu Darvish) on Twitter (Japanese)
• Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters (Official Website) (Japanese)
• Yu Darvish at JapaneseBallPlayers.com
• Yu Darvish at Baseball Reference

Gio González
Washington Nationals – No. 47
Pitcher
Born: (1985-09-19) September 19, 1985 (age 26) Hialeah, Florida
Bats: Right	Throws: Left
MLB debut
August 6, 2008 for the Oakland Athletics
Career statistics (through May 28, 2012)
Win-loss record	45-33
Earned run average	3.74
Strikeouts	590
Teams
Oakland Athletics (2008–2011) Washington Nationals (2012–present)
Career highlights and awards
All-Star (2011)

Gonzalez during his tenure with the Oakland Athletics in 2011.

Giovany A. "Gio" González (born September 19, 1985, in Hialeah, Florida) is an American professional baseball pitcher for the Washington Nationals of Major League Baseball. He is of Cuban descent.

Early life[link]

Gonzalez attended Hialeah High School in Hialeah, Florida, for the first 3 years of his high school career, where they won two state championships and nearly won a third. After his junior year, he transferred over to Monsignor Edward Pace High School in 2004.

Early MLB career[link]

He was drafted by the Chicago White Sox in the 1st round.

In 2005, he was traded to the Philadelphia Phillies along with Aaron Rowand and Daniel Haigwood for slugger Jim Thome. While with the Phillies, Baseball America rated Gonzalez the # 2 prospect in their farm system behind Cole Hamels in 2006.

In December 2006, Gio was traded back to the White Sox along with Gavin Floyd for Freddy Garcia. Gonzalez led the minor leagues with 185 strikeouts in 150 innings in 2007.

Oakland Athletics[link]

On January 3, 2008, the White Sox traded Gonzalez along with fellow prospects Ryan Sweeney and Fautino De Los Santos for outfielder Nick Swisher to the Oakland Athletics. He was ranked the #1 prospect in the White Sox system at the time of the trade.

Gonzalez was called up to the majors on August 5, 2008, and made his debut on August 6.

Following the 2009 spring training camp, he was returned to the Triple-A Sacramento River Cats.^[1]

Gonzalez started the 2010 season throwing 6+ innings against the Angels. He allowed 2 runs on 6 hits, striking out 6 and walking 1 in the 10-4 win.

Gonzalez was selected to the 2011 MLB All-Star Team. At the 2011 All-Star Game in Phoenix, AZ, Gonzalez was called out to the mound with two outs in the bottom of the eighth inning and struck out the only batter he would face, Jay Bruce. On the final day of the 2011 season, Gonzalez threw eleven strikeouts over eight shut-out innings against the Seattle Mariners to secure a career-high 16 wins for the season.

Washington Nationals[link]

On December 23, 2011, Gonzalez was traded with Robert Gilliam to the Washington Nationals for Brad Peacock, Tom Milone, Derek Norris and A. J. Cole.^[2] Gonzalez will be the #2 starter for the Nationals.

On January 15, 2012 Gonzalez signed a five-year extension worth $42 million through 2016 covering his arbitration-eligible years. The deal also includes club options for 2017 and 2018.^[3]

Gonzalez became the first pitcher since 1918 to have three consecutive appearances in which he finished a start with at least six shutout innings and no more than two hits allowed.^[4] Gonzalez set a Nationals record when he pitched 25 consecutive scoreless innings, that ended on April 29, 2012.

Scouting[link]

Gonzalez throws a fastball that ranges from 92-95 mph, a two-seam fastball, a changeup, and a good 10 to 4 curveball.

References[link]

External links[link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Gio Gonzalez

• Career statistics and player information from MLB, or ESPN, or Baseball-Reference, or Fangraphs, or The Baseball Cube, or Baseball-Reference (Minors)