Masahiro Tanaka
| Masahiro Tanaka 田中 将大 | |||||||||||||||||||||
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Tanaka with the Tohoku Rakuten Golden Eagles | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Yomiuri Giants – No. 11 | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Pitcher | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Born: November 1, 1988 Itami, Hyōgo, Japan | |||||||||||||||||||||
Bats: Right Throws: Right | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Professional debut | |||||||||||||||||||||
| NPB: March 29, 2007, for the Tohoku Rakuten Golden Eagles | |||||||||||||||||||||
| MLB: April 4, 2014, for the New York Yankees | |||||||||||||||||||||
| NPB statistics (through 2024 season) | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Win–loss record | 119–68 | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Earned run average | 2.67 | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Strikeouts | 1,572 | ||||||||||||||||||||
| MLB statistics (through 2020 season) | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Win–loss record | 78–46 | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Earned run average | 3.74 | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Strikeouts | 991 | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Stats at Baseball Reference | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Teams | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Career highlights and awards | |||||||||||||||||||||
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Medals
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| Masahiro Tanaka | |||||
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| Japanese name | |||||
| Kanji | 田中 将大 | ||||
| Hiragana | たなか まさひろ | ||||
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Masahiro Tanaka (田中 将大, Tanaka Masahiro, born November 1, 1988) is a Japanese professional baseball pitcher for the Yomiuri Giants of Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB). He has previously played in NPB for the Tohoku Rakuten Golden Eagles and in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the New York Yankees.
From 2007 through 2013, he played for the Eagles in NPB. Tanaka was posted by the Eagles after the 2013 season to be signed with the New York Yankees in Major League Baseball (MLB) and signed a seven-year, $155 million contract, the fifth-largest deal ever given to a pitcher at the time. He made his major league debut in 2014 and played for the Yankees through the 2020 season, before deciding to return to Japan. Tanaka has said that he decided to return to Japan partly due to anti-Asian racism in the United States during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Tanaka was the Eagles' first-round pick in the 2006 NPB amateur player draft. From 2012 to 2013, he won 26 consecutive decisions, which set a new NPB record. In MLB, Tanaka was the Yankees' Opening Day starter for four seasons and was twice named an All-Star.