Biographical

Portrait of Hiroki Kuroda

Hiroki Kuroda P

Player Cards | Team Audit | Depth Chart

Career Summary
Years G IP W L SV ERA WARP
18 212 1319 79 79 0 3.45 25.1
Birth Date2-10-1975
Height6' 1"
Weight205 lbs
Age49 years, 3 months, 1 days
BatsR
ThrowsR
WARP Summary

MLB Statistics

Historical (past-seasons) WARP is now based on DRA..
cFIP and DRA are not available on a by-team basis and display as zeroes(0). See TOT line for season totals of these stats.
Multiple stints are are currently shown —Click to hide.
YEAR Team Lg G GS IP W L SV H BB SO HR PPF H/9 BB/9 HR/9 K/9 GB% BABIP WHIP FIP ERA cFIP DRA DRA- WARP
2008 LAN MLB 31 31 183.3 9 10 0 181 42 116 13 93 8.9 2.1 0.6 5.7 0% .281 1.22 3.56 3.73 88 3.46 73.9 4.3
2009 LAN MLB 21 20 117.3 8 7 0 110 24 87 12 89 8.4 1.8 0.9 6.7 0% .271 1.14 3.53 3.76 86 3.10 66.5 3.2
2010 LAN MLB 31 31 196.3 11 13 0 180 48 159 15 88 8.3 2.2 0.7 7.3 0% .283 1.16 3.28 3.39 87 3.12 70.5 4.9
2011 LAN MLB 32 32 202.0 13 16 0 196 49 161 24 91 8.7 2.2 1.1 7.2 0% .287 1.21 3.74 3.07 96 3.65 84.9 3.4
2012 NYA MLB 33 33 219.7 16 11 0 205 51 167 25 102 8.4 2.1 1.0 6.8 0% .281 1.17 3.80 3.32 95 3.60 82.6 4.1
2013 NYA MLB 32 32 201.3 11 13 0 191 43 150 20 102 8.5 1.9 0.9 6.7 0% .282 1.16 3.59 3.31 97 4.26 102.1 1.7
2014 NYA MLB 32 32 199.0 11 9 0 191 35 146 20 98 8.6 1.6 0.9 6.6 0% .279 1.14 3.63 3.71 101 3.39 83.2 3.5
CareerMLB2122111319.0797901254292986129958.62.00.96.750%.2811.173.603.45943.5481.625.1

Statistics for All Levels

'opp' stats - Quality of opponents faced - have been moved and are available only as OPP_QUAL in the Statistics reports now.
Minor league stats are currently shown —Click to hide.
YEAR Team Lg LG G GS IP W L SV H BB SO HR PPF H/9 BB/9 HR/9 K/9 GB% BABIP WHIP FIP ERA cFIP DRA DRA-
1997 HRO npb JCL 23 19 135.0 6 9 0 147 63 64 17 9.8 4.2 1.1 4.3 0% -.903 1.56 1.10 0.00 0 0.00 0.0
1998 HRO npb JCL 18 6 45.0 1 4 0 53 24 25 5 10.6 4.8 1.0 5.0 0% -.889 1.71 1.08 0.00 0 0.00 0.0
1999 HRO npb JCL 21 16 87.7 5 8 0 106 39 55 20 10.9 4.0 2.1 5.6 0% -.754 1.65 1.96 0.00 0 0.00 0.0
2000 HRO npb JCL 29 21 144.0 9 6 0 147 61 116 21 9.2 3.8 1.3 7.3 0% -.636 1.44 0.67 0.00 0 0.00 0.0
2001 HRO npb JCL 27 27 190.0 12 8 0 175 45 146 19 8.3 2.1 0.9 6.9 0% -.743 1.16 -0.48 0.00 0 0.00 0.0
2002 HRO npb JCL 23 1 164.3 10 10 0 166 34 144 16 9.1 1.9 0.9 7.9 0% -.773 1.22 -0.41 0.00 0 0.00 0.0
2003 HRO npb JCL 28 0 205.7 13 9 0 197 45 137 18 8.6 2.0 0.8 6.0 0% -.882 1.18 3.54 3.11 0 0.00 0.0
2004 HRO npb JCL 21 0 147.0 7 9 0 187 29 138 17 11.4 1.8 1.0 8.4 0% -.914 1.47 3.35 4.65 0 0.00 0.0
2005 HRO npb JCL 28 27 203.7 15 11 0 173 42 161 17 7.6 1.9 0.8 7.1 0% -.709 1.06 3.32 3.14 0 0.00 0.0
2006 HRO npb JCL 26 25 189.3 13 6 1 169 21 144 12 8.0 1.0 0.6 6.8 0% .280 1.00 2.72 1.85 0 0.00 0.0
2007 HRO npb JCL 26 26 179.7 12 8 0 176 42 123 20 8.8 2.1 1.0 6.2 0% .285 1.21 3.89 3.56 0 0.00 0.0
2008 LAN MLB NL 31 31 183.3 9 10 0 181 42 116 13 93 8.9 2.1 0.6 5.7 0% .281 1.22 3.56 3.73 88 3.46 73.9
2009 LAN MLB NL 21 20 117.3 8 7 0 110 24 87 12 89 8.4 1.8 0.9 6.7 0% .271 1.14 3.53 3.76 86 3.10 66.5
2009 SBR A+ CLF 3 3 13.7 0 0 0 15 1 10 0 94 9.9 0.7 0.0 6.6 0% .326 1.17 2.74 3.28 0 0.00 0.0
2010 LAN MLB NL 31 31 196.3 11 13 0 180 48 159 15 88 8.3 2.2 0.7 7.3 0% .283 1.16 3.28 3.39 87 3.12 70.5
2011 LAN MLB NL 32 32 202.0 13 16 0 196 49 161 24 91 8.7 2.2 1.1 7.2 0% .287 1.21 3.74 3.07 96 3.65 84.9
2012 NYA MLB AL 33 33 219.7 16 11 0 205 51 167 25 102 8.4 2.1 1.0 6.8 0% .281 1.17 3.80 3.32 95 3.60 82.6
2013 NYA MLB AL 32 32 201.3 11 13 0 191 43 150 20 102 8.5 1.9 0.9 6.7 0% .282 1.16 3.59 3.31 97 4.26 102.1
2014 NYA MLB AL 32 32 199.0 11 9 0 191 35 146 20 98 8.6 1.6 0.9 6.6 0% .279 1.14 3.63 3.71 101 3.39 83.2

Plate Discipline

YEAR Pits Zone% Swing% Contact% Z-Swing% O-Swing% Z-Contact% O-Contact% SwStr%
2008 2653 0.4964 0.4821 0.7959 0.6591 0.3076 0.8848 0.6083 0.2041
2009 1780 0.4646 0.4708 0.7947 0.6155 0.3452 0.8880 0.6505 0.2053
2010 2986 0.4799 0.4705 0.7516 0.6162 0.3361 0.8403 0.6015 0.2484
2011 3181 0.4778 0.4719 0.7662 0.6434 0.3149 0.8763 0.5602 0.2338
2012 3319 0.4568 0.4477 0.7665 0.6299 0.2945 0.8618 0.5951 0.2335
2013 3191 0.4249 0.4619 0.7707 0.6416 0.3292 0.8655 0.6341 0.2293
2014 3086 0.4420 0.4728 0.7752 0.6554 0.3281 0.8803 0.6088 0.2248
Career201960.46210.46750.77260.63830.32070.86960.60540.2274

Injury History  —  No longer being updated

Last Update: 12/31/2014 23:59 ET

Date On Date Off Transaction Days Games Side Body Part Injury Severity Surgery Date Reaggravation
2013-07-01 2013-07-07 DTD 6 6 Left Hip Soreness - -
2013-05-22 2013-05-22 DTD 0 0 Right Lower Leg Contusion Calf - -
2013-04-04 2013-04-08 DTD 4 4 Right Fingers Contusion Middle Finger - -
2012-06-08 2012-06-08 DTD 0 0 - Foot Contusion Batted Ball - -
2011-09-11 2011-09-11 DTD 0 0 - Neck Stiffness - -
2010-01-01 2010-01-01 Off 0 0 Neck Cartilage Injury Disc Injury -
2009-09-29 2009-10-18 DTD 19 5 Neck Cartilage Injury Bulging Disc -
2009-08-16 2009-09-06 15-DL 21 20 Head Concussion Batted Ball -
2009-04-07 2009-06-01 15-DL 55 51 Left Abdomen Strain Oblique -
2008-06-13 2008-07-02 15-DL 19 17 Right Shoulder Impingement -

Compensation

Year Team Salary
2014 NYA $16,000,000
2013 NYA $15,000,000
2012 NYA $10,000,000
2011 LAN $12,000,000
2010 LAN $15,433,333
2009 LAN $12,433,333
2008 LAN $5,000,000
YearsDescriptionSalary
7 yrPrevious$85,866,666
7 yrTotal$85,866,666

 

Service TimeAgentContract Status
7 y 0 dSteve Hilliard2015

Details
  • 1 year/$3.3M (2015). Signed with Hiroshima Toyo Carp 12/26/14.
  • 1 year/$16M (2014). Re-signed by NY Yankees as a free agent 12/13.
  • 1 year/$15M (2013). Re-signed by NY Yankees as a free agent 11/20/12.
  • 1 year/$10M (2012). Signed by NY Yankees as a free agent 1/13/12. Full no-trade clause. Performance bonuses based on innings. NY Yankees made Kuroda a qualifying offer for 2013 (1 year/$13.3M) 11/2/12.
  • 1 year/$12M (2011). Re-signed as a free agent by LA Dodgers 11/15/10. $4M signing bonus ($1.5M paid January 2012, $2.5M in January 2013). $8M salary for 2011. $0.5M in performance bonuses. Full no-trade clause. Kuroda may become a free agent after contract expires.
  • 3 years/$35.3M (2008-10). Signed by LA Dodgers as a free agent from Japan 12/15/07. $7.3M signing bonus. 08:$5M, 09:$10M, 10:$13M.
  • Previously played for Hiroshima of Japan's Central League.

2019 Preseason Forecast

Last Update: 1/27/2017 12:35 ET

PCT W L SV G GS IP H BB SO HR BABIP WHIP ERA DRA VORP WARP
Weighted Mean?????0.0?00?.0000.000.00?0.00.0

BP Annual Player Comments

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BP Articles

Click here to see articles tagged with Hiroki Kuroda

BP Chats

DateQuestionAnswer
2013-11-22 14:00:00 (link to chat)Hi Doug, How do you view this year's free agent class for pitchers? Who are the top talents and who are the top values?
(JasonPennini from Denver)		It is a very weak class, even by today's revamped standards of free agency. I think the top talents are Hiroki Kuroda, Josh Johnson (already signed), and A.J. Burnett. Burnett will almost definitely be a great value given his desire to pitch only for the Pirates, and I think that Arroyo could be a good sign for a team with a big ballpark. I also liked the Huddy signing for the Giants. I am not big on guys like Garza (dislike his delivery), Ubaldo (worst. delivery. ever.), and Ervin Santana - players whose name value / 2013 performances could push up their prices.

On the jukebox: Drist, "Pollute the Sound" (Doug Thorburn)
2013-04-15 13:00:00 (link to chat)I hate the Yankees, but man am I fascinated by their pitching staff. What Hiroki Kuroda is doing at his age isn't done by very many, is it? It seems to me like scares related to Sabathia are just media-microscope foolishness -- shouldn't the real narrative be that the surgery was relatively minor and the velo might be a case of him taking it easy, a'la Verlander, until he and the weather warm to the season? And whither Ivan Nova? I'm dying to see the arsenal addition, but they took the opportunity to skip him.
(smallflowers from (undisclosed black site))		Hey smallflowers, thanks for joining us. Yeah, Kuroda has had a great career since coming to North America. His age 33-38 seasons compare well with those of another former Yankees hurler, David Cone. As for the media stuff, that seems to happen sometimes in New York. BTW, while looking up Cone's numbers, I realized he's younger than Jamie Moyer. (Geoff Young)
2013-03-08 13:00:00 (link to chat)Can Hiroki Kuroda put together another good year at age 38?
(Brandon from NY)		Brandon, I don't see why not. Nobody is immune to the effects of aging, but Kuroda has shown no signs of decline. (Geoff Young)
2012-11-09 14:00:00 (link to chat)Looking through the FA class of RP and SP, who are this year's Fernando Rodney, Hiroki Kuroda and Wei-Yun Chen?
(jlarsen from chicago)		Projecting relievers is a fool's errand, given the sample sizes involved and the variation in reliever usage from year to year. But I'm a fool, so allow me to take a stab at it. A few names that stand out as potential bargains are Jason Grilli, Joel Peralta, and Octavio Dotel - Dotel might be the Julio Franco of this generations relief pitchers.

On the jukebox: Guns N' Roses, "My Michelle" (Doug Thorburn)
2012-03-15 12:00:00 (link to chat)What were the best and worst moves this off-season?
(SaberTJ from Cleveland, OH)		If extensions count I might go with Matt Moore. Locking up potential impact players to affordable long-term deals is vital for the Rays. If they don't count, then I can see the case being mode for a range of deals. For instance, the Hiroki Kuroda signing. Not only did New York get a quality pitcher, but they got him on a one-year deal. I know the money involved there is a more than you'd like to hear about the best deal of the offseason, but it's one that sticks out in my mind as a deal we'll look back at fondly.

As for the worst deal. I'm sure an obvious one is slipping my mind. I might go with the Dodgers signing of Mark Ellis because I don't understand why you'd give him the years and the money like they did. (R.J. Anderson)
2011-11-30 13:00:00 (link to chat)Keeping with a Japanese import theme, who are the 5 greatest Japanese MLBers of all time?
(Paul from DC)		Ichiro Suzuki is the clear #1. For #2, I'd go Hideo Nomo, with Hideki Matsui #3. The falloff after that is steep; I'll argue for Hiroki Kuroda as #4 and Takashi Saito #5 based upon peak performance and for not disappointing relative to expectations. (Jay Jaffe)
2011-08-04 13:00:00 (link to chat)Trayvon: just...wha....what the f**k, man? LA bred toolsy athlete OF coming up strong (albeit in a bandbox league) for one of the worst offensive MLB teams traded for a bucket of trash? What the HELL went on here?
(Silv from NY, NY)		I concussed myself with repeated facepalms as I learned about the Trayvon trade, and wrote about it for Monday's Hit and Run. Still just absolutely astounded and appalled.

Basically, I think the Dodgers had their doubts about Robinson's ability to maintain the power he's shown at hitter friendly Albuquerque, and to be an above-average center fielder due to his subpar throwing. Time will tell if they're right on those fronts, but a team in such dire financial straits and a gap in their outfield certainly should have given him a shot before giving up six years of club control, and if they were going to trade him, they needed to get a prospect of roughly equivalent value, not a bucket of leftover crap from their unconsummated trade discussion regarding Hiroki Kuroda.

Stupid Flanders wins again. Grrrrr. (Jay Jaffe)
2011-05-26 13:00:00 (link to chat)Who's going to be the best pitcher traded at the deadline, and to which team is he going to be traded?
(Stephen MR from NY)		River Avenue Blues represented. I liked your colleague Mike Axisa's idea to trade for Hiroki Kuroda. I couldn't give you a legit guess on who may be dealt and where at this point, but if Kuroda is moved, he would probably be near the top of my list. (R.J. Anderson)
2010-06-28 14:00:00 (link to chat)There has been some serious instances of pitcher abuse in the last week or so - Niese coming back after a 90 minute rain delay, Jackson throwing 149(!) pitches in his no hitter, and Broxton throwing 48 in a single inning in last night's meltdown. Isolated incidents or disturbing trend?
(Ken from NY)		That's a good question. There's also Hiroki Kuroda pitching after a 2 hour-plus rain delay recently. It might be a backlash against some of the rules of thumb we've been hearing about pitch counts, but every year it seems we get some of these outliers. I'm sure we'll all be watching closely to see if the pitchers involved are the worse for wear. (Jay Jaffe)


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PITCHf/x Pitcher Profile

A Collaboration between BrooksBaseball.net and Baseball Prospectus - Pitch classifications provided by Pitch Info LLC


Although he has not thrown an MLB pitch in 2024, Hiroki Kuroda threw 20,927 pitches that were tracked by the PITCHf/x system between 2008 and 2014, all of them occuring in Spring Training. In 2014, he relied primarily on his Sinker (92mph), Splitter (87mph) and Slider (84mph), also mixing in a Fourseam Fastball (92mph). He also rarely threw a Curve (77mph) and Cutter (90mph).