Eri Yoshida
Encyclopedia
is a high-school student at Kawasaki-kita Senior High School in Kawasaki
, who at the age of 16 became the first female drafted by a Japanese professional baseball team, Kobe 9 Cruise of Kansai Independent Baseball League
, to play alongside male teammates.
Yoshida is a sidearm
knuckleball
pitcher and stands tall. Her pitches have been clocked at 101 kilometres per hour (62.8 mph), while her knuckleball measures around 50 mph. She started throwing the knuckleball after seeing videos of American
Major League Baseball
knuckleballer Tim Wakefield
.
Yoshida made her professional debut at the Osaka Dome
in the opening game of the Kansai Independent Baseball League
on March 26, 2009 in front of 11,592 fans. She faced two batters, walking the first and striking-out the second in a 5-0 win over the Osaka Gold Villicanes.
She appeared in 11 games for the Kobe 9 Cruise and moved on after the season to focus on advancing up the pro ranks. She appeared in a one inning battle against the top hitters of the Hiroshima Carp on November 24, 2009. On December 15, 2009 she announced that she will be coming to the U.S. to play in the Arizona Winter League
to showcase her skills in hopes of getting signed by a major league organization. On February 12, 2010, Yoshida got her first win in Arizona Winter League play, throwing four shut-out innings in a 5-0 win for her team, the Yuma Scorpions
, versus Team Canada of the Arizona Winter League.
On February 28, 2010, she was offered a contract to play in the Golden Baseball League
, the major independent minor league in western North America, by the Chico Outlaws
. The Outlaws were managed by former major league all-star Garry Templeton
and the team president and general manager is former Los Angeles Dodgers
outfielder Mike Marshall. On March 2, 2010, she trained with Tim Wakefield at the Boston Red Sox
minor league training facility.
On April 8, 2010, she signed the contract with the Chico Outlaws and became the first female professional baseball player in the U.S. since the retirement of Ila Borders
10 years previously, and the first ever to play professionally in two countries. Her debut playing for the Chico Outlaws was on 29 May 2010. On Tuesday July 27, 2010, Yoshida made her first road start against the Victoria Seals
of the independent Golden League in Victoria, British Columbia, making her the first woman in baseball history to pitch professionally in three different countries. Yoshida's nickname
is "Knuckle Princess" (Japanese language
: ナックル姫).
Yoshida was honored with a spot on Venus Zine
's “25 under 25” list of remarkable women for 2009. On August 21, 2010, she was the feature story on FOX Sports' This Week In Baseball
, where she was even seen meeting her idol, Boston Red Sox
pitcher Tim Wakefield
.
Yoshida ended the 2010 season with an 0-4 record, but earned praise for her work ethic from teammates and her manager, Garry Templeton
. Templeton noted that any 18-year-old would struggle in the Golden Baseball League
.
Yoshida played in the Arizona Winter League
, an instructional league, in February of 2011 but chose to start the 2011 season with an amateur team from Japan that would be playing in southern California. She signed a contract with the Chico Outlaws
of the profssional North American Baseball League in July and pitched a no-decision as her team beat the Edmonton Capitals
. She was traded later that week to Maui, rejoining her manager from last year, Garry Templeton
, and started on August 9th as she pitched 5-innings of one-hit ball and picked up her first professional win in the U.S. as Maui defeated Edmonton 4-1.
Kawasaki, Kanagawa
is a city located in Kanagawa Prefecture, Japan, between Tokyo and Yokohama. It is the 9th most populated city in Japan and one of the main cities forming the Greater Tokyo Area and Keihin Industrial Area....
, who at the age of 16 became the first female drafted by a Japanese professional baseball team, Kobe 9 Cruise of Kansai Independent Baseball League
Kansai Independent Baseball League
The is a professional baseball league in Japan. Its debut season was in .The league's activities became public in 2008. Plans to form the league were announced at a press conference on March 6. On July 30, the names of the four teams were released....
, to play alongside male teammates.
Yoshida is a sidearm
Sidearm
In baseball, sidearm describes balls thrown along a low, approximately horizontal axis rather than a high, mostly vertical axis ....
knuckleball
Knuckleball
A knuckleball is a baseball pitch with an erratic, unpredictable motion. The pitch is thrown so as to minimize the spin of the ball in flight. This causes vortices over the stitched seams of the baseball during its trajectory, which in turn can cause the pitch to change direction—and even...
pitcher and stands tall. Her pitches have been clocked at 101 kilometres per hour (62.8 mph), while her knuckleball measures around 50 mph. She started throwing the knuckleball after seeing videos of American
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
Major League Baseball
Major League Baseball
Major League Baseball is the highest level of professional baseball in the United States and Canada, consisting of teams that play in the National League and the American League...
knuckleballer Tim Wakefield
Tim Wakefield
Timothy Stephen Wakefield is an American professional baseball pitcher. Wakefield began pitching with the Red Sox in 1995, making him the longest-serving player currently on the team. Wakefield is also the oldest current active player in the majors, and one of two active knuckleballers, the other...
.
Yoshida made her professional debut at the Osaka Dome
Osaka Dome
Osaka Dome is a baseball stadium located in Osaka, Japan. Beginning in 1997, the stadium was the home field of the Kintetsu Buffaloes. In 2005, the stadium became one of the homes of the Orix Buffaloes, a result of the merger between the Orix Blue Wave and Kintetsu Buffaloes. Prior to the Osaka...
in the opening game of the Kansai Independent Baseball League
Kansai Independent Baseball League
The is a professional baseball league in Japan. Its debut season was in .The league's activities became public in 2008. Plans to form the league were announced at a press conference on March 6. On July 30, the names of the four teams were released....
on March 26, 2009 in front of 11,592 fans. She faced two batters, walking the first and striking-out the second in a 5-0 win over the Osaka Gold Villicanes.
She appeared in 11 games for the Kobe 9 Cruise and moved on after the season to focus on advancing up the pro ranks. She appeared in a one inning battle against the top hitters of the Hiroshima Carp on November 24, 2009. On December 15, 2009 she announced that she will be coming to the U.S. to play in the Arizona Winter League
Arizona Winter League
The Arizona Winter League is the short-season instructional independent winter professional baseball league affiliated with the independent North American League...
to showcase her skills in hopes of getting signed by a major league organization. On February 12, 2010, Yoshida got her first win in Arizona Winter League play, throwing four shut-out innings in a 5-0 win for her team, the Yuma Scorpions
Yuma Scorpions
The Yuma Scorpions are a professional baseball team based in Yuma, Arizona, in the United States. The Scorpions are a member of the Western Division of the independent North American League. From the 2005 season to the present, the Scorpions have played their home games at Desert Sun Stadium at the...
, versus Team Canada of the Arizona Winter League.
On February 28, 2010, she was offered a contract to play in the Golden Baseball League
Golden Baseball League
The Golden Baseball League, based in San Ramon, California, was an independent baseball league. It later merged with the Northern League and the United Baseball League to form the North American League in the western United States, western Canada and Mexico....
, the major independent minor league in western North America, by the Chico Outlaws
Chico Outlaws
The Chico Outlaws are a professional baseball team based in Chico, California, in the United States. The Outlaws are a member of the Western Division of the independent North American League, which is not affiliated with either Major League Baseball or Minor League Baseball...
. The Outlaws were managed by former major league all-star Garry Templeton
Garry Templeton
Garry Lewis Templeton, nicknamed "Jumpsteady", is a former shortstop in Major League Baseball who played for the St. Louis Cardinals, San Diego Padres, and New York Mets from 1976 to 1991...
and the team president and general manager is former Los Angeles Dodgers
Los Angeles Dodgers
The Los Angeles Dodgers are a professional baseball team based in Los Angeles, California. The Dodgers are members of Major League Baseball's National League West Division. Established in 1883, the team originated in Brooklyn, New York, where it was known by a number of nicknames before becoming...
outfielder Mike Marshall. On March 2, 2010, she trained with Tim Wakefield at the Boston Red Sox
Boston Red Sox
The Boston Red Sox are a professional baseball team based in Boston, Massachusetts, and a member of Major League Baseball’s American League Eastern Division. Founded in as one of the American League's eight charter franchises, the Red Sox's home ballpark has been Fenway Park since . The "Red Sox"...
minor league training facility.
On April 8, 2010, she signed the contract with the Chico Outlaws and became the first female professional baseball player in the U.S. since the retirement of Ila Borders
Ila Borders
Ila Borders , is a former left-handed pitcher in college and independent professional baseball player.-Biography:Borders was the first woman pitcher to start a men's NCAA or NAIA college baseball game, playing for Southern California College in the 1994-96 seasons and Whittier College in the 1997...
10 years previously, and the first ever to play professionally in two countries. Her debut playing for the Chico Outlaws was on 29 May 2010. On Tuesday July 27, 2010, Yoshida made her first road start against the Victoria Seals
Victoria Seals
The Victoria Seals were a professional baseball team based in Victoria, British Columbia. The Seals were a member of the North Division of the independent Golden Baseball League, which is not affiliated with either Major League Baseball or Minor League Baseball. They joined the GBL on October 1,...
of the independent Golden League in Victoria, British Columbia, making her the first woman in baseball history to pitch professionally in three different countries. Yoshida's nickname
Nickname
A nickname is "a usually familiar or humorous but sometimes pointed or cruel name given to a person or place, as a supposedly appropriate replacement for or addition to the proper name.", or a name similar in origin and pronunciation from the original name....
is "Knuckle Princess" (Japanese language
Japanese language
is a language spoken by over 130 million people in Japan and in Japanese emigrant communities. It is a member of the Japonic language family, which has a number of proposed relationships with other languages, none of which has gained wide acceptance among historical linguists .Japanese is an...
: ナックル姫).
Yoshida was honored with a spot on Venus Zine
Venus Zine
Venus Zine is a quarterly internationally circulated magazine covering women in music, film, art, entertainment, literature, fashion, indie culture and DIY culture.Venuszine.com is the daily updated online companion to the magazine...
's “25 under 25” list of remarkable women for 2009. On August 21, 2010, she was the feature story on FOX Sports' This Week In Baseball
This Week in Baseball
This Week in Baseball is a weekly television program, originally designed to show highlights of the previous week's Major League Baseball action. TWIB debuted in .-Genesis of the series:...
, where she was even seen meeting her idol, Boston Red Sox
Boston Red Sox
The Boston Red Sox are a professional baseball team based in Boston, Massachusetts, and a member of Major League Baseball’s American League Eastern Division. Founded in as one of the American League's eight charter franchises, the Red Sox's home ballpark has been Fenway Park since . The "Red Sox"...
pitcher Tim Wakefield
Tim Wakefield
Timothy Stephen Wakefield is an American professional baseball pitcher. Wakefield began pitching with the Red Sox in 1995, making him the longest-serving player currently on the team. Wakefield is also the oldest current active player in the majors, and one of two active knuckleballers, the other...
.
Yoshida ended the 2010 season with an 0-4 record, but earned praise for her work ethic from teammates and her manager, Garry Templeton
Garry Templeton
Garry Lewis Templeton, nicknamed "Jumpsteady", is a former shortstop in Major League Baseball who played for the St. Louis Cardinals, San Diego Padres, and New York Mets from 1976 to 1991...
. Templeton noted that any 18-year-old would struggle in the Golden Baseball League
Golden Baseball League
The Golden Baseball League, based in San Ramon, California, was an independent baseball league. It later merged with the Northern League and the United Baseball League to form the North American League in the western United States, western Canada and Mexico....
.
Yoshida played in the Arizona Winter League
Arizona Winter League
The Arizona Winter League is the short-season instructional independent winter professional baseball league affiliated with the independent North American League...
, an instructional league, in February of 2011 but chose to start the 2011 season with an amateur team from Japan that would be playing in southern California. She signed a contract with the Chico Outlaws
Chico Outlaws
The Chico Outlaws are a professional baseball team based in Chico, California, in the United States. The Outlaws are a member of the Western Division of the independent North American League, which is not affiliated with either Major League Baseball or Minor League Baseball...
of the profssional North American Baseball League in July and pitched a no-decision as her team beat the Edmonton Capitals
Edmonton Capitals
The Edmonton Capitals are a professional baseball team based in Edmonton, Alberta. Known originally as the Edmonton Cracker-Cats, they began play in the Northern League in 2005 before switching to the Golden Baseball League in 2008. The team was sold to Daryl Katz in 2009, after which the team was...
. She was traded later that week to Maui, rejoining her manager from last year, Garry Templeton
Garry Templeton
Garry Lewis Templeton, nicknamed "Jumpsteady", is a former shortstop in Major League Baseball who played for the St. Louis Cardinals, San Diego Padres, and New York Mets from 1976 to 1991...
, and started on August 9th as she pitched 5-innings of one-hit ball and picked up her first professional win in the U.S. as Maui defeated Edmonton 4-1.