Eri Yoshida, Female Pitcher, To Play Pro Baseball In U.S.

[Are_grits_groceries]

TOKYO — A female knuckleball pitcher from Japan will be playing for a minor league team in the United States.

Eri Yoshida, an 18-year-old pitcher who played pro ball in Japan last year, signed with the Chico Outlaws of the Golden Baseball League. The team said she will report to spring training next month.

"I am grateful for this opportunity to pitch for the Chico Outlaws," Yoshida said. "This is a dream come true for me and I hope I can contribute to the team and help them win and also to continue to improve as a pro baseball player." Yoshida will be the first female to pitch for a pro team in the United States since Ila Borders retired more than 10 years ago, the team said.

"We are really looking forward to having Eri as a member of the Chico Outlaws this season," team president Mike Marshall said.

The 5-foot, 114-pound Yoshida became Japan's first female pro baseball player last year when she pitched for the Kobe Cruise 9 in the Kansai Independent League. She was 0-2 in 11 appearances with a 4.03 ERA, giving up seven runs in 10 2-3 innings.

The team is making accommodations to provide separate locker room facilities and hotel rooms while traveling.

Yoshida learned how to throw a knuckleball by watching video of Tim Wakefield and recently got a few tips from the Boston Red Sox pitcher at the team's spring training facility in Fort Myers, Fla.


http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/04/09/eri-yoshida-female-pitche_n_531452.html

It's a real longshot. However, if she can master the knuckleball, she might have a legitimate career whether she makes the majors or not. That is the one pitch I would bet on. It may take her a while.

Good luck to her!

[rurallib]

1. Bob Ueker on cattching the knuckleball:

"I wait til it stops rolling and pick it up."

[OneTenthofOnePercent]

2. Very interesting. I wonder what kind of fastball or pickoff skills she has.

Ultimately, those two factors will determine her sucess. Also, fielding and defense will play a role too.
Many people can throw a good knuckleball. The key is mixing in a decent fastballs and holding runners on.
Knuckleballers walk ALOT of batters... arguably, they need the best mechanics to hold runners on base.

Good news is that even a mid 70mph fastball complements a knuckleball well.
So her inability to "bring the cheese" won't matter much.

[gmoney]

3. 0-2 and 4.03 ERA? I'm surprised the Nats didn't start her opening day.

Or as someone once said about Roger Craig -- it takes a pretty good pitcher to lose 20 games a year in the major leagues.

[kctim]

4. 4.03 ERA?

Nothing but a publicity stunt.

[OneTenthofOnePercent]

5. Knuckleballers typically have a high ERA and Walk percentage.

The best thing a knuckleballer can have is a good defense behind them.
Batters WILL hit the balls... but they have little control.

A knuckleballer with a good defense is a great pitcher.
A knuckleballer with a poor defense is a terrible pitcher.