Akinori Iwamura

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Akinori Iwamura

Tampa Bay Rays — No. 1
Second/Third baseman
Born: February 9, 1979 (1979-02-09) (age 45)
Ehime, Japan
Batted: Left Threw: Right 
Organizational debut
April 2, 2007 for the Tampa Bay Devil Rays
Last organizational appearance
October 3, 2009 for the Tampa Bay Rays
Teams

Akinori Iwamura (岩村 明憲) (born February 9, 1979, in Ehime, Japan) was a third baseman and second baseman for Tampa Bay. He was acquired by the Devil Rays from Nippon Professional Baseball's Tokyo Yakult Swallows on December 15, 2006 after the Rays won the rights to negotiate with him via the posting system.

Iwamura was the second player to be acquired by Tampa Bay via the posting system from NPB. The first was reliever Shinji Mori from the Seibu Lions.[1]

Pro Career

Earning the nickname of Gan-chan ("Top Gun") for his play in NPB's Central League, Iwamura had been drafted by the Tokyo Yakult Swallows out of high school in 1997. He helped his team to the Japan Series title in 2001[2] and also picked up several Gold Glove and All-Star honors along the way,[3] including the Central League's monthly MVP award for August, 2004, in which he hit 11 homers with 27 RBI and a .292 average.[4]

Aki had his first taste of Major League competition when he participated in a postseason series against a squad of MLB All-Stars in 2002.[5] He played in the next Japan series in 2004 (which included Tampa Bay's leftfielder, Carl Crawford[6], with whom Iwamura exchanged jerseys[7]) in November, 2004, and was named NPB's MVP for the series after batting .440.[8]

Iwamura came to general attention of American baseball fans during the 2006 World Baseball Classic. As the starting third baseman for Team Japan, he hit .389 in six games en route to Japan's first championship in that tournament.[9]

With Tampa Bay

In November 2006, Tampa Bay submitted a sealed bid, later revealed to be worth $4.55MM, to acquire the rights to negotiate with Iwamura. As the high bidder, the Devil Rays gained a 30-day window with which to negotiate with the player. The negotiations were hampered, according to Alan Nero (Iwamura's American agent), by differences in terms of overall dollars and the potential for Iwamura to become a free agent earlier than the standard 6 years.[10] The Devil Rays and Iwamura eventually settled on a contract worth a guaranteed 3 years and $7.45MM (2007-09)—including benefits such as a full-time translator (a position officially referred to as "Cultural Assimilation Liason" and filled by Masanobu Koyanagi in 2007[7] and Tateki Uchibori in 2008 & 2009; Uchibori would stay on with the Rays after Iwamura's departure in a scouting capacity), English lessons, and trips for his family between the United States and Japan—plus a team option for 2010 worth at least $4.25MM (and as much as $5.25MM with incentives) or a buyout of $250,000 to $750,000.[3]

Despite speculation that Iwamura would be moved to second base for his inaugural MLB season,[11] Aki went on to be the Devil Rays' primary third baseman in 2007, eventually starting 120 games at the position along with solid defense (he finished first in the AL for fielding percentage at third base that season with .975).[12] He suffered a few injuries during the course of the season, some worse than others. Less than a month in (and hitting to an OPS of .961 at the time) he strained an oblique muscle, injured as he hit an RBI double on April 23 against the Yankees.[13] Later, he was hit in the left eye (which caused bruising) by a ball bouncing up on him during the game on June 3 against Kansas City and kept him out of the lineup for 4 days.[14]

With the seemingly inevitable arrival of Tampa Bay's top prospect, Evan Longoria, to the Rays' third base position for the 2008 season, Iwamura was shifted to second base.[15] He played at second exclusively that season (152 games), and remained healthy throughout, becoming a linchpin of the Rays' surprising American League Championship team. He recorded the final putout in Game 7 of the American League Championship Series[16], sending the Rays to their first ever World Series appearance.

During spring training before the 2009 season, Iwamura participated in the second World Baseball Classic. He batted .467 during the tournament as Japan's starting second baseman, and helped his country to win their second title at the event, including going 1-3 with a run and an RBI in the final vs. Korea.[17]

Aki began the 2009 season with a long hot streak, hitting over .300 through his first 44 games. However, on May 24 he was injured during the 8th inning of an 11-inning loss to Florida when Marlins rookie Chris Coghlan slid into him attempting to break up a double play. Coghlan apologized to Iwamura in person after the game, but the worst was feared for the second baseman's left knee and his chances to return to the lineup that season.[18] Iwamura was initially diagnosed with a full tear of the anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) in his left knee and was expected to miss the rest of the season. Surprisingly, though, when undergoing surgery on June 22, Rays orthopedist Dr. Koco Eaton discovered the damage to be limited to a partial tear instead, which Eaton repaired (along with a torn meniscus), improving Aki's chances to return to play in 2009.[19]

Iwamura made a relatively quick recovery from knee surgery and began a rehab assignment with Durham on August 14[20], playing in 11 games for the Bulls before making his return to Tampa Bay's lineup on August 29. He finished the season with a solid overall line in 69 Major League games, but it was tempered by drop in effectiveness after his return and a concern that the injury would have a lasting impact.

Departure from Tampa Bay and afterward

The Rays held an option for Iwamura's 2010 season worth $4.85MM, but retaining the second baseman was made a difficult proposition following Ben Zobrist's strong play at the position in Aki's absence. The Pittsburgh Pirates were aggressive in pursuing Iwamura to fill the defensive hole left in their lineup by their trade of Freddy Sanchez to San Francisco ahead of the 2009 trade deadline. On November 3, 2009, the Rays and Pirates worked out a trade that sent Aki to Pittsburgh in exchange for reliever Jesse Chavez with the Pirates picking up the entire cost of Iwamura's option.[21] (Chavez, in turn, was traded a month later to Atlanta in exchange for closer Rafael Soriano.) The trade was generally considered to be a good move for Pittsburgh, with the expectation that Aki would bounce back to near his prior output, both defensively and offensively. For his part, Iwamura expressed gratitude toward the Rays for the opportunity to play and took out an ad in the St. Petersburg Times to thank the fans:

"I hope you'll remember me with good thoughts for my efforts on the field and even for my 'Rayhawk' haircut during our run to the World Series."[22]

Iwamura began the 2010 season as Pittsburgh's starting second baseman and their highest-paid player. However, Aki never seemed to regain his stride on the field or at the plate. By mid-June, he was hitting well below .200 and had committed 3 errors[12] with diminished range. He eventually lost his position with the Pirates to Neil Walker (who had been drafted as a catcher but was primarily playing third base in the Pirates' system to that point).[23] On June 16 he was designated for assignment and, having cleared waivers, was optioned to Triple-A Indianapolis of the International League on June 23.[24] Unfortunately, he didn't perform much better for the Indians[25] and was released when their season ended.

Aki received one last shot to play in the Major Leauges following his release. The Oakland Athletics, needing a glove to fill in at third base for the injured Kevin Kouzmanoff during the last couple weeks of the season, signed Iwamura.[26] He appeared in only 10 games and was released on October 4.

Despite a desire to stay in the U.S., Iwamura returned to Japan for the 2011 season when he inked a deal with the Rakuten Golden Eagles[27] alongside fellow NPB/MLB alumni, Kazuo Matsui (who had also spent a large part of the 2010 season in Triple-A, appearing in 82 games for Colorado Springs). Aki was cut from the Golden Eagles' active roster in May after 24 games with his manager, Senichi Hoshino, stating that Iwamura needed to lose weight.[28] He returned later in the season and finished with an average of only .183 in 77 games.[29]

As of May 23, 2012, Iwamura is still with Rakuten, although he's been limited by a strained hamstring and relegated to playing with the Golden Eagles' farm team.[30]

Personal

Iwamura is married to Misaki Iwamura; they have a son, Taiki (born July 10, 2007 in St. Petersburg, FL). Through at least 2009, they had a toy poodle named "Nuts". His father was a firefighter and his mother a hairdresser.[5]

References

  1. Gaddis, Carter (November 15, 2006). "Rays Bid On Rights To Japanese Star 3B". Tampa Tribune: p. Sports 2. 
  2. Picker, David (October 26, 2001). "Swallows claim fifth Japan Series". Japan Times (Tokyo, Japan). 
  3. 3.0 3.1 Topkin, Marc (December 16, 2006). "Newest Ray packs punch, glove". St. Petersburg Times: p. 1C. 
  4. "Iwamura, Iguchi win monthly MVP awards". Kyodo News International (Tokyo, Japan). September 7, 2004. 
  5. 5.0 5.1 Vaughn, Rick; Costello, Chris; Molina, Carmen et al., eds (2009). 2009 Tampa Bay Rays Media Guide. St. Petersburg, FL: Tampa Bay Rays Communications Department. pp. 131-5. 
  6. "Rays' Crawford bedevils Japan". Daily Yomiuri (Tokyo, Japan). November 7, 2004. 
  7. 7.0 7.1 Vaughn, Rick; Costello, Chris; Molina, Carmen et al., eds (2007). 2007 Tampa Bay Devil Rays Media Guide. St. Petersburg, FL: Tampa Bay Devil Rays Public Relations Office. pp. 103-5. 
  8. "MLB wraps up series in style". Daily Yomiuri (Tokyo, Japan). November 15, 2004. 
  9. Gaddis, Carter (December 16, 2006). "Newest Ray Likes Challenge". Tampa Tribune: p. 1. 
  10. Topkin, Marc (December 11, 2006). "Iwamura's agent is still playing hardball". St. Petersburg Times: p. 3C. 
  11. Topkin, Marc (February 8, 2007). "Rays seem ready to dump Devil". St. Petersburg Times: p. 1C. 
  12. 12.0 12.1 "Akinori Iwamura Statistics and History". Baseball-Reference.com. Sports Reference. http://www.baseball-reference.com/players/i/iwamuak01.shtml. Retrieved May 8, 2012. 
  13. Auman, Greg (April 25, 2007). "Side Strain to Sideline Iwamura 4-6 Weeks". St. Petersburg Times: p. 6C. 
  14. Encina, Eduardo (June 4, 2007). "Bruised Eye to Keep Iwamura Out for 4-5 days". St. Petersburg Times: p. 3C. 
  15. Topkin, Marc (November 8, 2007). "Shortstop Crop is Thinning Out". St. Petersburg Times: p. 10C. 
  16. "Retrosheet Boxscore: Tampa Bay Rays 3, Boston Red Sox 1". retrosheet.org. Retrosheet. http://www.retrosheet.org/boxesetc/2008/B10190TBA2008.htm. Retrieved May 8, 2012. 
  17. "World Baseball Classic Box Score: Japan 5, Korea 3". WorldBaseballClassic.com. MLB Advanced Media. March 23, 2009. http://web.worldbaseballclassic.com/stats/boxscore.jsp?gid=2009_03_23_jpnint_korint_1. Retrieved May 23, 2012. 
  18. Topkin, Marc (May 25, 2009). "Akinori Iwamura injured as Tampa Bay Rays lose to Marlins, ending three-game winning streak". tampabay.com. St. Petersburg Times. http://www.tampabay.com/sports/baseball/rays/article1003972.ece. 
  19. Topkin, Marc (June 22, 2009). "Tampa Bay Rays Akinori Iwamura could be back this season". tampabay.com. St. Petersburg Times. http://www.tampabay.com/blogs/rays/content/tampa-bay-rays-akinori-iwamura-could-be-back-season. 
  20. Sobsey, Adam (August 15, 2009). "Scranton/Wilkes-Barre Yankees pound Durham Bulls: The heavies". indyweek.com. Durham, NC: Independent Weekly. http://www.indyweek.com/triangleoffense/archives/2009/08/15/scrantonwilkes-barre-yankees-pound-durham-bulls-the-heavies. 
  21. Olney, Buster (November 3, 2009). "Pirates acquire Iwamura from Rays". ESPN.com. ESPN Internet Ventures. http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/news/story?id=4620529. 
  22. Topkin, Marc (December 13, 2009). "Aki says thanks to Rays and fans in ad". tampabay.com. St. Petersburg Times. http://www.tampabay.com/blogs/rays/content/aki-says-thanks-rays-and-fans-ad. 
  23. Bernacchio, Adam (June 18, 2010). "Pittsburgh Pirates DFA Akinori Iwamura". Bleacher Report. Bleacher Report, Inc.. http://bleacherreport.com/articles/408043-pittsburgh-pirates-dfa-akinori-iwamura. 
  24. "Pittsburgh Pirates Transactions, June 2010". mlb.com. MLB Advanced Media. http://www.mlb.com/team/transactions.jsp?c_id=pit#month=6&year=2010. Retrieved May 23, 2012. 
  25. "Akinori Iwamura Minor League Statistics & History". Baseball-Reference.com. Sports Reference. http://www.baseball-reference.com/minors/player.cgi?id=iwamur001aki. Retrieved May 23, 2012. 
  26. Slusser, Susan (September 12, 2012). "A’s to add Akinori Iwamura tomorrow". sfgate.com. San Francisco Chronicle. http://blog.sfgate.com/athletics/2010/09/12/as-to-add-akinori-iwamura-tomorrow/. Retrieved May 23, 2012. 
  27. Newman, Patrick (February 4, 2011). "Offseason Changes: Rakuten Golden Eagles". NPB Tracker. http://www.npbtracker.com/2011/02/offseason-changes-rakuten-golden-eagles/. Retrieved May 23, 2012. 
  28. "Overweight Iwamura cut from roster". Japan Time Online. May 15, 2011. http://www.japantimes.co.jp/text/sb20110515j2.html. Retrieved May 23, 2012. 
  29. "Register: Iwamura, Akinori (Tohoku Rakuten Golden Eagles)". NPB Official Website. Nippon Professional Baseball. http://bis.npb.or.jp/eng/players/11313884.html. Retrieved May 23, 2012. 
  30. Coskrey, Jason (May 23, 2012). "Twitter / JCoskrey". Tokyo, Japan. http://twitter.com/JCoskrey/status/205375950119116800. 

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