- Tomo Ohka
Infobox MLB player
width = 150px
name = Tomo Ohka
team = Chicago White Sox
number = --
position = Starting pitcher
birthdate = birth date and age|1976|3|18
birthplace =Kyoto ,Japan
bats = Switch
throws = Right
debutdate = July 19
debutyear = 1999
debutteam = Boston Red Sox
statyear = 2007
stat1label = Win-Loss
stat1value = 50-62
stat2label =Earned run average
stat2value = 4.14
stat3label =Strikeout s
stat3value = 559
teams =
*Yokohama BayStars (by|1994–by|1998) (NPB)
*Boston Red Sox (by|1999–by|2001)
*Montreal Expos (by|2001-by|2004)
*Washington Nationals (by|2005)
*Milwaukee Brewers (by|2005-by|2006)
*Toronto Blue Jays (by|2007)nihongo|Tomokazu Ohka|大家友和|Ōka Tomokazu|extra=IPA2|oːka tomokazɯ (Commonly referred as Tomo Ohka) (born
March 18 ,1976 inKyoto, Japan ) is aMajor League Baseball starting pitcher in theChicago White Sox organization. Previously, Ohka played with theBoston Red Sox (by|1999-by|2001),Montreal Expos (2001-by|2004),Washington Nationals (by|2005),Milwaukee Brewers (2005-by|2006), andToronto Blue Jays (by|2007). He throwsright-handed and is aswitch hitter .Coming to America
On
November 20 , by|1998, Ohka was purchased by theBoston Red Sox from theYokohama BayStars (Japan 'sCentral League ). Ohka's statistics in Japan were less than flattering, but his ability to control his pitches sparked the interest of the Red Sox.Fact|date=June 2008Early success
In 1999, Ohka began his MLB career with the Red Sox' Double-A affiliate at that time, the
Trenton Thunder . In 12 starts he went 8-0 with a 3.00 era. He was promoted to the Triple-APawtucket Red Sox where he had a 1.92 era and a 7-0 record (and pitched the 1st PawSoxno-hitter ). OnJuly 19 , 1999 he made his major league debut. Ohka found himself in the minors again in by|2000. With Pawtucket, he went 9-6 in 19 starts with a 2.96 era, with 3 complete games, one being aperfect game . In both 1999 and 2000, The Red Sox named Ohka their minor league player of the year. Ohka was in theAll-Star Futures Game in 1999 and 2000 and in 2000 he was theTriple-A All-Star Game starting pitcher.Major League career
During the middle of the 2001 season, Ohka was sent to Montreal for the veteran closer
Ugueth Urbina . Ohka had a mildly successful run with the Expos. His most productive season came with the Expos in by|2002, when he posted 13-8 with 118 strikeouts and a 3.18 ERA.In June 2004, Ohka broke his right forearm when he was hit by a line drive off
Carlos Beltrán 's bat in Kansas City. Ohka underwent major surgery and was out until mid-September. He finished 3-7 with a 3.40 ERA in 15 starts.As the Expos moved to
Washington, D.C. for the 2005 season, Ohka was part of a starting rotation that includedLiván Hernández ,Esteban Loaiza andTony Armas, Jr. . Ohka was involved in an incident with Washington managerFrank Robinson . Ohka protested being removed from a game, a move which resulted in an undisclosed fine from the team. [http://washington.nationals.mlb.com/NASApp/mlb/news/press_releases/press_release.jsp?ymd=20050605&content_id=1076765&vkey=pr_was&fext=.jsp&c_id=was] This disagreement, along with an injury to Nationals second basemanJose Vidro , was reason enough to deal Ohka.Fact|date=June 2008 OnJune 10 , 2005, the Washington Nationals traded the righty to the Milwaukee Brewers forsecond baseman Junior Spivey . The trade is widely believedWho|date=June 2008 to have benefited the Milwaukee Brewers more because it allowed them to open the door for highly-touted second basemanRickie Weeks and get a quality pitcher at almost no cost. In Tomo's first game with his new club onJune 14 , 2005, he threw a complete game shut out against theTampa Bay Devil Rays duringinterleague play .Ohka was the Brewers' fourth starting pitcher behind
Ben Sheets ,Doug Davis andChris Capuano . However, onDecember 1 , 2006, the Brewers declined to offer Ohka salary arbritration, making him afree agent .On
January 23 , by|2007, the right-hander reached a tentative agreement with the Toronto Blue Jays on a one year contract. The agreement was made official onJanuary 25 , 2007, and the contract was announced to be worth $1,500,000. Ohka could earn an additional $1,500,000 in incentives. Incentives are usually based uponinnings pitched or game appearances.On
June 7 , after compiling a 2-5 record in 10 starts, the Toronto Blue Jays designated Ohka for assignment and subsequently released him onJune 18 . OnJune 19 , 2007, he signed a minor league contract with theSt. Louis Cardinals . He was released by the Cardinals onJuly 3 , 2007, after going 0-2 with a 6.87 ERA in 3 starts for their Triple A team, theMemphis Redbirds . Ohka then signed a minor league contract onJuly 13 , 2007, with theSeattle Mariners .Ohka was released by Seattle on
August 5 , 2007, after going 0-3 with a 10.32 ERA in four outings, allowing 26 runs in 22 2/3 innings with theTacoma Rainiers , Seattle's AAA affiliate.On
February 21 , by|2008, Ohka signed a minor league contract with theChicago White Sox .In an eight-year career, Ohka has compiled a 48-57 record with 538
strikeout s and a 4.04 ERA in 943 innings.Ohka has an average --and sometimes a shade above--
fastball , a decent curve, aslider andchange-up , all of which can be effective when he is focused.Fact|date=June 2008 Ohka's success lies in his ability to change speeds and location effectively, keeping the hitter off balance.Professional Statistics
Japan
USA
Milestone
*Ohka pitched a nine-inning
perfect game for the Triple-APawtucket Red Sox onJune 1 , 2000. Ohka retired all 27 batters he faced in a 2-0 win over theCharlotte Knights , and threw only 76 pitches to toss the first nine-inning perfect game in theInternational League since by|1952.Pop Culture
*Ohka is the first and only member of the Montreal Expos to be named on
The Simpsons . In theMarch 16 ,2003 episode entitledC. E. D'oh! , Bart Simpson exclaims "Look at me! I'm Tomokazu Ohka of the Montreal Expos!" while playing baseball with Milhouse. Tomo Ohka also lead the Gretna Junior League Baseball team to a state championship. He was also aided by R.J. Reynolds and Baby Drew.External links
*Baseballstats |mlb=219594 |espn=4122 |br=o/ohkato01 |fangraphs=788 |cube=O/tomokazu-ohka
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