Yūdai Ōno

Yūdai Ōno (大野 雄大, born September 26, 1988, in Kyoto, Japan) is a Japanese professional baseball pitcher for the Chunichi Dragons of the Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB).

Yūdai Ōno
大野雄大
Ōno pitching at Yokohama Stadium in 2013
Chunichi Dragons – No. 22
Pitcher
Born: (1988-09-26) September 26, 1988
Fushimi-ku, Kyoto, Japan
Bats: Left
Throws: Left
NPB debut
October 14, 2011, for the Chunichi Dragons
NPB statistics
(through April 1, 2022)
Win–loss record77-79
ERA3.10
Strikeouts1,086
Teams
Career highlights and awards
Medals
Men's baseball
Representing  Japan
Summer Olympics
Gold medal – first place 2020 Tokyo Team
2015 WBSC Premier12
Bronze medal – third place 2015 Tokyo Team
Gold medal – first place 2019 Tokyo Team

Early career

As a junior, Ōno played for Kyoto Gaidai Nishi High School where he was part of the school team that faced a young Masahiro Tanaka in the 2005 Summer Koshien. Upon watching the former New York Yankees pitcher play, Ono was inspired and remarked "so this is the kind of guy that goes pro."[2]

He made his Koshien debut in the Spring Senbatsu tournament where his team lost 4–1 against Tokai University Sagami Senior High in the first round where Ōno took 3 strikeouts for one earned run in 3+2⁄3 innings.[3]

Ōno played for the Bukkyo University team where in his 3rd year he was touted along with Yuki Saito, Tatsuya Oishi and Hirokazu Sawamura as the "University Big 4."[2]

In the 2010 NPB draft, he was the first round pick for the Chunichi Dragons despite being injured in the lead-up.[2]

Professional career

2011-2013

In 2011, Ōno spent the beginning of his Chunichi career rehabbing his left arm during Spring training. From March 2011, he began proper training and made his playing debut in a pro-am match where he conceded a grand-slam homerun. Despite the set-back, he was put to work on the farm to be trained as a starting pitcher. On October 14, he would make his first team debut against the Yomiuri Giants as a starter. It would however be an innocuous debut as Ōno gave up 6 earned runs in 4 innings against 22 batters.[4][5]

On July 11, 2012, Ono made his second start, this time against the Hanshin Tigers at Koshien Stadium where he would get his first victory after pitching 5+1⁄3 innings, conceding one earned run and 7 hits.[6][7] He would break into the starting rotation and finish his first real season as a pro with 4 wins and 3 losses in 8 games started with an ERA of 2.62.

In 2013, he solidified himself as a starter with the Dragons and would post enough innings to be considered for ERA champion honors. Ōno would end the season with a 10–10 record having thrown 146 innings in 25 starts with an ERA of 3.81.

2014-2016

In 2014, he would pitch well in the pre-season games but would ultimately lose out on opening day honors to veteran Kenshin Kawakami. On 26 April after conceding 5 runs in his first inning against the Yakult Swallows he was yanked from the mound, earning the ire of the senior management team and was promptly dropped to the second team.[8] On 5 June, he would unfortunately, once again experience the same fate after giving up 5 runs in 5 innings against the Chiba Lotte Marines.[9] On 25 July, Ōno would mark a comeback to form against the Giants as he recorded his first full game without a walk.[10] He would end the year with a consecutive 10 win season losing only 8 with an ERA of 2.89.

In 2015, he led both leagues in innings pitched with 207.1. His then career-best 2.52 ERA ranked sixth in the Central League[11] and his six complete games were second only to the seven recorded by the Hanshin Tigers' Shintaro Fujinami. Ōno posted his highest career wins to date with an 11-10 record in 27 starts.

On March 25, 2016, Ōno was selected as the starting day pitcher against the Hanshin Tigers at Kyocera Dome where he pitched a winning 5-2 game, striking out 3 and walking 2 for 2 earned runs in 7+2⁄3 innings.[12] Ōno went on to win one more game and lose one for an ERA of 2.66 before April 15 where he was deactivated from the first team roster due to concerns regarding elbow discomfort.[13] On June 4, he would however make his return in a 0–3 loss against the Rakuten Eagles where he pitched a 7 innings striking out 3 batters and walking 3 after giving up 3 runs in the first inning.[14] On 28 June, Ōno pitched a 3-hit shutout against the Yomiuri Giants, striking out 7 in a 5–0 win at the Tokyo Dome claiming his 5th win of the season.[15][16]

2017-2018

In 2017, Ōno once again was selected as starting day pitcher but had a down season pitching 142 innings for a 4.03 ERA and a 7–8 record. He however was the only Dragons starter to pass the innings limit to be considered for post season awards. On 29 November, Ōno received a ¥6.4 million decrease to his yearly salary.[17]

In 2018, Ōno missed the opening day rotation and appeared in only 6 games going 0-3 with an 8.56 ERA. As a result, his salary was decreased the maximum 25% to re-sign at ¥60 million.[18]

2019-present

In 2019, Under the guidance of new manager Tsuyoshi Yoda and pitching coach Hideyuki Awano, Ōno found new life returning to the starting day rotation. On the 30 April, Ōno became the final winning pitcher for the Dragons of the Heisei era while he marked the first Central League shut-out of the Reiwa era on 7 May against the Hiroshima Carp.[19] On September 14, Ōno pitched the 100th no-hitter in Japanese professional baseball history based on globally recognised standards,[20] against the Hanshin Tigers becoming the 81st NPB pitcher to do so and the 12th Dragons pitcher to achieve the feat.[21] Ōno finished the season with a 2.59 ERA to lead the Central League, capturing his first individual title in the process.[22]

Ōno received the Sawamura Award for his performance in the 2020 season, leading the Central League with a 1.82 ERA, 10 complete games, six shutouts, 148+2⁄3 innings and 148 strikeouts. He posted an 11-6 record, helping Chunichi to its first winning season in eight years.[23] At the end of the season, and before receiving the Sawamura award, Ōno signed a 3-year, ¥900 million incentive laden deal to remain at the Dragons.[24][25]

International career

In the 2012 off-season Ōno was named for the Japan to face Cuba.[26]

In November, 2013, Ōno would once again be selected for the Samurai Japan team this time to face Chinese Taipei.[27]

He would also earn a call up to the preliminary Japanese national squad for the first edition of the 2015 WBSC Premier 12.[28] On October 9, he was selected in the final squad [29]

On October 1, 2019, he was selected at the 2019 WBSC Premier12.[30]

Pitching style

Ōno pitches with an over-arm action[31][32] and throws a four-seam fastball that reaches speeds of around 88 mp/h on average and tops out at 95mp/h.[33] In addition, he throws a fork, a 62 mp/h curveball,[34] two types of sliders and a dipping two-seam fastball.[31]

Personal life

Due to the influence of his grandfather, Ōno grew up as a Hanshin Tigers fan. During his university playing days, Ōno had attached a Torakki strap to his mobile phone,[35] however, once he was selected by the Dragons, he promptly removed it.[36]

The players that Ōno looks up to the most for inspiration are former Major leaguer, Kyuji Fujikawa and former Dragon and former Major Leaguer, Wei-Yin Chen.[31][36]

References
  1. "沢村賞の中日・大野雄大が「仏教大学スポーツ栄誉賞」第１号 「来季は五輪メンバーに」：中日スポーツ・東京中日スポーツ".
  2. Yuichi Setsumaru (2011). 最強世代1988 田中将大、斎藤佑樹、坂本勇人、前田健太･･････11人の告白(The strongest generation: 1988 Masahiro Tanaka,Yuki Saito, Hayato Sakamoto, Kenta Maeda...11 player confessions) (in Japanese). Kodansha. ISBN 978-4-0629-5066-4.
  3. "2006センバツ スコア速報 東海大相模（神奈川） 対 京都外大西（京都) (2006 Spring Koshien Score Update: Tokai University Sagami (Kanagawa) vs Kyoto Gaidai Nishi (Kyoto))". Nikkan Sports (in Japanese). 26 March 2006. Retrieved 15 June 2016.
  4. "Friday, October 14, 2011". Nippon Professional Baseball. Retrieved 13 June 2016.
  5. "ニュー速！大野プロ初登板初先発、澤村とドラ1決戦へ! (Breaking News! Ōno in first pro start, a draft #1 battle with Sawamura!)". Sports Navi Plus (in Japanese). 14 October 2011. Retrieved 13 June 2013.
  6. "中日大野、沢村に投げ勝った (Chunichi's Ōno out-pitches Sawamura)". Nikkan Sports (in Japanese). 1 August 2012. Retrieved 13 June 2016.
  7. "Wednesday, July 11, 2012". Nippon Professional Baseball. Retrieved 14 June 2016.
  8. "中日大野１回ＫＯ試合中名古屋に強制送還 (Chunichi's Ōno in one inning knockout; forcibly sent home to Nagoya)". Nikkan Sports (in Japanese). 27 April 2014. Retrieved 13 June 2016.
  9. "中日大野５回５失点ＫＯ 今季２度目降格 (Chunichi's Ōno 5 inning 5 run knockout; dropped for the second time this season)". Nikkan Sports (in Japanese). 5 June 2014. Retrieved 13 June 2016.
  10. "Friday, July 25, 2014". Nippon Professional Baseball. Retrieved 13 June 2016.
  11. "2015 Central League Qualifiers for Earned-Run Average". Nippon Professional Baseball. Retrieved 14 February 2016.
  12. "Friday, March 25, 2016". Nippon Professional Baseball. Retrieved 13 June 2016.
  13. "中日エース大野が左肘痛で抹消 医者は軽症診断も (Chunichi ace Ōno deactivated with left elbow pain; Doctor judges to be minor injury)". Nikkan Sports (in Japanese). 15 April 2016. Retrieved 13 June 2016.
  14. "Saturday, June 4, 2016". Nippon Professional Baseball. Retrieved 13 June 2016.
  15. Michael Coskrey (28 June 2016). "Dragons' Ōno fires three-hit shutout". Japan Times. Retrieved 8 July 2016.
  16. "Tuesday, June 28, 2016". Nippon Professional Baseball. Retrieved 8 July 2016.
  17. "中日大野640万減「防御率４点台は情けない」 - プロ野球 : 日刊スポーツ". Nikkan Sports (in Japanese). 2017-11-29. Retrieved 2019-10-10.
  18. "中日・大野雄 ２５％大幅減俸にも「仕方ない」 会見では報道陣に異例のお願い". Sponichi. 2018-11-25. Retrieved 2019-10-10.
  19. "中日・大野雄 セ令和完封1号 平成のセ完封1号も同じ左腕の広島・大野豊". Sponichi. 2019-05-08. Retrieved 2019-10-10.
  20. Unlike NPB, a no-hitter can be recognised if runs are scored by the team without hits or if they are combined.
  21. "中日・大野雄がノーヒットノーラン達成、史上81人目 千賀の快挙から8日…同月達成は34年ぶり". Sponichi. 2019-09-14. Retrieved 2019-10-10.
  22. "【中日】大野雄が最優秀防御率のタイトル獲得「個人記録をとるためのワガママを感謝」４回途中降板で虎党拍手". Sports Hochi (in Japanese). 2019-09-30. Retrieved 2019-10-10.
  23. Nagatsuka, Kaz (2020-11-23). "Dragons ace Yudai Ono wins Sawamura Award". The Japan Times. Retrieved 2020-11-23.
  24. "中日・大野雄大は3年契約 FA権行使せず残留" [Chunichi: Yudai Ono forgoes free agency and signs new 3-year deal]. Nikkei Shimbun (in Japanese). 2020-11-16. Retrieved 2020-11-25.
  25. "中日・大野雄FAせず残留へ「いい評価してもらった」年俸3億円+出来高3年契約で大筋合意…Gオリ阪神動くも：中日スポーツ・東京中日スポーツ" [Chunichi: Yudai Ono forgoes FA "I've been rated well" to sign 300M per year 3-year incentive laden deal]. Chunichi Sports (in Japanese). 2020-11-11. Retrieved 2020-11-25.
  26. "侍ジャパンマッチ2012「日本代表対キューバ代表」 (2012 Samurai Japan Match: Japan vs Cuba)" (in Japanese). Retrieved 13 June 2016.
  27. "トップチーム 選手一覧(Overview of Top Team Players)". Official Website of Samurai Japan (in Japanese). Retrieved 13 June 2016.
  28. "トップチーム第一次候補選手発表！11月に行われる「WBSC世界野球プレミア12」へ向けて65名が名を連ねる (First announcement for the top team for the "WBSC World Baseball Premier 12; 65 players named)". Official Website of Samurai Japan (in Japanese). Retrieved 13 June 2016.
  29. "「WBSC プレミア12」侍ジャパントップチーム最終ロースター28名発表！！". Official Website of Samurai Japan (in Japanese). Retrieved 13 June 2016.
  30. "「ENEOS 侍ジャパンシリーズ2019」出場選手決定について". 野球日本代表 侍ジャパン オフィシャルサイト (in Japanese). October 1, 2019. Retrieved October 12, 2019.
  31. Amateur Baseball vol.29. Nikkan Sports Publishing. 2010. pp. 15–17. ISBN 978-4-8172-5498-6.
  32. 2015 プロ野球オール写真選手名鑑(Pro Baseball All-pictured player directory. Japan Sports Industry Publishing. 2015. p. 161. ISBN 978-4-905411-26-0.
  33. "注目選手：大野雄大 (Player Watch: Yudai Ōno)". Retrieved 14 June 2016. - Speed Navi
  34. Baseball Apprentice October 2010 Edition、White Night Books、Magazine 18801-10、p160-163。
  35. "虎ホレた！佛教大・大野151キロ菊池級 (Tiger lover! Bukkyo Uni, Ōno; 151km Kikuchi-level)". Nikkan Sports (in Japanese). 17 November 2009. Retrieved 15 June 2016.
  36. ドラフト指名選手の野球人生ドキュメント(A document of the life of the drafted Ōno) Baseball Apprentice October 2010 Edition、White Night Books、Magazine 67614-98、p90-95
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