The Era of Complete-Game Aces
From NPB's early years through the 1980s, the ideal pitcher was the 'complete-game ace.' Masaichi Kaneda recorded 365 career complete games, and Kazuhisa Inao threw 42 complete games in 1961 alone, as starting pitchers were expected to finish what they started. Pitchers in the 1960s routinely threw over 300 innings per season, an unthinkable workload by modern standards. Pitchers of this era competed through control and breaking ball precision rather than velocity, with sliders and curveballs as their primary weapons. The decline in complete games began in the 1990s as bullpen specialization gradually took hold.
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The Establishment of Specialization and the Rise of Closers
From the late 1990s through the 2000s, pitching specialization was firmly established in NPB. The division of roles among starters, middle relievers, and closers became clearly defined, with the importance of closers increasing dramatically. Kazuhiro Sasaki earned the nickname 'Daimajin' with the Yokohama BayStars, repeatedly breaking save records. Hitoki Iwase established a world record of 407 career saves, proving the value of the closer role. With specialization established, complete games by starters plummeted, and by the 2020s, some seasons saw single-digit complete games across entire leagues. Meanwhile, the injury risk from overuse of middle relievers has emerged as a new challenge.
The Acceleration of Pitch Velocity
Pitch velocity in NPB has improved dramatically over the past 30 years. While pitchers exceeding 150 km/h were rare in the 1990s, by the 2020s, multiple pitchers on each team throw fastballs at 155 km/h or above. In 2016, Shohei Ohtani recorded NPB's fastest pitch at 165 km/h, pushing the limits of Japanese pitching velocity. Behind this velocity increase are advances in training science, improved nutrition management, and biomechanics-based pitching form optimization. The proliferation of measurement tools like Rapsodo and Trackman has enabled pitchers to analyze their pitching data in detail and work on improving velocity and spin rate.
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Diversification of Breaking Balls and the Data Revolution
In recent years, the variety and quality of breaking balls in NPB have improved dramatically. In addition to traditional sliders, curveballs, and forkballs, MLB-derived pitches such as cutters, two-seamers, and split-changeups have become widely adopted. The split-finger fastball (SFF) in particular has become a signature weapon for Japanese pitchers, earning high praise in MLB as well. With the penetration of data analytics, pitchers can now identify hitter weaknesses numerically and optimize pitch selection. Technology that measures spin axis angle and movement in real-time is transforming both pitcher training and in-game tactics. NPB pitchers have reached their highest level ever in both velocity and breaking ball quality.