1. Overview
Taisuke Maruyama (丸山 泰資Maruyama TaisukeJapanese, born February 5, 1995) is a former professional Japanese baseball player who played as a pitcher. He previously played for the Chunichi Dragons in Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB). After his playing career, he transitioned into a coaching role.
2. Early life and amateur baseball career
Taisuke Maruyama's baseball journey began in his hometown, progressing through middle school, high school, and university before he turned professional.
2.1. Middle and high school years
Maruyama was born in Tokoname, Aichi Prefecture, Japan. During his time at Tokoname Municipal Onizaki Junior High School, he played as an outfielder for the Aichi Chita Boys baseball team. He later attended Toho High School, where he initially served as a reserve pitcher and participated in the Tokai Tournament. In his third year, he was assigned the uniform number 1. That year, his team won the Aichi Prefectural Tournament and reached the best four in the Tokai Tournament. In the final game of the Aichi Tournament for the National High School Baseball Championship, his team was defeated by Aichi Institute of Technology Meiden High School, which featured pitcher Tatsuro Hamada.
2.2. University career
Maruyama continued his baseball career at Tokai University. In the spring of his second year, he joined the league as a reserve pitcher, contributing three wins without allowing any runs, helping his team achieve an undefeated championship. The team went on to win the All-Japan University Baseball Championship. In the spring of his third year, he transitioned into a starting pitcher role, securing four wins in league play and earning a Best Nine award. On May 3, 2015, Maruyama achieved a perfect game against Nippon Sport Science University in the Shuto University Baseball League at Yamato Stadium. This was a significant achievement, marking only the second perfect game in the league's history in 46 years, following Jiro Ueda's accomplishment.
3. Professional career
Maruyama's professional career predominantly took place with the Chunichi Dragons, where he faced both initial success and challenges, including significant injuries.
3.1. Draft and Chunichi Dragons debut
On October 20, 2016, Maruyama was selected as the sixth overall draft pick by the Chunichi Dragons in the 2016 Nippon Professional Baseball draft. He agreed to a provisional contract on November 13, 2016, signing it on November 20. The contract included a sign-on bonus of 30.00 M JPY and an estimated annual salary of 7.20 M JPY. He joined the Dragons alongside Kento Fujishima, who was his junior from Toho High School.
Maruyama made his professional debut on June 14, 2017, in a game against the Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters at Nagoya Dome. Entering the game in the 12th inning as the seventh relief pitcher with runners on first and second base and one out, he successfully induced a double play from Kenshi Sugiya, completing 2/3 innings without allowing any runs.
3.2. Injuries and development contract
The 2018 season was challenging for Maruyama, as he did not make any first-team appearances due to injury. In October 2018, he underwent Tommy John surgery on his right elbow, a common procedure for pitchers. The entire 2019 season was dedicated to his rehabilitation, and he did not make any appearances in either the first or second team. As a result, on November 19, 2019, it was announced that he would be re-signed as a development player, reflecting his ongoing recovery. He continued under a development contract, re-signing again on December 8, 2020.
3.3. Pitching form change and release
In September 2020, Maruyama made a strategic decision to change his pitching form from an overhand delivery to an underhand style, a transition suggested by then-second team pitching coach Ken Kadokura. This change was part of his efforts to make a comeback. He returned to live game action in the Phoenix League in November of that year, where he recorded a top speed of 91 mph (146 km/h) with his new form.
Despite his efforts, he injured his right elbow again during spring training in 2021, though he made a comeback appearance on May 29. However, he was unable to secure a return to the active roster (a "domination contract") and was notified of his release by the team on October 7, 2021.
4. Player characteristics
Taisuke Maruyama was primarily a right-handed pitcher. His fastest recorded pitch velocity reached 93 mph (150 km/h). His repertoire of pitches included a slider, a curveball, and a forkball. In September 2020, under the recommendation of Ken Kadokura, he notably altered his pitching motion from an overhand delivery to a sidearm-like underhand style, aiming to adapt and extend his career.
5. Post-retirement activities
After concluding his professional playing career, Taisuke Maruyama transitioned into baseball instruction. In January 2022, it was announced that he would be appointed as a coach at the Dragons Baseball Academy, the official youth baseball academy of the Chunichi Dragons, where he could share his experience and knowledge with aspiring young players.
6. Detailed records
This section provides a statistical overview of Taisuke Maruyama's professional playing career, covering his pitching and fielding statistics, key career milestones, and uniform numbers.
6.1. Pitching statistics by season
| Year | Team | G | W | L | HLD | SV | CG | SHO | QS | PCT | BF | IP | H | HR | BB | HBP | WP | SO | BK | R | ER | ERA | WHIP | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2017 | Chunichi | 8 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .--- | 57 | 12.0 | 16 | 2 | 6 | 0 | 1 | 10 | 0 | 0 | 13 | 11 | 8.25 | 1.83 |
| NPB: 1 year | 8 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .--- | 57 | 12.0 | 16 | 2 | 6 | 0 | 1 | 10 | 0 | 0 | 13 | 11 | 8.25 | 1.83 | |
6.2. Fielding statistics by season
| Year | Team | Pitcher | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Games | Putouts | Assists | Errors | Double Plays | Fielding % | ||
| 2017 | Chunichi | 8 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1.000 |
| Career | 8 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1.000 | |
6.3. First records
Taisuke Maruyama achieved several "firsts" during his professional baseball career.
; Pitching records
- First appearance: June 14, 2017, against the Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters (Game 2) at Nagoya Dome. He entered in the 12th inning with one out as the seventh relief pitcher, completing 2/3 innings without allowing any runs.
- First strikeout: June 16, 2017, against the Saitama Seibu Lions (Game 1) at Nagoya Dome. In the 9th inning, he struck out Sosuke Genda looking.
; Batting records
- First at-bat: August 5, 2017, against the Yomiuri Giants (Game 17) at Tokyo Dome. In the 5th inning, he struck out looking against Tomoyuki Sugano.
6.4. Uniform numbers
Throughout his professional playing career, Taisuke Maruyama used the following uniform numbers:
- 28 (2017-2018)
- 69 (2019)
- 204 (2020-2021)