Akinori Otsuka

Who is Akinori Otsuka?

Akinori Otsuka is a Japanese Baseball Pitcher who plays for the Shinano Grandserows in Japan's Baseball Challenge League. He was formerly the set-up man for the San Diego Padres and the Texas Rangers. He was also the closer for Japan's 2006 World Baseball Classic winning team.

Otsuka throws a low-90's 4-seam fastball that is very straight, along with a hard, late-breaking slider. He employs an unorthodox pitching delivery wherein he lifts his lead leg up very slowly, taps his glove, then fires to home plate, making his pitches look faster coming out of his hand and thus harder to pick up.