Explore Hideki Irabu net worth, age, height, bio, birthday, wiki, and salary! Japanese baseball pitcher who could not replicate his success at home when he arrived in the Major Leagues. In this article, we will discover how old is Hideki Irabu? Who is Hideki Irabu dating now & how much money does Hideki Irabu have?
| Name | Hideki Irabu |
| First Name | Hideki |
| Last Name | Irabu |
| Occupation | Baseball Player |
| Birthday | May 5 |
| Birth Year | 1969 |
| Place of Birth | |
| Home Town | |
| Birth Country | Japan |
| Birth Sign | Taurus |
| Full/Birth Name | |
| Parents | Kazue Irabu, Ichiro Irabu |
| Siblings | Not Available |
| Spouse | Kyonsu Irabu |
| Children(s) | Not Available |
Hideki Irabu Biography
Hideki Irabu is one of the most popular and richest Baseball Player who was born on May 5, 1969 in Japan. He did not achieve the same success in the United States as his fellow countryman HideoNomo.
Hideki Irabu (伊良部 秀輝 , Irabu Hideki, May 5, 1969 – July 27, 2011) was a Japanese professional baseball player of American and Japanese mixed ancestry. He played professionally in both Japan and the United States. Irabu left Japan for the San Diego Padres under a controversial deal that would lead to future changes. In 1997, he joined the New York Yankees to much fanfare; however, he was ultimately unsuccessful in the MLB. Irabu died by suicide in 2011.
Irabu pitched for the Lotte Orions, who later became the Chiba Lotte Marines, of the Pacific League from 1988 to 1996. He was known as a high-speed pitcher and in 1993, he threw a 158 km/h (98 mph) fastball against Kazuhiro Kiyohara of the Seibu Lions. This was the fastest clocked pitch in all of Japanese Professional Baseball (NPB) until 2005, when the record was broken by Marc Kroon of the Yokohama BayStars.
His wife and his two children were left behind when he took his own death in 2011.
He was expected to be an All-Star when the Yankees signed him to a $12.8million contract. He was a huge disappointment.
Irabu was born on May 5, 1969 in Hirara (present: Miyakojima), Okinawa, Japan (then administered by the government of the United States). His father was a U.S. Air Force meteorologist named Steve Thompson, married to a woman in the United States at the time. Thompson, who had been redeployed to Vietnam before his son’s birth, briefly visited young Hideki and his mother a year later, but they would not again meet until after Irabu reached the U.S. major leagues. Hideki’s mother, Kazue, a native of Miyako, later married a restaurateur, Ichiro Irabu, from Osaka. Irabu raised Hideki as his son in Amagasaki, Hyōgo Prefecture.
Hideki Irabu Net Worth
Hideki is one of the richest Baseball Player from Japan. According to our analysis, Wikipedia, Forbes & Business Insider, Hideki Irabu's net worth $5 Million. (Last Update: January 13, 2024)
In 1988, he began his professional career as a Japanese citizen.
| Net Worth | $5 Million |
| Salary | Under Review |
| Source of Income | Baseball Player |
| Cars | Not Available |
| House | Living in own house. |
In 1997, the San Diego Padres purchased Irabu’s contract from the Chiba Lotte Marines. The criticisms of this sale from other MLB teams, who wished to bid on Irabu, led to the creation of the posting system currently used by Japanese and MLB teams. Irabu, however, refused to sign with the Padres, saying he would only play with the Yankees. For the negotiating rights to Irabu, the Yankees offered the Padres a choice of one from a list of players including Brian Boehringer, David Weathers, Chris Cumberland, Andy Fox and Matt Luke. The Padres eventually included him as a player-to-be-named-later in a trade that involved Homer Bush and Irabu going to the New York Yankees in exchange for Rafael Medina, Rubén Rivera, and $3 million in cash. The Yankees signed Irabu to a $12.8 million, four-year contract, and after only eight minor league appearances, the Yankees put him in their rotation.
1998 was Irabu’s best season in MLB, featuring career bests in games started (28), complete games (2), innings pitched (173), wins (13), and ERA (4.06). Despite his inconsistency, Irabu was twice named the American League’s Pitcher of the Month: in May 1998 and June 1999.
Ethnicity, religion & political views
Many peoples want to know what is Hideki Irabu ethnicity, nationality, Ancestry & Race? Let's check it out! As per public resource, IMDb & Wikipedia, Hideki Irabu's ethnicity is Not Known. We will update Hideki Irabu's religion & political views in this article. Please check the article again after few days.
Irabu made his highly publicized debut on July 10, 1997, drawing almost twice as many fans that night as they averaged for weeknight games. He played with the Yankees from 1997 through 1999, winning two World Series rings (1998, 1999) despite only pitching in one postseason game and having no postseason decisions. George Steinbrenner publicly expressed disgust at his weight, at one point calling him a “fat pussy toad” after he failed to cover first base on a ground ball during a spring training game. Steinbrenner refused to let Irabu accompany the team to Los Angeles, but two days later, Steinbrenner apologized and allowed Irabu to join the team.
Who is Hideki Irabu Dating?
According to our records, Hideki Irabu married to Kyonsu Irabu . As of January 13, 2024, Hideki Irabu’s is not dating anyone.
Relationships Record: We have no records of past relationships for Hideki Irabu. You may help us to build the dating records for Hideki Irabu!After the 1999 season, he was traded to the Montreal Expos for Ted Lilly, Christian Parker, and Jake Westbrook. He started only 14 games for the Expos in 2000 and 2001, pitching 71⅓ innings with a 6.69 ERA and only 2 wins against 7 losses.
Height, Weight & Body Measurements
Hideki Irabu height 6 ft 4 in Hideki weight Not Known & body measurements will update soon.
| Height | 6 ft 4 in |
| Weight | Not Known |
| Body Measurements | Under Review |
| Eye Color | Not Available |
| Hair Color | Not Available |
| Feet/Shoe Size | Not Available |
Irabu led the Pacific League in wins in 1994 (15) and in ERA in 1995 and 1996 (2.53 & 2.40, respectively). He also led the Pacific League in strikeouts in 1994 and 1995 (239 & 167, respectively).
At the end of the 2002 season, Irabu moved back to Japan to pitch in the Hanshin Tigers’ starting rotation for the 2003 season, helping the team win the Central League pennant for the first time since 1985.
Facts & Trivia
Hideki Ranked on the list of most popular Baseball Player. Also ranked in the elit list of famous people born in Japan. Hideki Irabu celebrates birthday on May 5 of every year.
In 2002, he signed as a free agent to pitch for the Texas Rangers as a closer.
What did George Steinbrenner call Hideki Irabu?
Hideki Irabu, a former Japanese baseball star who was hailed as a pitching sensation when he joined the Yankees in 1997 but who fell short of expectations, prompting an angry George Steinbrenner to label him indelibly as “a fat, pus-sy toad,” was found dead on Wednesday in the Los Angeles suburb where he lived.
Is Hideki Irabu dead?
July 27, 2011
What happened to the Japanese pitcher for the Yankees?
Tanaka spent seven seasons with the Yankees from 2014-2020. He initially left the Golden Eagles after seven seasons to sign a seven-year, $155 million contract with New York. Tanaka went back to Rakuten last offseason on a two-year deal.
Who is the Japanese pitcher for the Yankees?
| Earned run average | 3.74 |
| Strikeouts | 991 |
| Teams | |
| Tohoku Rakuten Golden Eagles (2007–2013) New York Yankees (2014–2020) Tohoku Rakuten Golden Eagles (2021–present) | |
Why did Tanaka go to Japan?
Tanaka spent the previous seven years pitching for the Yankees. Late last March, with Florida spring training suspended and the 2020 season delayed due to the COVID-19 pandemic, Tanaka and his family left the United States for Japan over safety concerns related to an event that Tanaka acknowledged but did not detail.
You may read full biography about Hideki Irabu from Wikipedia.ncG1vNJzZmiZnKGzornOrqqboaKptaWt2GeaqKVfnbalscqiZKKqkZfCcA%3D%3D