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The East Asia Baseball Hall of Fame inducted three outstanding starting pitchers with the 2003 class. All three were first ballot picks with above 98% with Aiya Kodama (98.6%), Seong-Jun Myong (98.3%), and Rikiya Fujiwara (98.3%). 2B Seong-Jae Kang came close on his eighth ballot, but was short at 59.5%. The only other player above 50% was LF Jin-Uk Song at 57.8% on his debut.



One player fell off after ten ballots in the 2003 EAB voting. 1B Kenta Goto had a 15-year career mostly with Saitama, winning two Silver Sluggers. He had 2181 hits, 1212 runs, 298 doubles, 534 home runs, 1403 RBI, a .273/.342/.521 slash, 151 wRC+, and 72.3 WAR. His tallies were pretty solid, but he was overlooked in an era of other stronger sluggers at the position. Goto also never made the playoffs despite a good career. He had a nice 51.4% debut ballot in 1994, but only went downward and ended at 4.7%. Goto at least did get his #32 uniform retired by Saitama, but he missed the cut for the Hall of Fame.



Aiya Kodama – Starting Pitcher – Hiroshima Hammerheads – 98.6% First Ballot

Aiya Kodama was a 6’2’’, 200 pound left-handed pitcher from Odate, a small city of 67,000 inhabitants in northern Japan’s Akita Prefecture. Kodama was known for having incredible stuff with excellent control and good movement. He had three pitches with a 97-99 mph fastball, a stellar slider, and good changeup. Kodama boasted outstanding stamina and was incredibly durable as well. Additionally, he was quite good at holding runners.

Kodama became absolutely beloved everywhere he played, becoming one of Japan’s favorite players. He was a team captain, renowned for his great leadership, work ethic, and adaptability. By the time his remarkable career ended, Kodama was considered by some to be the greatest pitcher ever to come out of Japan.

Kodama was a rare pitcher to be drafted out of high school, as he tore through the competition at Hachiohe Gakuin Kosei High School. In the 1976 EAB Draft, Kodama was picked tenth overall by Hiroshima. The Hammerheads kept him in the developmental system for his first two years under contact. Kodama officially debuted in 1979 at age 20 and was a full-time starter immediately. In all but his final two seasons of his career, Kodama tossed 240+ innings each season.

Kodama showed promise, but had very average production in his first two seasons. He led the Japan League in losses as a rookie and innings in his second year. By his junior campaign, Kodama emerged as a legitimate ac, leading in wins and posting 7.1 WAR. It would be his fourth year that Kodama went from great to historic.

From 1982-87, Kodama won six straight Pitcher of the Year awards. He was the first-ever six-time winner in Japan League history and joined the Korea League’s Yu-Geon Moon as the only East Asia Baseball pitchers to do it to that point. Each year, Kodama was the WARlord with 9+ or better, including four seasons worth 11+. He led in strikeouts each of these seasons with 335+ each year and won five ERA titles. Kodama also led in wins four times, innings once, WHIP four times, complete games five times, shutouts four times, and FIP- all six seasons.

Kodama earned three Triple Crowns, the first in 1982 with a 24-3 record, 1.68 ERA, and 374 strikeouts. This season would see career bests in Ks, WAR (11.8), and wins (24). He also took second in MVP voting. The second Triple Crown was 22-6, 1.84 ERA, and 371 strikeouts in 1984 with 11.5 WAR. The third Triple Crown in 1986 had a career-best 1.41 ERA, 22-4 record, 370 strikeouts, and 11.5 WAR. That ERA mark was the fifth lowest in EAB history at that point. This also earned Kodama the Japan League MVP.

Kodama helped get Hiroshima to three straight division titles in this stretch from 1985-87. The Hammerheads had signed him to a seven-year, $4,860,000 extension in May 1984. They made it to the Japan League Championship Series in both 1986 and 1987, but lost both times. Kodama wasn’t to blame, as he had a 1.81 ERA over 59.2 playoff innings with 94 strikeouts.

In 1988, Kodama’s production fell off from his historic highs, although he still posted 6.5 WAR, a 2.76 ERA, and 302 strikeouts. Hiroshima dropped to 75-89 and Kodama considered his future. He still had a few years on his deal, but had an opt-out clause. Kodama stunned many by exercising that opt out, becoming a free agent at age 30. He very quickly was the hottest free agent pitcher in the entire world.

Kodama would leave Japan and Hiroshima, although he’d still remain extremely popular with both. The Hammerheads would eventually retire his #10 uniform as an all-time legend. After leaving for MLB, he would return home and pitch for Japan in the World Baseball Championship from 1990-96. In 112.1 WBC innings, Kodama had a 10-4 record, 2.16 ERA, 158 strikeouts, 168 ERA+, and 3.5 WAR.

MLB’s Denver Dragons would win the sweepstakes for Kodama at five years and $7,800,000, more than doubling his yearly best with Hiroshima. Kodama had a remarkable debut for Denver, setting a still-standing MLB record with 318.2 innings pitched. He also led in wins (24), WHIP (0.93), and quality starts (29) while adding 10.5 WAR. Kodama won American Association Pitcher of the Year, his seventh POTY in total making him one of a select few to win it in multiple leagues. Kodama also had a no-hitter with six strikeouts and one walk in September against Miami.

In the 1989 postseason, Kodama tossed 37.2 innings with a 3.11 ERA, 30 strikeouts, and 126 ERA+. This helped Denver won the World Series over Hartford. The Dragons made the playoffs three more times during Kodama’s run, winning another pennant in 1991. They would get upset in the World Series by Kansas City. For his playoff career, Kodama had a 3.43 ERA over 107.2 innings, 83 strikeouts, 115 ERA+, and 1.9 WAR.

Kodama would lead twice more in innings pitched and twice more in WHIP with Denver. All five seasons with the Dragons were worth 7+ WAR. He took second in Pitcher of the Year voting in both 1991 and 1993. In total with Denver, Kodama had a 108-56 record, 2.93 ERA, 1522.1 innings, 1291 strikeouts, 108 complete games, 135 ERA+, 71 FIP-, and 44.7 WAR.

His contract was up after the 1993 season, making Kodama a free agent entering his age 35 season. He certainly proved himself in the MLB ranks and earned a four-year, $12,320,000 deal with Washington. Kodama still ate innings with the Admirals, but his dominance waned in this stretch. He would step up in the 1995 playoff run as Washington lost to Boston in the NACS. Kodama had a 0.36 ERA in 25 playoff innings.

For his Washington run, he pitched three seasons with a 42-34 record, 3.01 ERA, 726.2 innings, 515 strikeouts, 113 ERA+, and 12.8 WAR. Kodama’s velocity dropped significantly late in his run and the Admirals cut him during spring training 1997. For his MLB career, Kodama had a 150-90 record, 2.96 ERA, 2249 innings, 1806 strikeouts, 364 walks, 181/282 quality starts, 130 complete games, 127 ERA+, 78 FIP-, and 57.5 WAR.

It was a remarkable run considering it was only eight seasons in his 30s. One could argue he could’ve been an MLB Hall of Famer and in two years on the ballot, he earned a respectable 54.3% and 50.5%. Kodama was officially removed from the global ballot when EAB inducted him. He may not have had the tenure or accumulations to make the MLB HOF had he gotten ten ballots, but Kodama is one of very few in baseball history to have a legitimate case to be a two-time Hall of Famer.

At age 38, he would return home to Japan for one final season. Sendai gave him a one-year, $1,900,000 deal as a reliever. Kodama’s good control meant he was still usable even though his fastball now could barely top 90 mph. Kodama would retire after the 1997 season at age 38.

For his EAB career (which was mostly Hiroshima), Kodama had a 186-86 record, 2.30 ERA, 2676 innings, 3206 strikeouts, 390 walks, 237/305 quality starts, 137 complete games, 31 shutouts, 149 ERA+, 65 FIP-, and 83.5 WAR. Few starters in the EAB Hall of Fame had a lower ERA and his totals were impressive for a relatively brief run. Had he remained in Japan for his entire career, Kodama might have had a chance at being at the very top of the leaderboards. Regardless, winning six Pitcher of the Year awards and three Triple Crowns made him a lock for the 2003 ballot at 98.6%.

Worth noting for his full career, Kodama had a 336-176 record, 2.60 ERA, 4925 innings, 5012 strikeouts, 754 walks, 418/587 quality starts, 267 complete games, 138 ERA+, 71 FIP-, and 141.0 WAR. That career WAR was higher even than EAB’s top pitcher Jae-Hoon Seon at 132.4. Few pitchers in baseball history had a better resume, making it a fair question to ask; was Aiya Kodama the best-ever pitcher to come out of Japan?