BALTIMORE (AP) -Right-hander Koji Uehara signed a two-year contract Tuesday with the Baltimore Orioles, making him the first Japanese-born player in franchise history.
The 33-year-old Uehara, who agreed to terms last week, signed the contract after passing a physical.
Uehara comes to the Orioles after a 10-year run with the Yomiuri Giants of the Japanese Central League. He went 112-62 with a 3.01 ERA, with 56 complete games in 207 career starts.
He has struck 1,376 and walked only 206 in 276 career games for the Giants. His career average of eight strikeouts per nine innings would rank seventh among qualifying active major league pitchers.
Uehara was the rookie of the year in 1999, and won Japan’s equivalent of the Cy Young Award in 1999 and 2002.
He went 2-0 with a 1.59 ERA for the champion Japanese team in the 2006 World Baseball Classic, and helped Japan win the bronze medal at the 2004 Olympics.
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