Former big league outfielder and current member of Nippon Professional Baseball’s Yakult Swallows Nori Aoki is set to retire following the 2024 campaign, per an announcement from the Swallows yesterday (hat tip to The Yomiuri Shimbun). Aoki, 42, spent parts of six seasons in the majors in addition to a lengthy career in Japan.
Aoki’s career first began with the Swallows back in 2004 when he debuted at the age of 22. He made it into just ten games with Yakult that year, going 3-for-15 at the plate with a walk, a stolen base, and six strikeouts. That tiny sample size did nothing to suggest what Aoki would go on to do in his first full season with the club, however, as he slashed an excellent .344/.387/.417 in 144 games during the 2005 season, becoming just the second player in NPB history (after Ichiro Suzuki) to collect 200 hits in a single season.
He improved to even greater heights throughout his mid-20s, slashing 15-to-20 homer power to go along with fantastic contact and baserunning skills. As his plate discpline developed, he even began to walk more than he struck out, leading to a dominant stretch of seasons from 2007 to 2010 where he walked at a 10.6% clip against a minuscule 9.8% strikeout rate in addition to his aforementioned solid power and impressive base-stealing abilities, and even crossed the 200-hit barrier for a second time in 2010 to become the only NPB player in history to achieve the feat twice.
Given the excellence he had demonstrated throughout his time with the Swallows, it was hardly a surprise when he was quickly snapped up by the Brewers on a two-year deal after being posted for major league clubs prior to the 2012 season. In Milwaukee, Aoki was a slightly above average hitter with a solid .287/.355/.399 slash line. While he only hit a combined 18 home runs over his two seasons with the Brewers, he swiped 50 bags while hitting 57 doubles and 7 triples in that same period. That was a strong enough performance for Milwaukee brass to pick up Aoki’s club option for the 2014 season, but he did not last the offseason with the club and was swapped to the Royals in a deal that brought lefty Will Smith to the Brewers.
After departing the Brewers, Aoki wouldn’t stick around with an MLB club for more than a season at the time for the rest of his time in stateside ball. After acting as the regular right fielder in Kansas City for the club’s AL pennant-winning 2014 season, Aoki departed in free agency to sign with the Giants but was limited to just 93 games when he suffered a broken leg and a concussion in two separate hit-by-pitch incidents. Aoki then signed a one-year deal with the Mariners in 2016 but began to show some signs of decline, notably stealing only seven bases in sixteen attempts with the worst strikeout and walk numbers of his MLB career, though he did display his best power numbers since his rookie 2012 campaign with the Brewers.
Aoki’s final season in the big leagues came back in 2017 and saw him change uniforms several times. The veteran outfielder was claimed off waivers from the Mariners by the Astros during the 2016-17 offseason. Aoki struggled somewhat through 70 games with Houston, however, and ended up traded to the Blue Jays at the deadline that year alongside Teoscar Hernandez in a deal that brought Francisco Liriano to Houston. Aoki managed to catch fire down the stretch, however, and while his playing time was further split between the Blue Jays and Mets over the final two months of the season he slashed .281/.294/.594 for Toronto in August before slashing .284/.371/.373 in Queens that September.
Following the end of his MLB career, Aoki returned home to the Swallows and has played for the club in each of the past seven seasons. Now 42, the veteran is the league’s oldest active player and has collected more than 7,000 plate appearances with a .313/.392/.445 slash line in 1,713 NPB games. Between NPB and MLB play, Aoki has stepped up to the plate more than 10,000 times with 2,765 hits, 470 doubles, 51 triples, 179 homers and 279 stolen bases. We at MLBTR congratulate Aoki on a fine career and wish him all the best in his post-playing pursuits.
A good giant Aoki was. Some injury issues kept him off the field but he did a good job when he was in there. Enjoy retirement Nori!
IIRC it was really terrible injury luck. Then he tried to come back too early. Loved him as a giant though
“Aoki was a slightly above average hitter with a solid .287/.355/.399 slash line. While he only hit a combined 18 home runs over his two seasons with the Brewers, he swiped 50 bags while hitting 57 doubles and 7 triples ”
For a 107 wRC+
Also, everyone should take in NPB, KBO or CPBL game
Great experience
Slightly above average hitter have you seen players avg this year? More Mendoza line hitters than any era in baseball. A career 280’s hitter is like ted Williams nowadays.
HF
“Slightly above average hitter
Yes. He had a 107 wRC+. A bit above average
“have you seen players avg this year?
Yes. But batting average treats a home run and single as equal. It’s a bas statistic for measuring hitting performance. It would be better if it didn’t exist.
Hi
A very suspicious and controversial hit-by-pitch in the head.
1st round HOFer.
1st ballot draft pick
In Japan I’m assuming?
Don’t even remember him playing for the Mariners.
He bat lead off a ton for them for some reason
One of Jerry’s all-time greatest achievements.
Neither does he
I do. He was actually a fan favorite in Seattle.
Yes i do believe he was a Fan’s favorite. Everyone else thought he sucked.
Minor correction: Aoki is among the oldest active players in the NPB. At the very least, his teammate, screwballer Masanori Ishikawa (44!) and MLB veteran Tsuyoshi Wada (43) of the Softbank Hawks are both his elder.
Congrats to Aoki on an awesome career! He was one of the best players in the NPB when he came up and leveraged it into a successful MLB stint that only a handful of Japanese batters have been able to replicate.
Maybe they meant position player?
This guy would have been a legend if he played even 10 years earlier.
Agreed. Elite bat to ball skills. Watched him often, and he was a slap hitting artist. Total throwback to the 80’s/90’s. Fantastic career, and ended the way he wanted to.
Congrats Nori!
Good for him playing til 42.
Congrats Nori!
Helluva career.
Enjoy that fam time!
It seems rare occurrences in a season, “he suffered a broken leg and a concussion in two separate hit-by-pitch incidents”. I think it is relevant when incidents ruin a season, or career, the pitcher, catcher, pitching coach and manager of the opposing team in that game should be listed. At the very least, the “controversial” issue needs to be addressed. Head-hunting may have patterns for certain managers, pitching coaches, catchers and pitchers. I know it was a long time ago and no one cares.
Isn’t that why umpires are there for? It’s their discretion to discipline the pitcher and his manager. If a manager is a known headhunter, word gets around the league quickly and opposing managers would keep him honest just as quickly. I don’t understand what further policing is necessary. HBPs are part of the game.
He was still playing????? I thought he was as dead as a zombie
User name checks out
I don’t get the joke how my name is related to being ignorant
I’m actually glad I didn’t know about that because if I did then I would have no life
stnmf
“I’m actually glad I didn’t know about that because if I did then I would have no life”?
This mindset explains a lot. Imagine thinking you can’t know stuff AND have a life.
Mets never gave him a chance. He was a spark plug by season end. To this day, I still don’t understand why they didn’t try to bring him back but they kept giving chance after chance to guys like Kirk Nueinhies, Ty Kelly, Juan Lagares, etc.
I enjoyed his time with the Astros.
Like Ichiro, he hit better vs lefties (.301 career ).
Bruce
“hit better vs lefties (.301 career ).”
He, basically, hit equal vs l and r
Vs l 107 wRC+
Vs r 106 wRC+
Unless you think that doubles, triples and home runs are equal to singles and walks don’t count for anything
Ichiro, did, in fact, hit better vs lefties
115 vs 98 wRC+
If he was 10yrs younger he’d have been an All-Star. In his prime he was an elite lead off guy, a weird at-bat for any pitcher. Good Giant.
Nori Aoki broke his leg and came back 3 weeks later. Type of player that fits every team, I will miss watching this guy’s gif-worthy plays
Since 2010 league batting average is below .260, and since 2020 it is below .250. Aoki was a very good player, career average .285 and obp .350.
A lot of clubs in the current environment would love to have a guy like Aoki who gave good AB’s, a good outfielder, and could steal some bags.
I have nothing but respect for Mr Aoki.
Nah, if you don’t K at least 20% of the time and hit 25+ HR you’re not considered a “good” hitter anymore, even when talking about guys who played before these really became the cool things to do.
Chris Carter played 10 years too early.
As far as MLB has been concerned, he has been retired!
Yakult swallows must be one of the most gross pro sports Team names out there