He was successful in his rookie year, pitching as the setup man for closer Kazuhiro Sasaki, but problems with control led the BayStars to drop him in 2001.
Kazuhiro Sasaki (retired baseball pitcher, and alumni of nearby Tohoku Fukushi University) served as the ceremonial station master for the opening day.
Kazuhiro Sasaki | Sasaki | Sasaki Yoshikiyo | Isao Sasaki | Sasaki clan | Minoru Sasaki | Kyozan Joshu Sasaki | Kensuke Sasaki | Kazumasa Sasaki | Jun Sasaki | Akira Sasaki |
Pitching-wise, Yokohama was led by Takashi Saito and Daisuke Miura for starters, and Kazuhiro Sasaki was practically automatic at closer, recording 45 saves and posting a microscopic 0.64 ERA.
The forkball has been favored by several current and former major league pitchers, including Hideo Nomo, José Valverde, José Arredondo, Kazuhiro Sasaki, José Contreras, Chien-Ming Wang and Edwar Ramírez.