Kazumi Saitoh vs. Koji Uehara

Discussion in the Rumor Mill forum

Who is the better talent, Saitoh or Uehara?

Here are some numbers:

                       ERA  WHIP   H/9   K/9  K/BB
Kazumi Saitoh Career  3.38  1.22  7.97  7.95  2.63
Koji Uehara Career    3.01  1.00  7.84  7.97  6.66

Judging by the numbers, Koji Uehara is the better talent as he beats Kazumi Saitoh in each stat category. However, Kazumi Saitoh is 2 years younger.

Who is closer to the MLB? Who is the better bet to be more successful as a starting pitcher in the MLB?

Please help, thank you so much! God bless.

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Re: Kazumi Saitoh vs. Koji Uehara

[ Author: Mischa | Posted: Apr 1, 2007 10:05 AM | TYS Fan ]

Those stats don't take into account two factors

Uehara has slipped a bit in recent years while Saitoh has been improving.
Pacific League offensive levels are higher than in the Central League for obvious reasons.

As the stats are not adjusted for league, we cannot use raw numbers so easily.

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Re: Kazumi Saitoh vs. Koji Uehara

[ Author: Christopher | Posted: Apr 2, 2007 6:52 PM | HAN Fan ]

Personal opinion - Koji Uehara. He will be available to move to MLB soon, probably as a free agent though. I don't think the Hawks are going to post Saitoh soon (has he ever expressed a wish to go to MLB?).

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Re: Kazumi Saitoh vs. Koji Uehara

[ Author: mikeplugh | Posted: May 1, 2007 2:10 PM | TRGE Fan ]

Uehara has been the better pitcher in my opinion. It's difficult to compare the two side by side, as their career primes don't really intersect, but looking at some of the more important ratios for pitchers, Uehara is superior.

Consider that Uehara's career K/BB ratio is 6.66, while Saito has only managed a 2.64 and you have clue #1. Uehara's K-rate is 7.97 compared to Saitoh's 7.95, and you see clue #2. Uehara has been every bit the strikeout pitcher that Saitoh is, but he does not hurt himself with walks. His control is freakish. Uehara gives up 7.8 hits per 9 innings, while Saitoh gives up 8. Similar stat lines, huh?

The one caveat is that Saitoh is younger and stronger these days. Uehara is 32 and he has recurring groin and hamstring issues. It a very close call.

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Re: Kazumi Saitoh vs. Koji Uehara

[ Author: Jbroks86 | Posted: May 1, 2007 11:04 PM | SFT Fan ]

- The one caveat is that Saitoh is younger and stronger these days. Uehara is 32 and he has recurring groin and hamstring issues. It a very close call.

The thing to remember is that Saitoh has his share of recurring shoulder problems, and is out again this year until maybe June-July.

With all that said, Uehara is probably the better prospect for a MLB career. Uehara, though, also has had hamstring and groin problems as mentioned above.

Uehara has been on the radar of MLB teams now since 1998. If you remember, the Angels tried to sign him, but he signed with Yomiuri instead.

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