Norichika "Nori" Aoki is a Japanese professional baseball outfielder for the Tokyo Yakult Swallows of Nippon Professional Baseball.
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45 Facts About Nori Aoki
2.
Nori Aoki previously played for the Milwaukee Brewers, Kansas City Royals, San Francisco Giants, Seattle Mariners, Houston Astros, Toronto Blue Jays and New York Mets of Major League Baseball.
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4.
Nori Aoki was born in Hyuga, Miyazaki, and attended Hyuga Municipal Hichiya Elementary School and Tomishima Junior High School before going on to Miyazaki Prefectural Hyuga High School.
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5.
Nori Aoki was surrounded by a remarkable concentration of talent at Waseda: his year included shortstop Takashi Toritani, third baseman Toshimitsu Higa and center fielder Shintaro Yoshida, all three of whom would later go on to the pros.
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6.
Nori Aoki was selected in the fourth round of the 2003 NPB amateur draft by the Yakult Swallows.
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7.
In 2004, Nori Aoki saw little playing time in his rookie season, playing just 10 games at the ichigun level.
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8.
In 2005, Aoki enjoyed a breakout year, earning the job of starting center fielder with the departure of Atsunori Inaba.
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9.
In 2006, Nori Aoki was chosen to play in the inaugural World Baseball Classic as a member of the Japanese national team in 2006.
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10.
Nori Aoki made his second All-Star appearance in July 2006 and was named the Most Valuable Player in Game 1, becoming the fourth player in NPB history to win both Fresh All-Star Game and All-Star Game MVP honors.
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11.
Nori Aoki cut down on his strikeouts and drew more walks than in the previous season, improving his on-base percentage from.
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12.
On July 10,2007, Nori Aoki became the fastest player in Japanese professional baseball history to amass 500 career hits, doing so in 373 games.
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13.
Nori Aoki led the league in on-base percentage for the first time and scored 114 runs.
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14.
Nori Aoki was slotted into both the 2- and 3-hole numerous times and even hit cleanup in Furuta's retirement game as a player on October 7,2007.
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16.
On May 5,2008, Nori Aoki was scratched from the lineup and sent down to the minors due to an oblique strain.
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17.
In 2009, Though he hit well in the second World Baseball Classic, Nori Aoki struggled in the opening weeks of the 2009 season, hitting just.
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18.
Nori Aoki got hit in the head by a pitch thrown by Chunichi Dragons closer Hitoki Iwase on April 30,2009, but was found to have no serious injuries upon diagnosis.
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19.
Nori Aoki became the team's first Japanese player to be acquired through this process.
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20.
Nori Aoki's playing time greatly increased over the course of the season due to his fine play and the injuries sustained by many starters.
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21.
Nori Aoki set the record for doubles in a single season by a Brewers rookie.
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22.
On June 7,2012, in a game against the Chicago Cubs, Nori Aoki hit his first out of the park home run in his MLB career.
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23.
Nori Aoki made great defensive plays and got big hits when they were needed, including a 2-out, 2-strike, 2-run home run on September 9,2012, against St Louis to tie the game and send it to extra innings.
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24.
On June 24,2012, Nori Aoki collected 3 hits and 4 stolen bases against the Chicago White Sox.
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25.
Nori Aoki was the Brewers Opening Day right fielder and leadoff hitter in 2013, and Logan Schafer was his main backup.
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26.
Nori Aoki batted leadoff for the Royals for much of the 2014 season.
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27.
Nori Aoki set a Royals franchise record, which was the most hits in a three-game series.
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28.
Nori Aoki collected a total of 11 hits against the Chicago White Sox at Kauffman Stadium, passing Willie Wilson and George Brett's former record of 10 hits.
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29.
On January 19,2015, Nori Aoki signed a one-year deal with the San Francisco Giants.
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30.
On June 20,2015, Nori Aoki was hit by a pitch from Dodger Carlos Frias, breaking his right fibula and putting him on the disabled list, resulting in him missing 28 games.
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31.
Nori Aoki went on the 7-day concussion list, missing another seven games.
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32.
On June 11,2017, Nori Aoki recorded his 2000th career professional hit against the Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim.
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33.
Nori Aoki was designated for assignment on August 28,2017, and released the following day.
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34.
On January 30,2018, Nori Aoki signed a three-year deal to return to the Tokyo Yakult Swallows, where he spent the first eight years of his professional career.
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35.
Nori Aoki was named to the Japanese national team for the first time in early 2006 for the inaugural World Baseball Classic.
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36.
Nori Aoki played in the 2007 Asian Baseball Championship as a member of the Japanese national team.
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38.
Nori Aoki played in the World Baseball Classic for the second time in 2009, having no difficulty playing left field despite manning center field almost exclusively for the Swallows.
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39.
Nori Aoki was one of three outfielders named to the All-Tournament team.
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41.
Nori Aoki is known to be slightly unusual in that he has several different batting stances in his repertoire.
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42.
Nori Aoki has attested to the importance of lower body movement to his hitting in interviews.
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43.
Nori Aoki's throwing arm is fringe-average for a major league center fielder but accurate, and he has a quick release.
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44.
Nori Aoki was known throughout the Brewers organization as a solid defender.
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45.
Nori Aoki is married to former Japanese broadcaster Sachi Ohtake with whom he has two children.
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