His ERA hasn’t dropped below 10 in 18 games. This is the story of Japanese major league pitcher Shintaro Fujinami (29, Oakland Athletics), who throws a fastball that reaches 100 miles per hour (about 160.9 km/h).

Fujinami took the mound against the Miami Marlins in the 2023 Major League Baseball (MLB) game at Marlins Park in Miami, Florida, on 3 March (KST).

“Fujinami is expected to pitch one or two innings before handing the baton off to Hogan Harris, who is expected to pitch many innings,” said CBS Sports, which reported the news of Fujinami’s opener.

Fujinami took the mound and faced the Miami lineup. It was a good start. In the first inning, he got the first two batters, Luis Araes and Jorge Soler, out quickly with a foul fly to third base and a grounder to second base, respectively.

He had one out left to complete his task, but he couldn’t get that one out. After giving up a single up the middle to No. 3 hitter Brian Dela Cruz, he gave up a two-run homer to Jesus Sanchez over the left field fence to give the Red Sox a 2-0 lead.

After giving up the run, he faced veteran Yuli Gurriel and got a swinging strikeout on a full count to end the inning. He turned the mound over to Harris in the bottom of the second to close out the outing. His final line was one inning, two hits (one home run), four walks, one strikeout and two runs. His only blemish was not getting out of the inning cleanly, giving up a home run. He threw a fastball that touched 100.7 mph (162 km/h), but he was unable to keep the bats in check.

Fujinami threw his hat in the ring for the major leagues this season. His hard-hitting fastball raised expectations in the exhibition games, but once the season started, he struggled. His struggles cost him his starting job and relegated him to the bullpen, where he hasn’t been able to find his groove.

Fujinami’s record this year is 18-2, 6-1 with a 12.19 ERA, 32 strikeouts, and a 1.97 WHIP in 31 innings pitched. He’s been so bad that he hasn’t had an ERA in the teens since his big league debut. He’s also pitched a no-hitter just six of 18 times.

Oakland, meanwhile, fell to 0-4 against Miami. After giving up an early run, Fujinami suffered his sixth loss of the season 먹튀검증.