About Kazuhiro Sasaki
Kazuhiro Sasaki is a Japanese former professional baseball relief pitcher. He played his entire Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB) career with the Yokohama Taiyō Whales / Yokohama BayStars, and played his entire Major League Baseball (MLB) career with the Seattle Mariners (2000–2003). His nickname "Daimajin" was named after the tokusatsu character of the same name, and Sasaki has participated in advertisements and several collaborations with the franchise. After playing college baseball for Tohoku Fukushi University, Sasaki was drafted in the first round of the 1989 draft by the Yokohama Taiyō Whales (now named Yokohama DeNA BayStars) in Japan's Central League. In 2001, Sasaki had 45 saves, with 3.24 ERA in 69 games, and earned his first All-Star nod, as well as received down-ballot MVP votes. He joined a bullpen that had been one of the worst in the major leagues, and during his rookie year won the closer job from a floundering José Mesa. Sasaki's 37 saves in his rookie season with the Mariners was an MLBrecord for saves by a rookie, until Neftalí Feliz broke it in 2010 with 40.
Biography source: Wikipedia. The profile adds birthday-specific historical context from the Celebs Birthday Today editorial database.