Height: 5-9
Weight: 176
Throws: R
Bats: L
Born: Feb 9, 1979, Ehime,
Contract: Signed through 2009, club option for 2010 | | Mon | Tue | Wed | Thu | Fri | Sat | Sun | | 17 | 18 | 19 | 20 | 21 | 22 | 23 | | | | | | | |
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| Newsbreakers |
October 3, 2008
Akinori Iwamura hit a two-run opposite field home run off of White Sox starter Mark Buehrle in Friday night's 6-2 Tampa bay victory in the ALDS.
Our View:He had gone 328 at-bats without a home run but came through when it counted. The second baseman's hit put the Rays ahead for good.
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September 24, 2008
Akinori Iwamura was 2-for-5 with three RBI in the Rays' 11-6 comeback win over the Orioles on Wednesday night.
Our View:It has been a rough month of September for Iwamura who was hitting .216 coming into tonight's game. Iwamura may be getting hot at the right time with the playoffs around the corner.
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September 7, 2008
Tampa Bay manager Joe Maddon is considering giving Iwamura the day off on Sunday, according to the St. Petersburg Times.
Our View:Just a note for those in daily transaction leagues.
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August 30, 2008
Akinori Iwamura went 3-for-5 and scored three runs in Saturday's 10-9 win over Baltimore. He hit two doubles and a single.
Our View:He has scored three runs in back-to-back outings, and extended his hitting streak to eight games.
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July 13, 2008
Akinori Iwamura collected two walks but went 0-for-3 today, and is just 5-for-25 in his last seven games. He struck out in all three of those at-bats.
Our View:Iwamura gets on base enough to justify him batting leadoff, but he'll need to raise that average for him to have legitimate fantasy value in anything other than AL-only leagues.
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July 8, 2008
Akinori Iwamura extended his hitting streak to 11 games on Monday with a double off the center field wall against the Royals, according to the Tampa Tribune.
Our View:He has four multi-hit efforts over the streak, with five doubles, one triple, one homer, nine runs, and eight RBI. Keep him active as a starter while he is hot.
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July 1, 2008
Akinori Iwamura has returned from his three-game suspension and he will bat leadoff for the Rays in their tilt against Boston, according to the Tampa Tribune.
Our View:If you have Iwamura on your roster, tonight is a great night to get him back in the lineup. He is hitting .421 in his career against Red Sox starter Time Wakefield.
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June 27, 2008
Akinori Iwamura's appeal of his three-game suspension was denied by MLB, this according to the St. Petersburg Times. The Rays second baseman will begin the penalty phase starting Saturday.
Our View:An official announcement is expected later today on the leagues official decision.
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June 27, 2008
Akinori Iwamura finally made an error at his new position, second base, on Wednesday night. The Tampa Tribune reports that the Japanese import was shook up about it too. But by Thursday morning he was back to normal. "After the game Wednesday night I was very disappointed," Iwamura said through his interpreter. "It's almost like striking out 10 times in a row." Iwamura's throwing error, which came after a tough feed from Zobrist as Iwamura attempted to complete a double play, came on his 349th total chance of the season.
Our View:His errorless streak of 74 games to start the season was the sixth-longest by a major-league second baseman since 1956. Detroit's Placido Polanco set the record last year by going the first 141 games of the season without a miscue.
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June 17, 2008
Tampa Bay second baseman Akinori Iwamura reports he plans to appeal his pending three-game suspension, according to the Tampa Tribune.
Our View:Iwamura was set to begin his suspention tomorrow night, but now his appeal will not be heard until early next week. He will be allowed to play while he awaits that hearing. This could be a problem for the Rays, as Jason Barlett's wife is due to give birth any day now, and she will be induced on Wednesday if she has not given birth by then. If Bartlett is out and Iwamura does not start his suspension until that same time, the Rays will be without both of their starting middle infielders.
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June 11, 2008
It started as a pitcher's duel but the offense came late as the Angels emerged 4-2 over the Rays today. Tampa Bay managed just five total hits with second baseman Akinori Iwamura serving as the only hitter with more than one, going 2-for-4 with a triple, adding one run scored to the stat line.
Our View:Iwamura left May after hitting .333 for the month but has struggled a bit in June, now sitting at 11-for-43 for the month.
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June 6, 2008
Akinori Iwamura was suspended three games by MLB for his involvement in Thursday's fight with the Red Sox.
Our View:Willy Aybar should handle the second base duties while Aki is out.
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May 28, 2008
Akinori Iwamura went 2-for-5 with a pair of runs and one RBI on Wednesday. It was his third straight two-hit game, all against the Rangers. He is batting .336 in May.
Our View:Iwamura isn't an ideal leadoff hitter, but he's the best the Rays have for the spot. He's good about to maintain a .275 average, and his position in the order should continue to lead to decent run totals.
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May 15, 2008
Akinori Iwamura lost his 11-game hitting steak last game out, but he started a new streak on Thursday as he went 2-for-3 with his third home run of the season.
Our View:Iwamura hasn't really lived up to expectations so far this year but his bat has come alive of late making him someone to consider playing in a middle infield slot.
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May 12, 2008
Akinori Iwamura extended his hitting streak to 10 games for Tampa Bay and the Rays won' their fifth consecutive game.
Our View:The Japanese import, who moved from third base to second this year, is in the lineup for this bat, not because of his limited range in the middle infield.
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May 6, 2008
Akinori Iwamura produced his third straight multi-hit game on Tuesday. He went 2-for-5 with a double, one run, and two RBI against the Blue Jays. Iwamura's average is up to .228.
Our View:The infielder has had a rough year at the plate thus far, but he is beginning to reward AL-only fantasy owners for their patience. Aki's .285 average last year wasn't a fluke, and we expect a similar mark this season.
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April 26, 2008
Akinori Iwamura hit his first home run of the season for the Rays on Saturday.
Our View:The Japanese import has struggled this season, hitting only .221, but it is much too early for AL-only owners to give up on him. He continues to bat leadoff in a decent lineup, which can’t hurt.
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April 1, 2008
Akinori Iwamura enjoyed a strong spring training but couldn't carry his momentum into the new season as he went 0-for-5 against Baltimore on opening day, while leaving five men on base. Hopefully he can get back on track soon.
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March 27, 2008
Akinori Iwamura went 2-for-3 with an RBI against Cleveland, while collecting his second homer of the spring. He holds a .356 average and is off to a solid start.
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March 24, 2008
Akinori Iwamura went 2-for-3 with three runs scored on Monday as he appears to be over the back issues that hampered him last week. Support is growing for Aki in what most pundits figure to be a better season than last years .285-7-34-82-12 line, so it might make sense to keep an eye on him in the later rounds of the draft if your's is still to be held.
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March 22, 2008
Akinori Iwamura will return to the field on Sunday, despite telling the Tampa Tribune he could play today.
"If it was the regular season, no problem," Iwamura said - in English - of his back, while admitting it was "a little bit tight."
The Rays second baseman left Thursday's game with a lower back injury but the ailment is not considered serious. The low-level five tool import will be ready for opening day.
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March 21, 2008
Akinori Iwamura took it easy on Friday with a sore back, but he plans to return to action on Sunday, this according to MLB.com. "If it were the regular season, I would play. No problem," Iwamura said. Iwamura will play second base for the Rays this season a year after he hit .285 with 82 runs scored in his first season in the States.
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March 20, 2008
Akinori Iwamura was forced out of action (in the third inning) on Thursday due to back stiffness, according to MLB.com. The Rays reported that the move was made as a precautionary measure.
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March 6, 2008
Akinori Iwamura led off Thursday's afternoon affair against the Phils right-hander Adam Eaton with a second-pitch home run. Eaton gave up five hits, four earned runs and failed to strike out a Tampa hitter in two innings of work. Iwamura figures to be a low-level five-category contributor this year on a good Rays club.
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February 18, 2008
Akinori Iwamura is ready to make the move from third base to second this season as the team is preparing for the arrival of uber-prospect Evan Longoria, according to the Rays of Light. The report noted that even if Iwa puts up the exact stat-line he did in 2007, he becomes more valuable for fantasy owners playing a “non-power” position. When Iwamura wasn't hurt last year, he was productive for the most part (playing in 123 games) and what Roto managers liked most about the Japanese import was his aggressiveness on the base paths (12 stolen bases).
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February 17, 2008
Akinori Iwamura is prepared to make the transition from third base to second base, where he will be a starter. "Of course I'm more comfortable at third base," Iwamura tells MLB.com. "But if the team needs me at second, I'm more than willing to do it. It's a challenge to me." He adds that he is more comfortable with the whole situation this year, his second season away from Japan. He had a decent rookie season, but there's hope that he'll be even better with the bat this year. With a little more pop and confidence, Iwamura could be a decent middle infielder in combo fantasy leagues.
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