Former Los Angeles Dodgers right-handed pitcher Kenta Maeda recently announced that he will be leaving Major League Baseball at the end of the 2025 season. The 37-year-old recently revealed that he plans to spend the 2026 season in Japan in order to be closer to his family while he rounds out his professional baseball career.

Ahead of the 2016 season, the Dodgers signed Maeda to an eight-year, $25 million contract after eight productive seasons of Nippon Professional Baseball. He tossed an ERA of just 2.39 to go along with a strikeout to walk ratio of 3.87 during that span as he prepared for his first season in MLB.

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Maeda’s first season as a Dodger would prove to be his best in LA, ending the season with eventual MLB career-highs in bWAR (2.8), innings pitched (175.2), wins (16), and strikeouts (179). He would hurl a 3.48 ERA on his way to finishing third in Rookie of the Year voting, as teammate Corey Seager would take home the honor.

Although his postseason showing was abysmal at best through three starts, Maeda’s presence the following year would be some of his best work in October in a new role. Maeda’s ERA grew to 4.22 in 2017, but he would prove to be a force for the Dodgers’ bullpen after the regular season.

Across nine appearances in the postseason, Maeda had a 0.84 ERA, allowing just one earned run through 10.2 innings of work.

Maeda was a key part in the 2018 pennant run as well, sporting a 3.81 ERA in the regular season. But after his ERA rose to 4.04 in 2019, Maeda was traded to the Minnesota Twins ahead of the 2020 campaign.

Although the season was shortened, Maeda finished second in Cy Young voting, tossing an MLB-best 2.70 ERA and a league-leading 0.750 WHIP across his 66.2 innings pitched. He punched out 80 batters to just 10 walks during those 11 starts.

Maeda’s ERA would be over 4.00 for his next two seasons (taking 2022 off while recovering from Tommy John), and after inking a two-year deal with the Detroit Tigers in 2024, his ERA would jump to 6.09 by season’s end.

After just seven appearances in relief this season where Maeda allowed seven earned runs in eight innings, he was released by the Tigers. He spent time on the Chicago Cubs Triple-A squad, and is currently with the New York Yankees’ organization.

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Photo Credit: Brad Mills-USA TODAY Sports

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