Ryoji Kuribayashi

Ryoji Kuribayashi (栗林 良吏) is a professional Japanese baseball pitcher for the Hiroshima Toyo Carp of Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB).

Professional career
Kuribayashi was selected by the Hiroshima Toyo Carp with the team's first selection in the 2020 Nippon Professional Baseball draft. He made his NPB debut on March 27, 2021, pitching a scoreless inning with 2 strikeouts against the Chunichi Dragons. After recording a stellar 0.55 ERA in 33 appearances to begin the year, Kuribayashi was named an NPB All-Star for the first time in his career. In 2021, Kuribayashi recorded 37 saves with a 0.86 ERA in 53 games and claimed the Central League's Rookie of the Year Award.

In 2022, Kuribayashi pitched as a closer throughout the season and recorded 31 saves with a 1.49 ERA in 48 games.

On June 6, 2023, Kuribayashi pitched a scoreless seventh inning against the Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters, earning his first win in NPB.

International career
Kuribayashi represented the Japan national baseball team in the 2020 Summer Olympics in Tokyo. He pitched in five games and recorded 2 wins and 3 saves, contributing to Japan's gold medal in the Olympics.