So Taguchi

Full Name: So Taguchi	Primary Position: OF,LF,CF,RF
Height/Weight: 5' 10"/163	First Game: June 10, 2002
Birthdate: July 2, 1969	MLB Experience: 5 years
Birthplace: Hyogo Prefecture, Japan
Bat/Throw: Right/Right

Biography[]

So Taguchi was born and raised in Nishinomiya, Hyogo, Japan. He graduated from Kwansei Gakuin University in his hometown, with a Bachelor of Arts in Business Administration. He was a teammate of Ichiro Suzuki when the two played for the Orix BlueWave in the Pacific League of NPB. Although he was drafted by the BlueWave as an infielder, he was moved to the outfield because he was diagnosed with the yips, or throwing psychoneurosis, by a manager when he was a rookie. His transition to the outfield has made him an all-star.

He made his Major League debut on June 10, 2002 for the St. Louis Cardinals. In 2004, his rookie year, he hit .291 with 3 home runs and 25 RBI. Taguchi played for the St. Louis Cardinals for his entire 5 year career.

He was signed by the St. Louis Cardinals as a free agent in 2002 at the age of 33, a year in which he rose through the minor league system, playing for the New Haven Ravens and the Memphis Redbirds, compiling a .262 batting average, with 6 home runs and 51 runs batted in. He eventually earned his call-up on September 7, and recorded the first hit of his major league career in the second inning against the Chicago Cubs. Taguchi became the first Japanese-born player in Cardinal history.

Taguchi got another brief call-up in 2003, then got more playing time with the 2004 Cardinals, appearing in 109 games. He was included on the '04 Cardinals postseason roster, and appeared in two games of the 2004 World Series, which the Cardinals lost to the Boston Red Sox in a four-game sweep. In 2005, injuries to outfielders Larry Walker and Reggie Sanders opened up manager Tony LaRussa's lineup card, and Taguchi became an everyday player. He responded with his best season, batting .288 in 396 at-bats with eight home runs and fifty-three RBI, and contributing with his stellar defense at all three outfield positions as the Cardinals won 100 games and had the best record in the National League. He chose the number 99 because he originally wanted number 66 but couldn't have it so turned it upside down to become 99.

Most people believe that So Taguchi's best season was 2005, when he hit for a .288 average and knocked in 53 runs.

Scouting Report[]

Statistics[]

Career Highlights[]

National League Champion (2004, 2006 St. Louis Cardinals)
World Series Champion (2006 St. Louis Cardinals)

Batting Stats[]

Year	Team		G	AB	R	H	HR	RBI	AVG	OBP	SLG	2B	3B	BB	SO	HBP	SH	SB	IBB	GDP
2002	STL	N	19	15	4	6	0	2	.400	.471	.400	0	0	2	1	0	2	1	0	0
2003	STL	N	43	54	9	14	3	13	.259	.310	.519	3	1	4	11	0	1	0	1	2
2004	STL	N	109	179	26	52	3	25	.291	.337	.419	10	2	12	23	2	10	6	1	6
2005	STL	N	143	396	45	114	8	53	.288	.322	.412	21	2	20	62	2	2	11	2	11
2006	STL	N	134	316	46	84	2	31	.266	.335	.351	19	1	32	48	2	9	11	1	9
2007	STL	N	130	307	48	89	3	30	.290	.350	.368	15	0	23	32	6	3	7	0	10
Total			578	1267	178	359	19	154	.283	.336	.391	68	6	93	177	12	27	36	5	38

Fielding Stats[]

Year	Team		POS	G	GS	INN	PO	A	ERR	DP	AVG
2002	STL	N	OF	14	2	36.2	11	2	1	0	.929
2002	STL	N	LF	8	0	11.2	3	0	1	0	.750
2002	STL	N	CF	6	2	25	8	2	0	0	1.000
2003	STL	N	OF	38	8	114.2	30	2	0	1	1.000
2003	STL	N	LF	11	2	27.1	6	0	0	0	1.000
2003	STL	N	CF	16	5	58.2	19	2	0	1	1.000
2003	STL	N	2B	1	0	2	0	0	0	0	.000
2003	STL	N	RF	13	1	28.2	5	0	0	0	1.000
2004	STL	N	OF	103	36	445	99	1	2	0	.980
2004	STL	N	RF	28	3	76.1	16	1	0	0	1.000
2004	STL	N	LF	53	15	192	40	0	2	0	.952
2004	STL	N	CF	31	18	176.2	43	0	0	0	1.000
2005	STL	N	LF	52	27	280.1	50	2	0	1	1.000
2005	STL	N	OF	131	90	873	183	5	2	1	.989
2005	STL	N	CF	50	28	274	58	0	0	0	1.000
2005	STL	N	RF	57	35	318.2	75	3	2	0	.975
2006	STL	N	LF	70	35	361.2	87	1	1	0	.989
2006	STL	N	DH	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	.000
2006	STL	N	CF	59	35	353.1	90	2	5	0	.948
2006	STL	N	2B	1	0	2	1	1	0	0	1.000
2006	STL	N	OF	123	71	734.2	182	3	6	0	.969
2006	STL	N	RF	7	1	19.2	5	0	0	0	1.000
2007	STL	N	OF	109	64	616	172	3	3	2	.983
2007	STL	N	CF	63	41	380.1	118	1	1	1	.992
2007	STL	N	LF	41	21	212.1	49	2	2	1	.962
2007	STL	N	RF	8	2	23.1	5	0	0	0	1.000
2007	STL	N	2B	1	0	2	1	0	1	0	.500
Total			CF	225	129	1268	336	7	6	2	.983
Total			OF	518	271	2820	677	16	14	4	.980
Total			DH	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	.000
Total			RF	113	42	466.2	106	4	2	0	.982
Total			2B	3	0	6	2	1	1	0	.750
Total			LF	235	100	1085.1	235	5	6	2	.976

Transactions[]

Signed as a non-drafted free agent by St. Louis Cardinals (January 29, 2002).
Granted free agency (December 21, 2004).
Signed by St. Louis Cardinals (December 22, 2004).

So Taguchi

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