Right-handers Yasuhiro Ogawa of the Tokyo Yakult Swallows and Takahiro Norimoto of the Tohoku Rakuten Golden Eagles were named Rookie of the Year on Monday in the Central and Pacific Leagues, respectively.
The 23-year-old Ogawa garnered 252 of 273 eligible votes in the CL while Norimoto, 22, received 223 of the 233 votes cast in the PL. The Rookie of the Year is decided by the nation's baseball writers in a vote ahead of the Japan Series.
The 171-cm Ogawa, who emulates his pitching style after Hall of Famer Nolan Ryan, went 16-4 with three shutouts in 26 starts, leading the league in wins and winning percentage.