Masao Kida

{{Infobox baseball biography

| name = Masao Kida

| image = Fighters kida.jpg

|image_size = 250px

| caption =Kida in 2012

| position = Pitcher / Manager

| team =

| number =

| bats = Right

| throws = Right

| birth_date = {{Birth date and age|1968|9|12}}

| birth_place = Kokubunji, Tokyo, Japan

|debutleague = NPB

| debutdate =

| debutyear = {{Baseball year|1989}}

| debutteam = Yomiuri Giants

| finalleague = BCL

|finaldate = September 14

| finalyear = 2014

| finalteam = Ishikawa Million Stars

|debut2league = MLB

| debut2date = April 5

| debut2year = {{Baseball year|1999}}

| debut2team = Detroit Tigers

| final2league = MLB

| final2date = August 3

| final2year = 2005

| final2team = Seattle Mariners

| statleague = NPB

| statyear = 2012 season

| stat1label = Win–loss

| stat1value = 73-82

| stat2label = Earned run average

| stat2value = 3.91

| stat3label = Strikeouts

| stat3value = 1,036

| stat2league = MLB

| stat2year = 2008 season

| stat21label = Win–loss

| stat21value = 1-1

| stat22label = Earned run average

| stat22value = 5.83

| stat23label = Strikeouts

| stat23value = 68

| teams =

;As player

Yomiuri Giants ({{npby|1989}}–{{npby|1997}})
Orix BlueWave ({{npby|1998}})
Detroit Tigers ({{Baseball year|1999}}–{{Baseball year|2000}})
Orix BlueWave ({{npby|2000}}–{{npby|2001}})
Los Angeles Dodgers ({{Baseball year|2003}}–{{Baseball year|2004}})
Seattle Mariners ({{Baseball year|2004}}–{{Baseball year|2005}})
Tokyo Yakult Swallows ({{npby|2006}}–{{npby|2009}})
Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters ({{npby|2010}}–{{npby|2012}})
Ishikawa Million Stars ({{npby|2013}}–{{npby|2014}})

;As manager

Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters farm team ({{npby|2022}}–{{npby|2023}})

;As coach

Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters ({{npby|2019}}–{{npby|2020}})
Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters farm team ({{npby|2021}})

|highlights=

}}

{{nihongo|Masao Kida|木田優夫|Kida Masao|born September 12, 1968}} is a Japanese former baseball pitcher. He played in Major League Baseball from {{mlby|1999}}-{{mlby|2000}}, and {{mlby|2003}}-{{mlby|2005}}. He is currently the manager for the Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters farm team in Nippon Professional Baseball's Eastern League.

Biography

Kida was drafted in the first round in {{Baseball year|1987}}, by the Yomiuri Giants, after graduating from the Nippon University high school. In {{Baseball year|1990}}, he won 12 games, recorded the most strikeouts in his league, and was chosen for the All-Star game. He had surgery on his right elbow in {{Baseball year|1997}}, and was traded to the Orix BlueWave in {{Baseball year|1998}} in exchange for Takahito Nomura (who would also play in the majors later in his career). Kida made 16 saves that year.

In 1999, he signed with the Detroit Tigers as a free agent, but was demoted to the minors, and he returned to the BlueWave in June, 2000. He was cut in {{Baseball year|2001}}, and spent {{Baseball year|2002}} in semi-retirement. He joined the Los Angeles Dodgers in 2003, but got into a car accident in March, and was hospitalized (his translator, who was also in the car with him, also suffered serious injuries). He was promoted to the majors in August of the same year, but pitched in only 3 games. In September, {{Baseball year|2004}}, he joined the Seattle Mariners, but only made one appearance in 2005, and was released after the season.

Tokyo Yakult Swallows player-manager Atsuya Furuta invited Kida to play in Japan, and he joined the team in the 2005 off-season. In {{Baseball year|2006}}, he posted a 3.09 ERA in 56 games as a reliever, and played in his second All-Star game, 16 years after his first appearance.

After pitching for the Swallows through the 2009 season, he joined the Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters for 2010–2012.

Kida closed out his career in Japan's Baseball Challenge League, pitching for the Ishikawa Million Stars from 2013 to 2014. The Million Stars held a retirement ceremony for Kida on September 14, 2014. He struck out the side, and his uniform number 12 was retired by the team.Gen. [http://yakyubaka.com/2014/09/16/9162014-bc-league-final-standings-playoff-schedule-updates/ "BC League Final Standings, Playoff Schedule, Updates; Gunma wins League Championship,"] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150714201614/http://yakyubaka.com/2014/09/16/9162014-bc-league-final-standings-playoff-schedule-updates/ |date=July 14, 2015 }} Yakyubaka.com (9/16/2014).