Orix Buffaloes The
Orix Buffaloes selected him with the first overall selection in the 2005
Nippon Professional Baseball draft. Hirano made his professional debut in 2006, pitching innings of 3.81 ERA ball. The next year, Hirano logged an 8-13 record and 3.72 ERA in 27 appearances with the team. In 2008, Hirano did not make an appearance with the major club, pitching in 6 games for Orix's minor league club. He returned to Orix in 2009, pitching to a 3–12 record and 4.72 ERA in 20 appearances. In 2010, Hirano improved on his performance from the previous year, recording a stellar 7–2 record and 1.67 ERA with 101 strikeouts in innings of work. He continued his success in 2011, logging a 6–2 record and 1.94 ERA in innings of work. He also won NPB’s best middle reliever award in 2011. His fine work continued in 2012, with an ERA of 2.15 paired with a record of 7–4 in 70 appearances. Hirano carried his success into 2013 as well, pitching to a 1.87 ERA with 71 strikeouts in innings pitched for Orix. He was not as successful in 2014, but still had a solid year, registering a 3.43 ERA with 70 strikeouts in innings pitched. Hirano also led the
Pacific League in
2014 in saves, with 40. In 2015, Hirano posted a 3.82 ERA with 43 strikeouts in 33 innings across 33 appearances for the team. In 2016, Hirano had a strong year, posting a 4–4 record and 1.92 ERA in 58 appearances for Orix. During the 2017 season, his last before signing with a
Major League Baseball team, the right-handed Hirano saved 29 games and pitched to a 2.67 ERA with 47 strikeouts in innings. Hirano pitched 12 seasons of professional ball in Japan with Orix. He became a full-time reliever in 2010 and was the Buffaloes closer from 2012–2017. In his time with the Buffaloes, he recorded a total of 156 saves.
Arizona Diamondbacks On December 22, 2017, Hirano agreed to a two-year, $6 million contract with the
Arizona Diamondbacks. In his first season with Arizona, Hirano finished with a record of 4–3 with a 2.44 ERA in 75 appearances. He collected 3 saves in innings. In 2019, Hirano could not replicate his success, posting a less appealing 5-5 record and 4.75 ERA across 62 contests.
Seattle Mariners Hirano agreed to a one-year, $1.6M contract with the
Seattle Mariners on January 30, 2020. On July 14, Hirano mentioned that he had tested positive for
COVID-19. On August 22, he made his Mariners debut. In 13 appearances for the Mariners, Hirano pitched to a 5.84 ERA with 11 strikeouts in innings pitched. On October 28, Hirano became a free agent.
Orix Buffaloes (second stint) On February 6, 2021, Hirano signed a one-year, $1.4MM contract to return to the
Orix Buffaloes of
Nippon Professional Baseball, the team with which he had begun his career and pitched for from 2005 to 2017. On October 2, 2023, he recorded his 250th save combined between his time in Japan and the USA. He became the 4th pitcher to reach over 250 saves, after
Hitoki Iwase,
Shingo Takatsu and
Kazuhiro Sasaki. ==International career==