The Boston Red Sox's 38-Year-Old Journeyman Closer Is An Unhittable God-Creature From Outer Space

    Just try to get on base against Koji Uehara. We dare you.

    Erik Malinowski
    by Erik Malinowski

    BuzzFeed Staff

    Delighting Red Sox fans with his wicked nasty arsenal of pitches, Koji Uehara has been lights out this year. His numbers are crazy. CRAZY.

    Al Messerschmidt / Getty Images

    His ERA (1.06), WHIP (0.56), and Fielding Independent Pitching rates (1.70) are all mind-numbingly excellent.

    Winslow Townson / Getty Images

    Uehara has struck out 39% of all batters (94-of-241) he's faced this season.

    Winslow Townson / Getty Images

    Most impressive of all: Uehara has retired the last 37 hitters against him — the longest streak by a reliever since 2007. He has one and a third perfect games going.

    Bill Kostroun / AP

    It's mostly due to a devastatingly effective split-fingered fastball that comes in around 80 mph and dips down at the last moment. Batters this month have whiffed at 22 of 53 splitters (41.5%).

    But Uehara is also working in a nifty rising fastball at times — 89 or 90 mph and you can't help but chase it up and away.

    And credit the Red Sox coaching staff, which has Uehara using his splitter more and more as hitters have been unable to adjust.

    Via brooksbaseball.net|SI|FC|CU|SL|CS|KN|CH|FS|SB&time=month&minmax=ci&var=whiff&s_type=2&startDate=03/30/2007&endDate=09/17/2013

    Maybe the best news for Red Sox fans is that he's already under contract for next season at a bargain price of $5 million, so this'll be a familiar Fenway sight for some time.

    Elise Amendola / AP

    Not bad for a one-time Japanese League star. While winning 103 games over nine seasons in Japan, Uehara also pitched in the 2004 and 2008 Summer Olympics and the 2006 World Baseball Classic.

    Koichi Kamoshida / Getty Images

    When the US sent an All-Star team to Japan in 2004 for an exhibition series, the future Red Sox pitcher met a Red Sox pitching legend of the past — Roger Clemens.

    Nick Laham / Getty Images Sport

    Uehara finally made it to MLB when he was 34, only to bounce around for several years. But he's certainly found a home in Fenway.

    Harry How / Getty Images

    So live it up, Red Sox fans. You've got the best record in Major League Baseball...

    Dominick Reuter / Reuters

    And the sport's most dominating stopper.