Eri Yoshida Eri Yoshida Yoshida was born in Yokohama, Kanagawa, Japan where, she taught herself how to throw the knuckleball at the age of 14 after watching Major League Baseball pitcher Tim Wakefield on television. She stands tall, and her pitches have been clocked at , while her knuckleball pitch velocity measures around 50 mph. As a high-school sophomore at Kawasaki-kita Senior High School in Kawasaki, she threw the pitch well enough to earn a place on the school's baseball team. Her success caused a sensation in the national media, who dubbed her the "Knuckle Princess". In 2008, she signed a contract
Asami Yoshida (basketball) Asami Yoshida (basketball) Asami Yoshida (吉田 亜沙美 born October 9, 1987) is a Japanese professional basketball player for the JX-Eneos Sunflowers of the Women's Japan Basketball League (WJBL). Yoshida has played for the JX-Eneos Sunflowers, a team based in Kashiwa, since their 2006–07 season where she made her professional debut. In her opening season she led the Sunflowers to a championship as well as taking home Rookie of the Year. She has enjoyed much success in this league and has led the Sunflowers to another eight championship titles. She has won the league Most Valuable Player award on two occasions,