Akinori Iwamura
| Akinori Iwamura | |||
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Iwamura with the Tohoku Rakuten Golden Eagles
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| Fukushima Hopes – No. 1 | |||
| Infielder | |||
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Born: February 9, 1979 Uwajima, Ehime, Japan |
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| Professional debut | |||
| NPB: May 19, 1998, for the Yakult Swallows | |||
| MLB: April 2, 2007, for the Tampa Bay Devil Rays | |||
| NPB statistics (through 2014) |
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| Batting average | .290 | ||
| Hits | 1,172 | ||
| Home runs | 193 | ||
| Runs batted in | 615 | ||
| MLB statistics (through 2010 season) |
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| Batting average | .267 | ||
| Hits | 413 | ||
| Runs batted in | 117 | ||
| Teams | |||
| Career highlights and awards | |||
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| Medal record | ||
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Representing  Japan
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| Men's Baseball | ||
| World Baseball Classic | ||
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2006 San Diego | Team Competition |
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2009 Los Angeles | Team Competition |
| Intercontinental Cup | ||
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1999 Sydney | Team Competition |
Akinori Iwamura (岩村 明憲 Iwamura Akinori?, born February 9, 1979) is a Japanese baseball infielder, who currently is a player-manager for the Fukushima Hopes in Japan's Baseball Challenge League. He made his Major League debut with the Tampa Bay Devil Rays in 2007. He earned the nickname "Aki" while in the United States. His nickname is "Gan-chan" in Japan.
Iwamura was born on February 9, 1979, in Uwajima, Japan, in Ehime Prefecture. He attended Uwajima Hagashi high school. He played in the Philippines on the Japan National high school baseball team.
His older brother, Takashi Iwamura, was also a professional baseball player who spent two seasons in the Kintetsu Buffaloes' farm system. Both drafted in 1997.
On July 10, 2007, Iwamura's wife Misaki gave birth to their first son, Taiki.
Iwamura was a third baseman for the Tokyo Yakult Swallows in the Japanese Central League. He represented Japan in the 2006 World Baseball Classic, and was nicknamed "Japanese Lightning".
He played in the Central League from 1998 to 2006 and won six Golden Glove awards at third base. He also hit 106 home runs in his last three seasons in the Central League, including 32 (with a .311 batting average) in 2006. His best season was 2004, when he hit 44 home runs with 103 RBI and a .300 batting average. In that same season, he also set the Japanese baseball record for strikeouts with 173.
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