Otsuka threw a low-90\'s 4-seam fastball (tops out at about 94 mph) that is very straight, along with a hard, late-breaking slider. He employed an unorthodox pitching delivery wherein he lifted his lead leg up very slowly, tapped his glove, then fired to home plate, making his pitches look faster coming out of his hand and thus harder to pick up.\n', '

Otsuka came to the United States after several years of pitching in the Japanese League when his former team, the Chunichi Dragons, used the posting system to solicit bids from MLB clubs for the right to negotiate with him. The Padres offered the top bid, and signed him to a three-year contract on December 9, 2003.\n', '

Otsuka made his major league debut April 6, 2004 against the Los Angeles Dodgers, earning the lost after giving up a walk-off single to Robin Ventura. He struck out Paul Lo Duca for his first major league strikeout.\n', '

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