BASEBALL/ Giants' Pitcher Uehara Tearfully Calls It A Career After 21 Seasons

Priding himself as a "mongrel" among the pedigreed players on the Yomiuri Giants, pitcher Koji Uehara overcame his underdog beginnings to shine on the mound in both Nippon Professional Baseball and the major leagues. Uehara, whose lights-out relief pitching helped the Boston Red Sox win the 2013 World Series, announced his retirement on May 20. At 44, Uehara was the oldest player in NPB. At an emotional news conference in Tokyo, the right-handed hurler said he was finally calling it quits because he could not physically perform on the mound anymore.