FUKUOKA (Kyodo) -- Veteran southpaw Tsuyoshi Wada has decided to retire after 22 years in professional baseball, the Pacific League champion SoftBank Hawks said Tuesday.

The 43-year-old posted a 160-89 record with a 3.18 ERA over 334 games with the Hawks, his only club in Japan, while he was 5-5 over two seasons from 2014 with the Chicago Cubs in Major League Baseball.

"I felt strongly this year that my role as a player was coming to an end," Wada told a press conference at Mizuho PayPay Dome, the Hawks' home ballpark. "Toward the end, I was thinking my body was getting worn out."

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Wada joined the then Daiei Hawks in 2003 when he won the Rookie of the Year and reached double digits in wins in each of his first five seasons. He led the PL with 17 wins in 2010 when he was also named its MVP.

After returning from the United States, Wada led the PL with 15 wins in 2016, and logged eight wins in both 2020 and 2023.

He was troubled by injuries this year as he went 2-2 throwing in eight games. He was back pitching as a reliever toward the end of the regular season before suffering a left leg injury that ruled him out of postseason action.

Wada won the inaugural World Baseball Classic with Japan in 2006, and was also part of the national team roster which won the bronze medal at the 2004 Athens Olympics.