Takahiro Mahara (馬原 孝浩, Mahara Takahiro, born December 8, 1981 in Kumamoto, Kumamoto) is a right-handed pitcher for the Orix Buffaloes in Japan's Nippon Professional Baseball. He played in the 2006 World Baseball Classic. Originally a starter, Mahara was converted to a closer partway through 2005 season and has been an efficient closer since then. With the exception of the 2008 season when he missed half the season due to injury, Mahara has recorded at least 22 saves each year since 2005.