Munenori Kawasaki
Encyclopedia
is a Japanese
shortstop
for the Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks
. He played for the Japanese national team
in the 2008 Beijing Olympics
as well as the 2006
and 2009
World Baseball Classic
s.
, a town in central Kagoshima Prefecture
in the south of Japan
. He began playing baseball
after his older brother
got him into the sport. Though he was a pitcher
throughout his early years, Kawasaki switched to shortstop after enrolling in Kagoshima Prefectural Technical High School.
Kawasaki remained largely an unknown on the national level during his high school career
, partly due to his team's failing to make any national tournaments in those three years. Still, he made a name for himself locally, earning the nickname
Satsurō, a portmanteau derived from Satsuma
(the name given to a former province
of Japan in present-day western Kagoshima) and current Seattle Mariners
outfielder
Ichiro Suzuki's
first name for the similarities in their playing styles. He was drafted in the fourth round of the NPB amateur draft
by the then-Fukuoka Daiei Hawks.
for "minor league
" or "farm team") in his rookie
season
, hitting .300 and finishing fifth in the Western League
in batting average
that year. In , his second season in the pros
, he came second (to only then-Tohoku Rakuten Golden Eagles
outfielder
Akihito Moritani) with 29 stolen base
s. He made his debut at the ichigun (major league
) level on October 3 against the Orix BlueWave as the starting shortstop and No. 2 hitter, but went hitless in four at-bats
that year.
Kawasaki hit .367 in the Western League the following year , winning the batting title despite falling short of the required number of plate appearance
s because of league regulations. He got the first hit
of his career on June 15 against right-hander Jeremy Powell
, then of the Osaka Kintetsu Buffaloes, and his first stolen base on June 19 against the Seibu Lions. He was called up to the ichigun team again in September
to fill in for Tadahito Iguchi
as the team's regular second baseman
while Iguchi missed time due to injury and also played in the 15th IBAF International Cup
as a member of the Japanese national team
.
, Kawasaki moved over to third base
, wreaking havoc on the basepaths along with leadoff hitter
Arihito Muramatsu
and Iguchi (who sat in the 3-hole). He hit his first career home run
on July 28 off Buffaloes right-hander Ken Kadokura, and while he finished the season just short of .300, he played his first full season at the ichigun level and hit .294 with two homers, 51 RBI
and 30 steals, playing a key role in the Hawks' league
title and eventual Japan Series
championship.
Kawasaki became the Hawks' starting shortstop for the season, playing in all 133 regular season games and hitting over .300 for the first time in his career. He led the league in both hits (174, tied with teammate and cleanup hitter
Nobuhiko Matsunaka
) and steals (42) and was chosen to both the Best Nine
and Golden Glove award
s. Kawasaki declined the team's offer to change his uniform number
from 52 to 8 during the off-season. (The number is an homage
to Ichiro Suzuki, who wears the number 51; Kawasaki idolized Suzuki from a young age and picked the number because he wanted to "follow" in Suzuki's footsteps.)
Kawasaki had a somewhat disappointing season in , seeing his batting average drop off from .303 in 2004 to .271 and his on-base percentage from .359 to just .326, knocking in just 36 runs and stealing only 21 bases. Despite this, he was named to the Japanese national team to play in the inaugural World Baseball Classic during the off-season.
votes at shortstop for the MLB Japan All-Star Series
held in November
, but withdrew from the tournament after injuring the ring finger
on his right hand
during Fall
Training.
Kawasaki suffered various injuries in the season, twice spending time in the minors to rehab
and playing just 95 games (though he hit .329 and slugged .428, both career highs).
Kawasaki's woes continued into as he attempted to play through an injury to his left foot. He hit a team-high .366 in interleague games and collected 37 hits (leading the NPB), leading the Hawks to their first interleague title and winning the interleague Most Valuable Player
(marking the first time a position player
had been named to the award). However, though he was chosen to play in the 2008 Beijing Olympics
as a member of the national team, he was diagnosed
with periostitis
during the tournament. On August 25, Kawasaki was found to have a stress fracture
in his second metatarsal bone
upon returning to Japan after the Olympics. He made an earlier-than-expected return, coming off the bench in the last game of the regular season (and then-manager
Sadaharu Oh's
last at the helm) on October 7 against the Eagles, but finished 0-for-2 with an intentional walk
(the Hawks lost the game in extra innings).
, Kawasaki attempted to score on a base hit by Ichiro Suzuki in the top of the ninth inning, managing to brush home plate with his right hand while contorting his body
and deftly avoiding the catcher's
tag
to score the tying run for Japan.
While the Japanese media
deemed the play sensational and dubbed it The Right Hand of God (à la former Argentine
football player Diego Maradona's
famous "Hand of God" goal), Kawasaki was later found to have injured his right elbow
on the play and did not play in the regular season until mid-April
.
for the first time as a member of the national team, but ended up playing in just three games (though he went 4-for-7 and scored two runs) due to a nagging left foot injury. Japan came up short in their medal run, finishing fourth behind South Korea, Cuba and the United States
.
) due to manager Tatsunori Hara's
decision to use Saitama Seibu Lions second baseman Yasuyuki Kataoka
over Kawasaki against left-handed starting pitcher
s, Kawasaki was instrumental in Japan's win over the United States in the tournament semi-finals, starting at third base as Japan's No. 9 hitter and going 2-for-4 with a steal and an RBI.
(2004, 2006) for a season.
While Kawasaki is considered by many to be a great base stealer, having led the league in steals in 2004 with 42, his career stolen base percentage
is just 70.0 percent (as of 13 May 2009). Modern sabermetric
theory
suggests that a player needs to be successful 70 to 75 percent of the time in stealing bases to have any kind of positive effect on the team's run production at all.
, having logged time at all four infield positions
(including first base
) in the pros (though he has played solely at shortstop since 2005).
Bold indicates league leader; statistics current as of 13 May 2009
Japanese people
The are an ethnic group originating in the Japanese archipelago and are the predominant ethnic group of Japan. Worldwide, approximately 130 million people are of Japanese descent; of these, approximately 127 million are residents of Japan. People of Japanese ancestry who live in other countries...
shortstop
Shortstop
Shortstop, abbreviated SS, is the baseball fielding position between second and third base. Shortstop is often regarded as the most dynamic defensive position in baseball, because there are more right-handed hitters in baseball than left-handed hitters, and most hitters have a tendency to pull the...
for the Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks
Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks
The are a Japanese baseball team based in Fukuoka, Fukuoka Prefecture. The team was bought on January 28, 2005 by the SoftBank Corporation.The team was formerly known as the Fukuoka Daiei Hawks. In 1988, Daiei bought the team from Osaka's Nankai Electric Railway Co., and its headquarters were...
. He played for the Japanese national team
Japan national baseball team
The Japan national baseball team is the national baseball team representing Japan in international competitions. They are one of the more successful baseball teams in the world, having won the World Baseball Classic in 2006 and 2009...
in the 2008 Beijing Olympics
Baseball at the 2008 Summer Olympics
Baseball at the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing was held from August 13 to August 23. All games were played at Wukesong Baseball Field, a temporary venue constructed at the Beijing Wukesong Culture & Sports Center...
as well as the 2006
2006 World Baseball Classic
---------Pool B:-------------Pool C:-------------Pool D:-------------Pool 1:-----------------Pool 2:-------------Finals:-Semifinals:-Final:-Final standings:...
and 2009
2009 World Baseball Classic
The 2009 World Baseball Classic was an international baseball competition. It is the only international baseball tournament to feature a large number of players from the major leagues of North America and Asia. It began on March 5, 2009, and finished March 23, 2009.Japan emerged victorious for the...
World Baseball Classic
World Baseball Classic
The World Baseball Classic is an international baseball tournament sanctioned by the International Baseball Federation and created by Major League Baseball , the Major League Baseball Players Association , and other professional baseball leagues and their players associations around the world...
s.
Early life and high school career
Kawasaki was born in AiraAira, Kagoshima (Aira)
is a city in Kagoshima, Japan. It is located west of Kirishima and north of Kagoshima. The city was founded on March 23, 2010 by merger of municipalties from Kajiki, Aira, Kamō. As of May 2010, the city has an estimated population of 74,611 and the density of 323 persons per km². The total area is...
, a town in central Kagoshima Prefecture
Kagoshima Prefecture
is a prefecture of Japan located on the island of Kyushu. The capital is the city of Kagoshima.- Geography :Kagoshima Prefecture is located at the southwest tip of Kyushu and includes a chain of islands stretching further to the southwest for a few hundred kilometers...
in the south of Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
. He began playing baseball
Baseball
Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each. The aim is to score runs by hitting a thrown ball with a bat and touching a series of four bases arranged at the corners of a ninety-foot diamond...
after his older brother
Sibling
Siblings are people who share at least one parent. A male sibling is called a brother; and a female sibling is called a sister. In most societies throughout the world, siblings usually grow up together and spend a good deal of their childhood socializing with one another...
got him into the sport. Though he was a pitcher
Pitcher
In baseball, the pitcher is the player who throwsthe baseball from the pitcher's mound toward the catcher to begin each play, with the goal of retiring a batter, who attempts to either make contact with the pitched ball or draw a walk. In the numbering system used to record defensive plays, the...
throughout his early years, Kawasaki switched to shortstop after enrolling in Kagoshima Prefectural Technical High School.
Kawasaki remained largely an unknown on the national level during his high school career
High school baseball in Japan
In Japan, high school baseball generally refers to the two annual baseball tournaments played by high schools nationwide culminating at a final showdown at Hanshin Kōshien Stadium in Nishinomiya, Japan...
, partly due to his team's failing to make any national tournaments in those three years. Still, he made a name for himself locally, earning the nickname
Nickname
A nickname is "a usually familiar or humorous but sometimes pointed or cruel name given to a person or place, as a supposedly appropriate replacement for or addition to the proper name.", or a name similar in origin and pronunciation from the original name....
Satsurō, a portmanteau derived from Satsuma
Satsuma Province
was an old province of Japan that is now the western half of Kagoshima Prefecture on the island of Kyūshū. Its abbreviation is Sasshū .During the Sengoku Period, Satsuma was a fief of the Shimazu daimyo, who ruled much of southern Kyūshū from their castle at Kagoshima city.In 1871, with the...
(the name given to a former province
Province
A province is a territorial unit, almost always an administrative division, within a country or state.-Etymology:The English word "province" is attested since about 1330 and derives from the 13th-century Old French "province," which itself comes from the Latin word "provincia," which referred to...
of Japan in present-day western Kagoshima) and current Seattle Mariners
Seattle Mariners
The Seattle Mariners are a professional baseball team based in Seattle, Washington. Enfranchised in , the Mariners are a member of the Western Division of Major League Baseball's American League. Safeco Field has been the Mariners' home ballpark since July...
outfielder
Outfielder
Outfielder is a generic term applied to each of the people playing in the three defensive positions in baseball farthest from the batter. These defenders are the left fielder, the center fielder, and the right fielder...
Ichiro Suzuki's
Ichiro Suzuki
, usually known simply as is a Major League Baseball right fielder for the Seattle Mariners. Ichiro has established a number of batting records, including the sport's single-season record for hits with 262...
first name for the similarities in their playing styles. He was drafted in the fourth round of the NPB amateur draft
Draft (sports)
A draft is a process used in the United States, Canada, Japan, Australia, Russia and the Philippines to allocate certain players to sports teams. In a draft, teams take turns selecting from a pool of eligible players...
by the then-Fukuoka Daiei Hawks.
Early years: 2000 to 2002
Kawasaki earned the starting shortstop job for the Hawks' nigun team (JapaneseJapanese language
is a language spoken by over 130 million people in Japan and in Japanese emigrant communities. It is a member of the Japonic language family, which has a number of proposed relationships with other languages, none of which has gained wide acceptance among historical linguists .Japanese is an...
for "minor league
Minor league
Minor leagues are professional sports leagues which are not regarded as the premier leagues in those sports. Minor league teams tend to play in smaller, less elaborate venues, often competing in smaller cities. This term is used in North America with regard to several organizations competing in...
" or "farm team") in his rookie
Rookie
Rookie is a term for a person who is in his or her first year of play of their sport or has little or no professional experience. The term also has the more general meaning of anyone new to a profession, training or activity Rookie is a term for a person who is in his or her first year of play of...
season
Season (sports)
In an organized sports league, a season is the portion of one year in which regulated games of the sport are in session. For example, in Major League Baseball, one season lasts approximately from April 1 through October 1; in Association football, it is generally from August until May In an...
, hitting .300 and finishing fifth in the Western League
Western League (Japanese baseball)
The is one of the two minor leagues of Japanese professional baseball. The league is owned and managed by the Pacific League.-History:The league was created in 1952 as the Kansai Farm League, and contained the minor league teams of the seven professional teams that had their homefields in the...
in batting average
Batting average
Batting average is a statistic in both cricket and baseball that measures the performance of cricket batsmen and baseball hitters. The two statistics are related in that baseball averages are directly descended from the concept of cricket averages.- Cricket :...
that year. In , his second season in the pros
Professional baseball
Baseball is a team sport which is played by several professional leagues throughout the world. In these leagues, and associated farm teams, players are selected for their talents and are paid to play for a specific team or club system....
, he came second (to only then-Tohoku Rakuten Golden Eagles
Tohoku Rakuten Golden Eagles
The is a baseball team founded in 2004; it played its first season in the Japanese Pacific League in 2005. It is simply called Rakuten . The team was created to fill the void left by the merger of the Orix Blue Wave and the Kintetsu Buffaloes, after the 2004 season due to financial difficulties,...
outfielder
Outfielder
Outfielder is a generic term applied to each of the people playing in the three defensive positions in baseball farthest from the batter. These defenders are the left fielder, the center fielder, and the right fielder...
Akihito Moritani) with 29 stolen base
Stolen base
In baseball, a stolen base occurs when a baserunner successfully advances to the next base while the pitcher is delivering the ball to home plate...
s. He made his debut at the ichigun (major league
Sports league
League is a term commonly used to describe a group of sports teams or individual athletes that compete against each other in a specific sport. At its simplest, it may be a local group of amateur athletes who form teams among themselves and compete on weekends; at its most complex, it can be an...
) level on October 3 against the Orix BlueWave as the starting shortstop and No. 2 hitter, but went hitless in four at-bats
At bat
In baseball, an at bat or time at bat is used to calculate certain statistics, including batting average, on base percentage, and slugging percentage. It is a more restricted definition of a plate appearance...
that year.
Kawasaki hit .367 in the Western League the following year , winning the batting title despite falling short of the required number of plate appearance
Plate appearance
In baseball statistics, a player is credited with a plate appearance each time he completes a turn batting. A player completes a turn batting when: He strikes out or is declared out before reaching first base; or He reaches first base safely or is awarded first base ; or He hits a fair ball which...
s because of league regulations. He got the first hit
Hit (baseball)
In baseball statistics, a hit , also called a base hit, is credited to a batter when the batter safely reaches first base after hitting the ball into fair territory, without the benefit of an error or a fielder's choice....
of his career on June 15 against right-hander Jeremy Powell
Jeremy Powell
Jeremy Robert Powell is a Major League Baseball starting pitcher for the Pittsburgh Pirates organization. Powell made his MLB debut for the Montreal Expos in and played for them until . In , he joined the Osaka Kintetsu Buffaloes in Japan's Nippon Professional Baseball and pitched for several...
, then of the Osaka Kintetsu Buffaloes, and his first stolen base on June 19 against the Seibu Lions. He was called up to the ichigun team again in September
September 2002
September 2002: January – February – March – April – May – June – July – August – September – October – November – December- September 1, 2002 :...
to fill in for Tadahito Iguchi
Tadahito Iguchi
is a Japanese second baseman currently playing for the Chiba Lotte Marines.-Early life and Japanese career:Iguchi began playing in high school and after graduating in 1993, went to Aoyama Gakuin University where he distinguished himself by hitting the Tohto University Baseball League record of...
as the team's regular second baseman
Second baseman
Second base, or 2B, is the second of four stations on a baseball diamond which must be touched in succession by a base runner in order to score a run for that player's team. A second baseman is the baseball player guarding second base...
while Iguchi missed time due to injury and also played in the 15th IBAF International Cup
2002 Intercontinental Cup (baseball)
The 2002 Intercontinental Cup was held in Havana, Cuba from November 8 through November 20, 2002. Cuba defeated South Korea 2-1 in the final to win the tournament....
as a member of the Japanese national team
Japan national baseball team
The Japan national baseball team is the national baseball team representing Japan in international competitions. They are one of the more successful baseball teams in the world, having won the World Baseball Classic in 2006 and 2009...
.
2003 to 2005
In , Kawasaki started in the Hawks' season opener for the first time in his career because of injuries to veteran Yusuke Torigoe, starting at shortstop as the team's No. 2 hitter. After Torigoe returned to the lineupBatting order (baseball)
The batting order, or batting lineup, in baseball is the sequence in which the nine members of the offense take their turns in batting against the pitcher. The batting order is the main component of a team's offensive strategy. The batting order is set by the manager before the game begins...
, Kawasaki moved over to third base
Third baseman
A third baseman, abbreviated 3B, is the player in baseball whose responsibility is to defend the area nearest to third base — the third of four bases a baserunner must touch in succession to score a run...
, wreaking havoc on the basepaths along with leadoff hitter
Leadoff hitter
In baseball, a leadoff hitter is a batter who bats first in the lineup. It can also refer to any batter who bats first in an inning.- Strategy :...
Arihito Muramatsu
Arihito Muramatsu
Arihito Muramatsu is a former professional baseball player from Kanazawa, Ishikawa, Japan. He was an outfielder for the Orix Buffaloes, but now is with the Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks....
and Iguchi (who sat in the 3-hole). He hit his first career home run
Home run
In baseball, a home run is scored when the ball is hit in such a way that the batter is able to reach home safely in one play without any errors being committed by the defensive team in the process...
on July 28 off Buffaloes right-hander Ken Kadokura, and while he finished the season just short of .300, he played his first full season at the ichigun level and hit .294 with two homers, 51 RBI
Run batted in
Runs batted in or RBIs is a statistic used in baseball and softball to credit a batter when the outcome of his at-bat results in a run being scored, except in certain situations such as when an error is made on the play. The first team to track RBI was the Buffalo Bisons.Common nicknames for an RBI...
and 30 steals, playing a key role in the Hawks' league
Pacific League
The or is one of the two professional baseball leagues constituting Nippon Professional Baseball in Japan. The winner of the league championship competes against the winner in the Central League for the annual Japan Series...
title and eventual Japan Series
Japan Series
, or is the annual championship series in Nippon Professional Baseball, the top baseball league in Japan. It is a seven-game series between the winning clubs of the league's two circuits, the Central League and the Pacific League....
championship.
Kawasaki became the Hawks' starting shortstop for the season, playing in all 133 regular season games and hitting over .300 for the first time in his career. He led the league in both hits (174, tied with teammate and cleanup hitter
Cleanup hitter
In baseball, the cleanup hitter is the hitter who bats fourth in the lineup. Although the third man up is generally the hitter with the highest batting average, cleanup hitters often have the most power on the team and are typically the team's best power hitter; their job is to "clean up the...
Nobuhiko Matsunaka
Nobuhiko Matsunaka
is a left fielder and designated hitter for the Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks.Matsunaka is the only active hitter in Japanese professional baseball to have ever led the league in all three Triple Crown categories in the same season...
) and steals (42) and was chosen to both the Best Nine
Best Nine Award
The Best Nine Award is awarded annually to the best player at each position in both the Central League and Pacific League of Japanese professional baseball as determined by a pool of journalists.-History:...
and Golden Glove award
Award
An award is something given to a person or a group of people to recognize excellence in a certain field; a certificate of excellence. Awards are often signifiedby trophies, titles, certificates, commemorative plaques, medals, badges, pins, or ribbons...
s. Kawasaki declined the team's offer to change his uniform number
Squad number
In team sports, the squad number, shirt number, jersey number, sweater number, uniform number or simply a number is the number worn on a player's uniform, to identify and distinguish each player from others wearing the same or similar uniforms...
from 52 to 8 during the off-season. (The number is an homage
Homage
Homage is a show or demonstration of respect or dedication to someone or something, sometimes by simple declaration but often by some more oblique reference, artistic or poetic....
to Ichiro Suzuki, who wears the number 51; Kawasaki idolized Suzuki from a young age and picked the number because he wanted to "follow" in Suzuki's footsteps.)
Kawasaki had a somewhat disappointing season in , seeing his batting average drop off from .303 in 2004 to .271 and his on-base percentage from .359 to just .326, knocking in just 36 runs and stealing only 21 bases. Despite this, he was named to the Japanese national team to play in the inaugural World Baseball Classic during the off-season.
2006 to 2008
Coming off a championship in the inaugural World Baseball Classic, Kawasaki bounced back in , hitting a career-high .312 and winning the Pacific League Best Nine and Golden Glove awards at shortstop (each for the second time). He was also received the most fanFan (person)
A Fan, sometimes also called aficionado or supporter, is a person with a liking and enthusiasm for something, such as a band or a sports team. Fans of a particular thing or person constitute its fanbase or fandom...
votes at shortstop for the MLB Japan All-Star Series
Major League Baseball Japan All-Star Series
The Major League Baseball Japan All-Star Series is a set of games between All-Star teams from North America's Major League Baseball and Japan's Nippon Professional Baseball. The series takes place every even numbered year in the Tokyo Dome and other NPB home stadiums...
held in November
November 2006
November 2006 was the eleventh month of that year. It began on a Wednesday and 30 days later, ended on a Thursday....
, but withdrew from the tournament after injuring the ring finger
Ring finger
The ring finger is the fourth digit of the human hand, and the second most ulnar finger, located between the middle finger and the little finger. It is also called digitus medicinalis, the fourth finger, digitus annularis, digitus quartus, or digitus IV in anatomy.- Etymology :According to László A...
on his right hand
Hand
A hand is a prehensile, multi-fingered extremity located at the end of an arm or forelimb of primates such as humans, chimpanzees, monkeys, and lemurs...
during Fall
Autumn
Autumn is one of the four temperate seasons. Autumn marks the transition from summer into winter usually in September or March when the arrival of night becomes noticeably earlier....
Training.
Kawasaki suffered various injuries in the season, twice spending time in the minors to rehab
Physical therapy
Physical therapy , often abbreviated PT, is a health care profession. Physical therapy is concerned with identifying and maximizing quality of life and movement potential within the spheres of promotion, prevention, diagnosis, treatment/intervention,and rehabilitation...
and playing just 95 games (though he hit .329 and slugged .428, both career highs).
Kawasaki's woes continued into as he attempted to play through an injury to his left foot. He hit a team-high .366 in interleague games and collected 37 hits (leading the NPB), leading the Hawks to their first interleague title and winning the interleague Most Valuable Player
Most Valuable Player
In sports, a Most Valuable Player award is an honor typically bestowed upon the best performing player or players on a specific team, in an entire league, or for a particular contest or series of contests...
(marking the first time a position player
Position player
In baseball, a position player is a player who on defense plays as an infielder, outfielder, or catcher. This is generally all players on a team except for the pitcher, who is considered separate from the position players; in the American League, there is also a designated hitter, who bats but...
had been named to the award). However, though he was chosen to play in the 2008 Beijing Olympics
2008 Summer Olympics
The 2008 Summer Olympics, officially known as the Games of the XXIX Olympiad, was a major international multi-sport event that took place in Beijing, China, from August 8 to August 24, 2008. A total of 11,028 athletes from 204 National Olympic Committees competed in 28 sports and 302 events...
as a member of the national team, he was diagnosed
Diagnosis
Diagnosis is the identification of the nature and cause of anything. Diagnosis is used in many different disciplines with variations in the use of logics, analytics, and experience to determine the cause and effect relationships...
with periostitis
Periostitis
Periostitis, also known as periostalgia, is a medical condition caused by inflammation of the periosteum, a layer of connective tissue that surrounds bone...
during the tournament. On August 25, Kawasaki was found to have a stress fracture
Stress fracture
A stress fracture is one type of incomplete fracture in bones. It is caused by "unusual or repeated stress" and also heavy continuous weight on the ankle or leg...
in his second metatarsal bone
Second metatarsal bone
The second metatarsal bone is the longest of the metatarsal bones, being prolonged backward into the recess formed by the three cuneiform bones.Its base is broad above, narrow and rough below....
upon returning to Japan after the Olympics. He made an earlier-than-expected return, coming off the bench in the last game of the regular season (and then-manager
Manager (baseball)
In baseball, the field manager is an individual who is responsible for matters of team strategy on the field and team leadership. Managers are typically assisted by between one and six assistant coaches, whose responsibilities are specialized...
Sadaharu Oh's
Sadaharu Oh
Sadaharu Oh, or Wang Chenchih , is a retired Japanese-Taiwanese baseball player and manager. He batted and threw left-handed and primarily played first base. Oh, who was born in Sumida, Tokyo the son of a Taiwanese father and a Japanese mother, had originally signed with the powerhouse Yomiuri...
last at the helm) on October 7 against the Eagles, but finished 0-for-2 with an intentional walk
Intentional base on balls
In baseball, an intentional base on balls, usually referred to as an intentional walk and denoted in baseball scorekeeping by IBB, is a walk issued to a batter by a pitcher with the intent of removing the batter's opportunity to swing at the pitched ball...
(the Hawks lost the game in extra innings).
2006 World Baseball Classic
Kawasaki started at shortstop, mostly as the team's No. 9 hitter, in the inaugural World Baseball Classic and played a key role in Japan's championship run. Hitting out of the leadoff spot for the first time in the tournament finals against CubaCuba national baseball team
The Cuba national baseball team is the national team of Cuba. The team is made up of amateur players from the Cuban national baseball system, as there are no professional sports leagues in Cuba...
, Kawasaki attempted to score on a base hit by Ichiro Suzuki in the top of the ninth inning, managing to brush home plate with his right hand while contorting his body
Human body
The human body is the entire structure of a human organism, and consists of a head, neck, torso, two arms and two legs.By the time the human reaches adulthood, the body consists of close to 100 trillion cells, the basic unit of life...
and deftly avoiding the catcher's
Catcher
Catcher is a position for a baseball or softball player. When a batter takes his turn to hit, the catcher crouches behind home plate, in front of the umpire, and receives the ball from the pitcher. This is a catcher's primary duty, but he is also called upon to master many other skills in order to...
tag
Tag out
In baseball, a tag out, sometimes just called a tag, is a play in which a baserunner is out because he is touched by the fielder's hand or glove holding a live ball while the runner is in jeopardy...
to score the tying run for Japan.
While the Japanese media
Mass media
Mass media refers collectively to all media technologies which are intended to reach a large audience via mass communication. Broadcast media transmit their information electronically and comprise of television, film and radio, movies, CDs, DVDs and some other gadgets like cameras or video consoles...
deemed the play sensational and dubbed it The Right Hand of God (à la former Argentine
Argentina
Argentina , officially the Argentine Republic , is the second largest country in South America by land area, after Brazil. It is constituted as a federation of 23 provinces and an autonomous city, Buenos Aires...
football player Diego Maradona's
Diego Maradona
Diego Armando Maradona is a retired Argentine football player and widely regarded as one of the greatest football players of all time. Over the course of his professional club career Maradona played for Argentinos Juniors, Boca Juniors, Barcelona, Napoli, Sevilla and Newell's Old Boys, setting...
famous "Hand of God" goal), Kawasaki was later found to have injured his right elbow
Elbow
The human elbow is the region surrounding the elbow-joint—the ginglymus or hinge joint in the middle of the arm. Three bones form the elbow joint: the humerus of the upper arm, and the paired radius and ulna of the forearm....
on the play and did not play in the regular season until mid-April
April 2006
April 2006: ← – January – February – March – April – May – June – July – August – September – October – November – December –→-1 April 2006 :...
.
2008 Beijing Olympics
In , Kawasaki was chosen to play in the OlympicsOlympic Games
The Olympic Games is a major international event featuring summer and winter sports, in which thousands of athletes participate in a variety of competitions. The Olympic Games have come to be regarded as the world’s foremost sports competition where more than 200 nations participate...
for the first time as a member of the national team, but ended up playing in just three games (though he went 4-for-7 and scored two runs) due to a nagging left foot injury. Japan came up short in their medal run, finishing fourth behind South Korea, Cuba and the United States
United States national baseball team
The United States National Baseball team represents the United States in international baseball competition. The United States has won the previous two Baseball World Cups, having lost this title to the Netherlands in 2011, and is currently second in the IBAF World Rankings, behind Cuba.The team...
.
2009 World Baseball Classic
Kawasaki played in the World Baseball Classic as a member of the national team for the second time in . While he played in just five games and saw only seven at-bats (mostly as a pinch hitterPinch hitter
In baseball, a pinch hitter is a substitute batter. Batters can be substituted at any time while the ball is dead ; the manager may use any player that has not yet entered the game as a substitute...
) due to manager Tatsunori Hara's
Tatsunori Hara
is the current manager for the Yomiuri Giants baseball team in Nippon Professional Baseball. He also played for the Yomiuri Giants during his professional baseball career from to . Hara led the Japan national baseball team to victory in the final of the 2009 World Baseball Classic.- External links :...
decision to use Saitama Seibu Lions second baseman Yasuyuki Kataoka
Yasuyuki Kataoka
is a Japanese Nippon Professional Baseball player with the Saitama Seibu Lions in Japan's Pacific League.-External links:...
over Kawasaki against left-handed starting pitcher
Starting pitcher
In baseball or softball, a starting pitcher is the pitcher who delivers the first pitch to the first batter of a game. A pitcher who enters the game after the first pitch of the game is a relief pitcher....
s, Kawasaki was instrumental in Japan's win over the United States in the tournament semi-finals, starting at third base as Japan's No. 9 hitter and going 2-for-4 with a steal and an RBI.
Hitting
Listed at 178 cm (70.1 in) and 73 kg (160.9 lb), Kawasaki is best described as a slap hitter, utilizing his exceptional bat control and blazing speed to get on base (often bunting safely to do so). However, he is somewhat lacking in power, even for a middle infielder, having never hit more than four home runs (2004, 2005, 2007) or recorded more than 31 extra-base hitsExtra base hit
In baseball, an extra base hit , also known as a long hit, is any base hit on which the batter is able to advance past first base without the benefit of a fielder either committing an error or opting to make a throw to retire another base runner...
(2004, 2006) for a season.
While Kawasaki is considered by many to be a great base stealer, having led the league in steals in 2004 with 42, his career stolen base percentage
Stolen base percentage
Stolen base percentage is a statistic used in baseball.A player's stolen base percentage measures his rate of success in stealing bases. Because stolen bases tend to help a team less than times caught stealing hurt, a player needs to have a high stolen base percentage in order to contribute much...
is just 70.0 percent (as of 13 May 2009). Modern sabermetric
Sabermetrics
Sabermetrics is the specialized analysis of baseball through objective, empirical evidence, specifically baseball statistics that measure in-game activity. The term is derived from the acronym SABR, which stands for the Society for American Baseball Research...
theory
Theory
The English word theory was derived from a technical term in Ancient Greek philosophy. The word theoria, , meant "a looking at, viewing, beholding", and referring to contemplation or speculation, as opposed to action...
suggests that a player needs to be successful 70 to 75 percent of the time in stealing bases to have any kind of positive effect on the team's run production at all.
Fielding
A two-time Golden Glove award winner, Kawasaki has excellent range and instincts at shortstop and has improved on his throwing tremendously since coming into the league. He is also a versatile fielderBaseball positions
There are 9 fielding positions in baseball. Each position conventionally has an associated number which is used to score putouts...
, having logged time at all four infield positions
Infielder
An infielder is a baseball player stationed at one of four defensive "infield" positions on the baseball field.-Standard arrangement of positions:In a game of baseball, two teams of nine players take turns playing offensive and defensive roles...
(including first base
First baseman
First base, or 1B, is the first of four stations on a baseball diamond which must be touched in succession by a baserunner in order to score a run for that player's team...
) in the pros (though he has played solely at shortstop since 2005).
Career statistics
| Nippon Professional Baseball | ||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Year | Age | Team | G Games played Games played is a statistic used in team sports to indicate the total number of games in which a player has participated ; the statistic is generally applied irrespective of whatever portion of the game is contested.-Baseball:In baseball, the statistic applies also to players who, prior to a game,... |
AB At bat In baseball, an at bat or time at bat is used to calculate certain statistics, including batting average, on base percentage, and slugging percentage. It is a more restricted definition of a plate appearance... |
R Run (baseball) In baseball, a run is scored when a player advances around first, second and third base and returns safely to home plate, touching the bases in that order, before three outs are recorded and all obligations to reach base safely on batted balls are met or assured... |
H Hit (baseball) In baseball statistics, a hit , also called a base hit, is credited to a batter when the batter safely reaches first base after hitting the ball into fair territory, without the benefit of an error or a fielder's choice.... |
2B Double (baseball) In baseball, a double is the act of a batter striking the pitched ball and safely reaching second base without being called out by the umpire, without the benefit of a fielder's misplay or another runner being put out on a fielder's choice.... |
3B Triple (baseball) In baseball, a triple is the act of a batter safely reaching third base after hitting the ball, with neither the benefit of a fielder's misplay nor another runner being put out on a fielder's choice.... |
HR Home run In baseball, a home run is scored when the ball is hit in such a way that the batter is able to reach home safely in one play without any errors being committed by the defensive team in the process... |
TB Total bases In baseball statistics, total bases refers to the number of bases a player has gained with hits, i.e., the sum of his hits weighted by 1 for a single, 2 for a double, 3 for a triple and 4 for a home run.Only bases attained from hits count toward this total.... |
RBI Run batted in Runs batted in or RBIs is a statistic used in baseball and softball to credit a batter when the outcome of his at-bat results in a run being scored, except in certain situations such as when an error is made on the play. The first team to track RBI was the Buffalo Bisons.Common nicknames for an RBI... |
SB Stolen base In baseball, a stolen base occurs when a baserunner successfully advances to the next base while the pitcher is delivering the ball to home plate... |
AVG Batting average Batting average is a statistic in both cricket and baseball that measures the performance of cricket batsmen and baseball hitters. The two statistics are related in that baseball averages are directly descended from the concept of cricket averages.- Cricket :... |
OBP | SLG | OPS On-base plus slugging On-base plus slugging is a sabermetric baseball statistic calculated as the sum of a player's on-base percentage and slugging percentage. The ability of a player to both get on base and to hit for power, two important hitting skills, are represented. An OPS of .900 or higher in Major League... |
| 18 | Daiei | Did not play at major league level | ||||||||||||||
| 19 | 1 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | .000 | .200 | .000 | .200 | ||
| 20 | 36 | 112 | 13 | 26 | 4 | 5 | 0 | 40 | 8 | 3 | .232 | .259 | .357 | .616 | ||
| 21 | 133 | 493 | 78 | 145 | 17 | 9 | 2 | 186 | 51 | 30 | .294 | .352 | .377 | .729 | ||
| 22 | 133 | 564 | 87 | 171 | 19 | 8 | 4 | 218 | 45 | 42 | .303 | .359 | .387 | .746 | ||
| 23 | SoftBank Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks The are a Japanese baseball team based in Fukuoka, Fukuoka Prefecture. The team was bought on January 28, 2005 by the SoftBank Corporation.The team was formerly known as the Fukuoka Daiei Hawks. In 1988, Daiei bought the team from Osaka's Nankai Electric Railway Co., and its headquarters were... |
102 | 399 | 53 | 108 | 12 | 3 | 4 | 138 | 36 | 21 | .271 | .326 | .346 | .672 | |
| 24 | 115 | 449 | 69 | 140 | 21 | 7 | 3 | 184 | 27 | 24 | .312 | .364 | .410 | .774 | ||
| 25 | 95 | 383 | 57 | 126 | 12 | 7 | 4 | 164 | 43 | 23 | .329 | .381 | .428 | .809 | ||
| 26 | 99 | 424 | 55 | 136 | 16 | 6 | 1 | 167 | 34 | 19 | .321 | .350 | .394 | .744 | ||
| 27 | 34 | 140 | 20 | 39 | 9 | 2 | 1 | 55 | 9 | 8 | .279 | .320 | .393 | .713 | ||
| Career | 748 | 2968 | 433 | 891 | 110 | 47 | 19 | 1152 | 254 | 170 | .300 | .350 | .388 | .738 | ||
Bold indicates league leader; statistics current as of 13 May 2009