Kazuhisa Ishii facts for kids
Quick facts for kids Kazuhisa Ishii |
|||
|---|---|---|---|
Ishii as manager of the Tohoku Rakuten Golden Eagles
|
|||
| Pitcher / Manager | |||
| Born: September 9, 1973 Chiba, Chiba, Japan |
|||
|
|||
| Professional debut | |||
| NPB: June 9, 1992, for the Yakult Swallows | |||
| MLB: April 6, 2002, for the Los Angeles Dodgers | |||
| Last appearance | |||
| MLB: September 28, 2005, for the New York Mets | |||
| NPB: August 14, 2013, for the Saitama Seibu Lions | |||
| NPB statistics | |||
| Win–loss record | 143–103 | ||
| Earned run average | 3.63 | ||
| Strikeouts | 2,115 | ||
| MLB statistics | |||
| Win–loss record | 39–34 | ||
| Earned run average | 4.44 | ||
| Strikeouts | 435 | ||
| Teams | |||
As player
As manager
|
|||
| Career highlights and awards | |||
|
|||
Kazuhisa Ishii (born September 9, 1973) is a Japanese former professional baseball pitcher. He also worked as a manager and general manager. He played in both Japan's top league, Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB), and in Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States.
In Japan, he played for the Yakult Swallows and Saitama Seibu Lions. In the U.S., he played for the Los Angeles Dodgers and New York Mets.
Contents
Playing Career Highlights
Starting in Japan
Kazuhisa Ishii was chosen in the first round of the 1991 Japanese amateur draft. He joined the Yakult Swallows team. He made his professional debut in the Central League on June 9, 1992, when he was just 18 years old.
Ishii helped his team win the Japan Series five times during his time with the Swallows. Over ten years in Japan, he had a record of 78 wins and 46 losses. He also had 1,277 strikeouts. On September 2, 1997, he threw a special game called a no-hitter against the Yokohama BayStars. This means no opposing player got a hit.
Playing in Major League Baseball
In 2002, the Los Angeles Dodgers signed Ishii as a free agent. He made his major league debut on April 6, 2002. In that game, he struck out ten batters and allowed no runs. He won his first six games and was named the National League Rookie of the Month for April 2002.
On September 8, 2002, Ishii was hit in the face by a baseball. He had surgery for a broken nose and could not pitch for the rest of that season. Even with this injury, he finished the year with 14 wins and 10 losses. He was also fourth in the voting for the Major League Baseball Rookie of the Year Award.
During 2003 and 2004, Ishii was known for pitching better in the first half of the season. He had 29 wins and 15 losses before the All-Star break. After the break, his record was 7 wins and 13 losses. He was also known for walking many batters, giving up 305 walks in 473 innings.
In March 2005, the New York Mets traded for Ishii. He played for them to replace an injured pitcher. He had a record of 3 wins and 9 losses with the Mets. The Mets released him in December of that year.
Return to Japan
After playing in the U.S., Ishii went back to Japan. He played for the Tokyo Yakult Swallows again starting in 2006. In 2008, he signed with the Saitama Seibu Lions.
Kazuhisa Ishii announced that he was retiring from playing baseball on September 24, 2013.
Baseball Management Career
General Manager and Manager Roles
In September 2018, Ishii became the general manager for the Tohoku Rakuten Golden Eagles in Japan's NPB league. A general manager helps manage the team's players and overall operations.
In November 2020, it was announced that Ishii would take on two roles for the 2021 season. He became both the manager and the general manager for the Golden Eagles. As manager, he was in charge of the team on the field during games.
His contract as manager ended on October 12, 2023. The Rakuten team decided not to bring him back as manager. However, Ishii was given a new job as a senior director for the team.
Personal Life
Kazuhisa Ishii is married to Ayako Kisa, who is a television presenter. They have one child named Kanta. The family lives in Chiba, Japan.
