Hikaru Kawase
| Hikaru Kawase | |
|---|---|
 Kawase with the Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks. | |
| Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks – No. 0 | |
| Infielder | |
| Born: September 15, 1997 Ōita, Ōita, Japan | |
Bats: Left Throws: Right | |
| NPB debut | |
| May 23, 2018, for the Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks | |
| NPB statistics (through 2023 season) | |
| Batting average | .221 |
| Home runs | 0 |
| RBI | 39 |
| Hits | 111 |
| Stolen base | 9 |
| Sacrifice bunt | 38 |
| Teams | |
| |
| Career highlights and awards | |
| |
Hikaru Kawase (川瀬 晃, Kawase Hikaru, born September 15, 1997) is a Japanese Professional baseball Infielder for the Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks of Nippon Professional Baseball.
Early baseball career[edit]
Kawase participated in the 1st grade summer 95th Japanese High School Baseball Championship with Shunsuke Kasaya and Masato Morishita at the Ōita Prefectural Ōita Commercial High School.[1] He had a rivalry with Morishita, who competed for pitcher and shortstop positions in high school.[2]
Professional career[edit]
On October 22, 2015, Kawase was drafted by the Fukuoka Softbank Hawks in the 2015 Nippon Professional Baseball draft.
On January 5, 2016, He underwent surgery for a broken left hand.[3]
In 2016-2017 season, he played in the Western League of NPB's minor leagues and played in informal matches against Shikoku Island League Plus's teams.
On May 23, 2018, Kawase debuted as a shortstop against the Saitama Seibu Lions.[4] On the 24th of the following day, he recorded his first hit.[5] And he was selected as the Japan Series roster in the 2018 Japan Series.[6]
In the 2019 season, Kawase finished the regular season in 29 games with a batting average of .176.
In 2020 season, Kawase finished the regular season in 70 games with a batting average of .191, a RBI of 6 runs and a stolen base of 2. Kawase was selected as the Japan Series roster in the 2020 Japan Series. And he recorded his first hit in the Japan Series.[7]
September 20, 2021, he was named a starter against the Tohoku Rakuten Golden Eagles and recorded three hits.[8] However, he did not get many chances and finished the 2021 season with a .185 batting average in 21 games played.[9]
On July 18, 2022, Kawase would record a two-run double against the Chiba Lotte Marines.[10] On August 18, he was removed from the first team registration with a positive COVID-19, but was re-registered on September 3.[11] On September 12 against the Saitama Seibu Lions he started the seventh inning on defense and recorded a two-run double.[12] In 2022 season, he finished the regular season with a .278 batting average, 11 runs batted in, and 2 stolen bases in 73 games, his highest number of appearances despite being used as an infield reserve.
In 2023 season, Kawase played in a career-high 102 games, and finished the season with a .236 batting average, a 15 RBI, a 2stolen bases, and a 18 sacrifice bunts.
On December 13, 2023, announced that his uniform number would be changed from 00 to 0.[13]
References[edit]
- ^ "Nishinippon Shimbun baseball news (Japanese) ３年前エースだった兄の分まで…大分商の大型ショート森下、明豊にリベンジへ／夏の高校野球 大分大会". Nishinippon Shimbun (in Japanese). June 21, 2018. Retrieved November 27, 2019.
- ^ "Weekly baseball ONLINE (Japanese) ソフトバンク6位・川瀬晃 スカウト評価は"川崎二世"". BASEBALL MAGAZINE SHA Co., Ltd (in Japanese). November 17, 2015. Retrieved November 2, 2019.
- ^ "Nikkan Sports baseball news (Japanese) ソフトバンク6位川瀬晃が左手手術 転倒し骨折". Nikkan Sports (in Japanese). January 5, 2016. Retrieved November 27, 2019.
- ^ "Nikkan Sports baseball news (Japanese) ソフトバンク川瀬４の０ほろ苦デビュー「空回り」". Nikkan Sports (in Japanese). May 23, 2018. Retrieved November 27, 2019.
- ^ "Nishinippon Shimbun baseball news (Japanese) ソフトバンク川瀬はにかむプロ初安打 前日２併殺打…同郷の先輩が記念球キープ". Nishinippon Shimbun (in Japanese). May 24, 2018. Retrieved November 27, 2019.
- ^ "Nippon Professional Baseball (Japanese) SMBC日本シリーズ2018 出場資格者名簿（福岡ソフトバンクホークス）". NPB.jp (in Japanese). Retrieved November 27, 2019.
- ^ "Fukuoka Softbank Hawks Geme report (Japanese) 2020/11/22（日） 第2戦 巨人 vs 福岡ソフトバンク". Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks Official site (in Japanese). November 22, 2020. Retrieved December 14, 2020.
- ^ "Nishinippon Sports baseball news ソフトバンク川瀬、期待に応える遊撃スタメン 工藤監督「大きかった」". Nishinippon Shimbun (in Japanese). September 20, 2021. Retrieved November 14, 2022.
- ^ "Nishinippon Sports baseball news ソフトバンク川瀬は100万円減で更改 結婚発表で「来年こそやってやる」". Nishinippon Shimbun (in Japanese). December 6, 2021. Retrieved November 14, 2022.
- ^ "Nishinippon Sports baseball news 劇的V打の川瀬晃は「腹をくくった」 直前に長谷川勇也コーチがかけた言葉とは". Nishinippon Shimbun (in Japanese). July 18, 2022. Retrieved November 14, 2022.
- ^ "Nishinippon Sports baseball news 試合途中で福岡へ〝帰省〟 中村晃＆川瀬、1軍昇格の準備はOK". Nishinippon Shimbun (in Japanese). September 3, 2022. Retrieved November 14, 2022.
- ^ "Nishinippon Sports baseball news 「先輩方がつくってくれたチャンス」途中出場の川瀬晃が貴重な2点二塁打". Nishinippon Shimbun (in Japanese). September 12, 2022. Retrieved November 14, 2022.
- ^ "Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks press release 2023/12/13 (水) プレスリリース 背番号の変更について". Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks Official site (in Japanese). December 13, 2023. Retrieved December 13, 2023.
External links[edit]
- Career statistics and player information from Baseball Reference (Minors)
- Career statistics - NPB.jp
- 0 Hikaru Kawase PLAYERS2024 - Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks Official site