Among Lotte's young fielder, the one who is currently exciting fans the most and drawing the most expectations at the plate is probably first-round draft pick Misho Nishikawa (Aoyama Gakuin University).
Nishikawa was selected to represent Japan in the "Carnext Samurai Japan Series 2024 Japan vs. Europe" last March, despite being a university student, and made his top debut against the European team on March 6 of the same year. In the same game, Nishikawa entered the game as a substitute for Yasutaka Shiomi (Yakult), who chose Walk from runner none with one out in the 5th inning. He advanced to second on Kaito Koen's (Hiroshima) center fielder before hit and was brought home alive on a hit by Kensuke Kondo (Softbank) to the right. He also showed his presence in the first at bat of the day, with two outs and runners on first and second with the score 4-0 in the sixth inning, when he caught the first pitch of the inning by Van Garp and hit a doble that beat third base line.
"I was able to be among the players who truly represent Japan, and I listened carefully to each of them and learned about their thoughts on baseball, and I have incorporated what I learned into my university life. For example, I heard about Kondo's weight training, how he works out every day even when he's tired from a game, and what kind of image he has when he's down two strike and is in a tight spot."
In the spring league games of his fourth year, he had a batting average of .318, Home Run, and seven RBI, earning him his second Most Valuable Player award and being selected to the Best Nine. Over the past four years, he has grown into a star draft player, and was selected first overall by both Lotte and Orix, with Lotte winning the negotiating rights.
"My best strength is my batting, and I can hit long balls, and I can also hit single hit skillfully even when I'm down to two strike. That's my best strength."
With his batting prowess, he continued to make his presence felt in external matches that began on February 16th. On February 16th, in his first external match, a practice match against Rakuten Monkeys, he started as the third batter and left fielder, and in his third at-bat in the sixth inning with starting line-up at 3-3 and two outs and runners on first and second, he said, "Every time I'm at-bat, I think about the same thing, and I really wanted to get runner home, so being able to hit one there will give me confidence going forward." He hit a timely hit to left field with the third pitch, after a one-ball, one-strike, to give the team a temporary lead.
In a training game against Hiroshima on February 19, he had three hit, including his first hit in an NPB external game. In a training game against Korea's Lotte on February 28, in his first at-bat with the score at 0-0 and no runner on base in the first inning, he hitter a leadoff home run into the left-center field Home Run a high fastball thrown by Park Seong on a two-ball count. This was his first Home Run in an external game.
Even after March began, in the first exhibition game at Zozo Marine Stadium on March 6th against Hiroshima, in his first at-bat with the score at 0-0 and two outs and no runner on base in the first inning, he hit a double down the right field line on the first two seam fastball, a two-seam doble on the outside corner thrown by Hiroki Tokoda, for his first hit in his first game, first at-hit, and first hit at Marine Stadium.In his second at-bat in the third inning with one out and runners on first and third base and the score at 2-0, he hit sacrifice fly fly to left field on the third strike, change-up thrown by Tatsuya Matsumoto with two strikes, for his first RBI of the exhibition game.
Even in the last week of the open game, which raises the status of the mainstay pitcher of the first team for the season opener, the batting average was .471 (17 At Bat 8 hit). runner In the final game of the open tournament against The Giants on the 23rd, Tatsuya Ishikawa's first pitch of the 0-0 first inning with no outs strike was an in-course 146 km fastball pitch from ball 1 that he jammed and moved it to the right side of the plate to open the game. 1 strike and hit the second change-up pitch he threw to left field.
Nishikawa, whose momentum was unstoppable, hit a 140 km/h two-seam two seam fastball from Izumi Keisuke on the sixth strike of the seventh inning with the score at 2-1, hitting it to right field, achieving his first multi-hit game in an exhibition game. He played in 14 exhibition games, batting .410 (16 hit in 39 At Bat) and 6 RBI. In external games from February 16th, he played in 16 games, batting .403 (25 hit in 62 At Bat), 1 Home Run, and 9 RBI.
There was not a single no hit for two consecutive games in the outing, and he was aggressive in hitting from the first pitch. Walk was as few as three, but struck out also shined with a high contact rate of five.
Batting coach Kurihara Kenta said of Nishikawa's strengths, "He can hit from a variety of different points," explaining, "His range of hitting is long, so he can hit even if the ball is jammed, and he can hit even if it's breaking ball or a swimming ball. That's one of his good points."
The Marines fans are worried about whether he will be able to continue hitting like this once the season starts.
Coach Kurihara expressed his expectations, saying, "He's a kid who can swing his own way from the very first pitch, and he's good at getting the timing right. He can handle quick pitches, and although I'm curious to see the results when the season starts, I think if he can just swing his own way the results will come naturally." He also vowed, "We'll really support him as much as we can."
The number "6" worn by Misho Nishikawa is the same number worn by The Marines' right-handed hitter Hiromitsu Ochiai, Kiyoshi Hatsushiba, and Suga Iguchi. During the spring training camp in Ishigakijima, he said, "I want to do my best to get results that will make me stand out even more." I hope he will show off the "spirit of a man wearing the number 6" right from the start of the season.
Interview and text by Yuta Iwashita
