Kenshi Kawaguchi

Kenshi Kawaguchi (川口 憲史)

• Bats Left, Throws Right
• Height 5' 9", Weight 198 lb.

• High School Yanagawa High School

• Born June 28, 1976 in Yame, Fukuoka Japan

BR register page

Biographical Information

Kenshi Kawaguchi has played in Nippon Pro Baseball and for the Japanese national team.

Kawaguchi was drafted by the Kintetsu Buffaloes in the fourth round of the 1994 NPB draft. He spent the first three years in the NPB Farm leagues, and only played 10 games combined with big club. He also represented Japan in the 1999 Intercontinental Cup. When Naoyuki Ohmura struggled in 1999, Kawaguchi got some chances and he hit .235/.270/.417 in 52 games. He improved to .251/.328/.365 in 96 games in 2000. The Fukuoka native had a career year in 2001. He was named the main designated hitter for the Buffaloes, and he blasted 21 homers with a .316/.412/.567 batting line. He was 1-for-6 in the 2001 Nippon Series, and the Yakult Swallows beat the Buffaloes in 5 games.

Kawaguchi extended his stable performance, hit .288/.367/.450 with 13 homers in 2002, then recorded a .282/.362/.484 batting line in 2003. He struggled and only batted .201/.294/.302 in 86 games in 2004. When the Rakuten Golden Eagles was founded in 2005, Kawaguchi was assigned to there. He was mainly used as pinch-hitter or 4th outfielder by the Golden eagles, and he hit .263/.340/.354 in 67 games in 2005. He recorded a .233/.315/.339 batting line in 2006, then blasted 6 homers with a .238/.308/.413 batting line in 2007. Although the Fukuoka native slumped to .202/.306/.277 in the next season, he bounced back soon and hit .306/.381/.446 in 2009. However, Kawaguchi struggled again in 2010, and the Golden Eagles demoted him after he went 3-for-36 with the big club. He announced his retirement after the 2010 season.

Overall, Kawaguchi had hit .263/.344/.418 with 69 homers in 14 seasons in NPB.

Sources

• NPB site
• Wiki Japan
• Defunct IBAF site