Shuta Ishikawa


Shuta Ishikawa is a professional Japanese baseball player. He plays pitcher for the Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks.

Professional career

On October 24, 2013, Ishikawa was drafted as developmental squad player by the Fukuoka Softbank Hawks in the 2013 Nippon Professional Baseball draft.
From 2014 to 2016, he played in informal matches against Shikoku Island League Plus's teams and amateur baseball teams, and played in the Western League of NPB minor leagues.
On July 1, 2016, he signed a 5 million yen contract with the Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks as a registered player under management.
On April 4, 2017, Ishikawa pitched his debut game against the Tohoku Rakuten Golden Eagles as a relief pitcher. On May 31, he won the game as a starting pitcher for the first time. In 2017 season, he finished the regular season with a 34 Games pitched, a 8–3 Win–loss record, a 3.29 ERA, a one Holds, a 99 strikeouts in 98 1/3 innings. In post season, he pitched against the Yokohama DeNA BayStars as a relief pitcher in the 2017 Japan Series, and won the game for the first time in the Japan Series on October 31.
In 2018 season, Ishikawa finished the regular season with a 42 Games pitched, a 13–6 Win–loss record, a 3.60 ERA, a 6 Holds, a 96 strikeouts in 127 1/3 innings. On October 10, he was selected Japan national baseball team at the 2018 MLB Japan All-Star Series, but on November 2, he canceled his participation. And he pitched against the Hiroshima Toyo Carp as a relief pitcher in the 2018 Japan Series, but he felt uncomfortable on his right elbow and left the bench on October 31.
Ishikawa developed right elbow pain in April and spent most of the 2019 season in rehabilitation. He made a comeback on September 23, but only pitched two games in the 2019 season. However, he pitched as a relief pitcher and won in the 2019 Japan Series against the Yomiuri Giants, contributing to the team's third consecutive victory.