is a former Japanese

Nippon Professional Baseball is a professional baseball league and the highest level of baseball in Japan. Locally, it is often called , meaning simply ''Professional Baseball''; outside of Japan, NPB is often referred to as "Japanese baseball". The roots of the league ...

infielder An infielder is a baseball player stationed at one of four defensive "infield" positions on the baseball field, between first base and third base. Standard arrangement of positions In a game of baseball, two teams of nine players take turns pla ...

, and current second squad hitting coach for the

Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks The are a Japanese professional baseball team based in Fukuoka, Fukuoka Prefecture. They compete in Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB) as a member of the Pacific League. Founded on February 22, 1938, as the Nankai Club, being the first Kansai t ...

(NPB). He played his entire 19-year career with Fukuoka. He was an active player for the Fukuoka Daiei/SoftBank Hawks until 2022 season. He was the last active position player for the Hawks who played during the Daiei era at the time of his retirement.

Professional career

On November 19, 2003, Akashi was drafted by the

Fukuoka Daiei Hawks The are a Japanese professional baseball team based in Fukuoka, Fukuoka Prefecture. They compete in Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB) as a member of the Pacific League. Founded on February 22, 1938, as the Nankai Club, being the first Kansai ...

in the 2003 Nippon Professional Baseball draft.

2004–2010 season

On May 2, 2004, Akashi debuted in the

Pacific League The , or , or the , due to sponsorship reasons, is one of the two professional baseball leagues constituting Nippon Professional Baseball in Japan. The winner of the league championship competes against the winner in the Central League for the a ...

against the

Osaka Kintetsu Buffaloes The were a Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB) team based in Osaka, Japan, which was in the Pacific League. In 2005 the team was merged with the Orix BlueWave to become the team now known as the Orix Buffaloes. The team played in Fujiidera Stadi ...

, and he recorded his first

hit Hit means to strike someone or something. Hit or HIT may also refer to: Arts, entertainment and media Fictional entities * Hit, a fictional character from ''Dragon Ball Super'' * Homicide International Trust or HIT, a fictional organization i ...

. In 2004 season, he played 7 games in the Pacific League. In 2005 - 2006 season, Akashi was unable to compete in the Pacific League due to an injury in 2004 and surgery on his right shoulder in 2005. In 2007 season, he played 15 games in the Pacific League. In 2008 season, Akashi was playing as a

shortstop Shortstop, abbreviated SS, is the baseball positions, baseball or softball fielding position between second base, second and third base, which is considered to be among the Defensive spectrum, most demanding defensive positions. Historically, the ...

Starter in place of Munenori Kawasaki, who participated in the

Japan national baseball team The , also known as , is the national team representing Japan in international baseball competitions. It won the World Baseball Classic in 2006, 2009, and 2023 as well as WBSC Premier12 in 2019. The team is currently ranked 1st in the world by t ...

at the Beijing Olympics, but on August 27, he received a

hit by pitch In baseball, hit by pitch (HBP) is an event in which a batter or his clothing or equipment (other than his bat) is struck directly by a pitch from the pitcher; the batter is called a hit batsman (HB). A hit batsman is awarded first base, provide ...

in and broke his right hand. As a result, he left the team and participated in the Pacific League in only 29 games. On August 26, 2009, Akashi recorded his first

home run In baseball, a home run (abbreviated HR) is scored when the Baseball (ball), ball is hit in such a way that the batting (baseball), batter is able to circle the bases and reach home plate safe (baseball), safely in one play without any error ( ...

. In 2009 season, he finished the regular season in 48 games with a

batting average Batting average is a statistic in cricket, baseball, and softball that measures the performance of batters. The development of the baseball statistic was influenced by the cricket statistic. Cricket In cricket, a player's batting average is ...

of .291, a one home runs, a RBI of 9, and a 6

stolen bases In baseball, a stolen base occurs when a runner advances to a base unaided by other actions and the official scorer rules that the advance should be credited to the action of the runner. The umpires determine whether the runner is safe or out a ...

. In 2010 season, Akashi played 39 games in the Pacific League. He injured his right leg in a practice match for autumn training and underwent surgery.

2011–2015 season

In 2011 season, Akashi's return to the team was delayed in June due to the effects of surgical ankle rehabilitation. Akashi finished the regular season in 58 games with a batting average of .278, a one home runs, a RBI of 15, and a 5 stolen bases. And he was selected as the

Japan Series The Japan Series ( , officially the Japan Championship Series, ), also the Nippon Series, is the annual championship series in Nippon Professional Baseball, the top baseball league in Japan. It is a best-of-seven series between the winning cl ...

roster in the

2011 Japan Series The 2011 Japan Series (known as the ''Konami Nippon Series 2011'' for sponsorship reasons) was the 62nd edition of Nippon Professional Baseball's championship series. The best-of-seven playoff matched the Chunichi Dragons and Fukuoka SoftBank H ...

, played in Game 3 with a

pinch runner In baseball or softball, a pinch runner is a player substituted into a game for the purpose of base running. Description A pinch runner may be faster or otherwise more skilled at base running than the player for whom the pinch runner has been s ...

. On July 7, 2012, Akashi made an Equal NPB Record by choosing

walk Walking (also known as ambulation) is one of the main gaits of terrestrial locomotion among legged animals. Walking is typically slower than running and other gaits. Walking is defined as an "inverted pendulum" gait in which the body vaults over ...

with 19 pitches per turn at bat. He was elected to the MAZDA All-Star Game 2012 and recorded a hit. He also won the Fighting Player Award for his good defense. In 2012 season, Akashi finished the regular season in 135 games with a batting average of .254, a one home runs, a RBI of 27, and a 25 stolen bases. In 2013 season, Akashi has played only 33 games in the Pacific League due to an injury to his right knee. In 2014 season, Akashi finished the regular season in 93 games with a batting average of .252, a one home runs, a RBI of 21, and a 17 stolen bases. In the

2014 Japan Series The 2014 Japan Series (known as the ''SMBC Nippon Series 2014'' for sponsorship reasons) was the 65th edition of Nippon Professional Baseball's (NPB) championship series known colloquially as the Japan Series. The best-of-seven playoff was won by ...

against the

Hanshin Tigers The are a Nippon Professional Baseball team playing in the Central League. The team is based in Nishinomiya, Hyōgo Prefecture, Japan, next to their main stadium, Hanshin Koshien Stadium. The Tigers are owned by Hanshin Electric Railway Co., ...

, he recorded his first hit in the Japan Series in Game 3. On April 29, 2015, Akashi hit his first reversal

Grand Slam Grand Slam or Grand slam may refer to: Games and sports * Grand slam, winning category terminology originating in contract bridge and other whist card games Athletics * Grand Slam Track, professional track and field league Auto racing * ...

against the

Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters The are a Japanese professional Baseball in Japan, baseball team based in Kitahiroshima, Hokkaido, Kitahiroshima, Hokkaidō, in the Sapporo metropolitan area. They compete in the Pacific League of Nippon Professional Baseball, playing the major ...

. In 2015 season, Akashi finished the regular season in 115 games with a batting average of .263, a 3 home runs, a RBI of 30, and a 11 stolen bases. In the

2015 Japan Series The 2015 Japan Series was the 66th edition of Nippon Professional Baseball's postseason championship series. The Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks, champions of the Pacific League, played the Tokyo Yakult Swallows, champions of the Central League. The Hawks ...

against the

Tokyo Yakult Swallows The Tokyo Yakult Swallows () are a Japanese professional baseball team competing in Nippon Professional Baseball's Central League. Based in Shinjuku, Tokyo, they are one of two professional baseball teams in Tokyo, the other being the Yomiuri G ...

, Akashi He won the Japan Series Outstanding Player Award with a batting average of .438 (7 hits in 16 at bats), 1 home run, 7 4 dead balls, and an OBP of .609.

2016–2020 season

On March 28, 2016, Akashi left the team for treatment without recovering his right shoulder, which he had injured in spring training. He returned to the team on July 29, but his participation in the Pacific League for the 2016 season dropped to 47 games. In 2017 season, Akashi changed his

uniform number In team sports, the number, often referred to as the uniform number, squad number, jersey number, shirt number, sweater number, or similar (with such naming differences varying by sport and region) is the number worn on a player's uniform, to id ...

from 36 to 8. Akashi finished the regular season in 103 games with a batting average of .279, a one home runs, a RBI of 23, and a 5 stolen bases. In the

2017 Japan Series The 2017 Japan Series (known as the ''SMBC Nippon Series 2017'' for sponsorship reasons) was the championship series of Nippon Professional Baseball's postseason. The 68th edition of the Japan Series, it was a best-of-seven playoff between the F ...

against the

Yokohama DeNA BayStars The are a professional baseball team in the Japanese Central League. Their home field is Yokohama Stadium, located in central Yokohama. The team has been known by several names since becoming a professional team in 1950. It adopted its current n ...

, he contributed to the team's Japan Series champion by hitting a double in Game 2 that led to a come-from-behind victory. On February 27, 2018, Akashi was hospitalized with acute low back pain. In 2018 season, he played only 45 games due to back pain, but his batting average was .282, up from the previous year. In the

2018 Japan Series The 2018 Japan Series (known as the ''SMBC Nippon Series 2018'' for sponsorship reasons) was the championship series of Nippon Professional Baseball's (NPB) 2018 Nippon Professional Baseball season, 2018 season. The 69th edition of the Japan Ser ...

against the

Hiroshima Toyo Carp The is a professional baseball team based in Hiroshima, Japan. They compete in the Central League of Nippon Professional Baseball. The team is primarily owned by the Matsuda family, led by , who is a descendant of Mazda founder Jujiro Matsuda ...

, Akashi hit a home run in Game 5 and contributed to the team's second consecutive Japan Series champion. On February 21, 2019, Akashi underwent total spinal endoscopic herniation surgery. On April 24, he returned to the team. On April 25, Akashi hit his first

Walk-off home run In baseball, a walk-off home run is a home run that ends the game. For a home run to end the game, it must be hit in the bottom of the final inning and generate enough runs to exceed the opponent's score. Because the opponent will not have an opp ...

against the

Orix Buffaloes The are a Nippon Professional Baseball team formed as a result of the 2004 Nippon Professional Baseball realignment by the merger of the Orix BlueWave of Kobe, Hyōgo Prefecture, Japan, and the Osaka Kintetsu Buffaloes of Osaka, Osaka Prefecture ...

, and he did somersaults at home base. In 2019 season, Akashi finished the regular season in 99 games with a batting average of .248, a 5 home runs, a RBI of 21, and a 6 stolen bases. In the

2019 Japan Series The 2019 Japan Series (known as the ''SMBC Nippon Series 2019'' for sponsorship reasons) was the championship series of Nippon Professional Baseball's (NPB) 2019 season. The 70th edition of the Japan Series, it was played from 19-23 October. The ...

against the

Yomiuri Giants The are a Japanese professional baseball team competing in Nippon Professional Baseball's Central League. Based in Bunkyo, Tokyo, they are one of two professional baseball teams based in Tokyo, the other being the Tokyo Yakult Swallows. They h ...

, Akashi He participated in defensive and pinch runners and contributed to the team's third consecutive Japan Series champion. In the match against Saitama Seibu Lions on October 31, Akashi recorded 4 hits per game for the first time in 3 years. In 2020 season, Akashi finished the regular season in 63 games with a batting average of .253, a 2 home runs, and a RBI of 17, and a 4 stolen bases. In the

2020 Japan Series The 2020 Japan Series (known as the ''SMBC Nippon Series 2020'' for sponsorship reasons) was the championship series of Nippon Professional Baseball's (NPB) 2020 season. The 71st edition of the Japan Series, it was played from November 21 to 25. ...

against the Yomiuri Giants, He participated in game 2.

2021–2022 season

In 2021 season, Akashi finished the regular season in 57 games with a batting average of .202, and a RBI of 7, and a one stolen bases. On June 24 2022, Akashi recorded 1000 games appearances against the Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters. On September 23, he announced his retirement after the 2022 season.

After retirement

On October 31 2022, The Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks have announced that he will be their coach from the 2023 season.

References

External links

, *
Career statistics - NPB.jp

- Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks Official site {{DEFAULTSORT:Akashi, Kenji 1986 births Fukuoka Daiei Hawks players Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks players Japanese baseball players Living people Nippon Professional Baseball infielders Sportspeople from Asahikawa