Kensuke Kondoh
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is a Japanese
professional baseball Professional baseball is organized baseball in which players are selected for their talents and are paid to play for a specific team or club system. It is played in baseball league, leagues and associated farm teams throughout the world. Moder ...
catcher Catcher is a position in baseball and softball. When a batter takes their turn to hit, the catcher crouches behind home plate, in front of the (home) umpire, and receives the ball from the pitcher. In addition to this primary duty, the catc ...
,
outfielder An outfielder is a person playing in one of the three defensive positions in baseball or softball, farthest from the batter. These defenders are the left fielder, the center fielder, and the right fielder. As an outfielder, their duty is to catch ...
, and
third baseman A third baseman, abbreviated 3B, is the player in baseball or softball whose responsibility is to defend the area nearest to third base — the third of four bases a baserunner must touch in succession to score a run. In the Baseball scorekeep ...
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 ...
of
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 ...
(NPB). He has previously played in NPB for 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 ...
.


Career


Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters

On October 27, 2011, Kondoh was drafted 4th round pick by 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 the
2011 Nippon Professional Baseball draft The 2011 Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB) Draft was held on October 27, , for the 47th time at the Grand Prince Hotel Takanawa to assign amateur baseball players to the NPB. It was arranged with the special cooperation of Toshiba with officia ...
. He debuted in 2012 season with 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 ...
. He had 7 runs. On May 30, 2014, Kondoh hit a grand slam home run in the
interleague play Interleague play in Major League Baseball refers to regular-season baseball games played between an American League (AL) team and a National League (NL) team. Interleague play was first introduced during the 1997 Major League Baseball season. ...
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 ...
at the age of 20 years and 9 months, making him the youngest player in the Pacific League. In 2014 season, he finished the regular season batted .258/.295/.386, with a 4 home runs, and a 28 RBIs in 89 games. While not accumulating enough plate appearances to qualify for the batting title, Kondo hit .413 in 2017. Kondoh was selected 2018 NPB All-Star game for the first time. In 2018 season, he finished the regular season batted .3225/.427/.457 (3rd in the Pacific League), with a 9 home runs, and a 69 RBIs in 129 games, and he was selected for the Pacific League Best Nine Award for the first time at the NPB Awards 2018. On July 12, 2019, Kondoh participated the All-Star Game for the second time in Mynavi All-Star Game 2019. Through 2019, he batted .304/.422 (Leader in the Pacific League.)/.400 in 138 games, and he was honored the Pacific League OBP Leader Award for the first time at the NPB Awards 2019. In 2020 season, Kondoh finished the regular season batted .340 (3rd in the Pacific League.)/.465 (Leader.)/.469, with a 5 home runs, and a 60 RBIs in 108 games, and he was honored the Pacific League Best Nine Award and Pacific League OBP Leader Award for the second time at the NPB Awards 2020. In 2021 season, Kondoh finished the regular season batted .298/.413/.472, with a 11 home runs, and a 69 RBIs in 133 games, and he was named to his second consecutive the Pacific League Best Nine Award for the third time at the NPB Award 2021. On August 9, 2022, Kondoh recorded his first walk-off home run against the
Saitama Seibu Lions The are a professional baseball team in Japan's Pacific League based north of Tokyo in Tokorozawa, Saitama Prefecture. Before 1979, they were based in Fukuoka, Fukuoka Prefecture, in Kyushu. The team is owned by a subsidiary of Seibu Railway ...
. In 2022 season, he finished the regular season batted .302/.418/.462, with a 11 home runs, and a 69 RBIs in 99 games.


Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks

On December 12, 2022, it was announced that Kondoh would sign with 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 ...
on a seven-year deal worth 5 billion yen overall. His uniform number will be 3. In 2023, Kondoh would have career numbers in almost every category, slashing .303 (2nd in the Pacific League.)/.431(Leader.)/.528(Leader.), set the single-season Hawks franchise record for walks with 109, hit a career record 26 home runs, 87 RBI, and played in all 143 games for the first time in his career. He also won the Outstanding Player Award for his batting average of .413, 5 home runs, and 15 RBIs in
interleague play Interleague play in Major League Baseball refers to regular-season baseball games played between an American League (AL) team and a National League (NL) team. Interleague play was first introduced during the 1997 Major League Baseball season. ...
. In addition, he was named an All-Star for the third time, and won the a Fighting-spirit player Award in Game 1 of the Mynavi All-Star Game 2023. This campaign got him close to winning an offensive Triple Crown, which would have made him the first player to win the offensive Triple Crown in the Pacific League since
Nobuhiko Matsunaka is a former left fielder and designated hitter for the Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks. He is currently the hitting coach for the Chunichi Dragons in Japan's Nippon Professional Baseball league. He played in the Baseball at the 1996 Summer Olympics, 199 ...
in 2004, however a breakout season by Yuma Tongu ending in a close race for the Batting Title which Tongu won prevented him from winning it. On November 28, 2023, Kondoh won the Pacific League Home run Leader Award with 26 home runs, the Pacific League RBI Leader Award with 87 RBI, his third the Pacific League OBP Leader Award with an OBP of .431, his fourth the Best Nine Award, and the Pacific League Golden Glove Award and is honored at the NPB Awards 2023. Kondoh made 129 appearances for Fukuoka in 2024, slashing .314/.439/.521 with 19 home runs, 72 RBI, and 11 stolen bases. Following the season, he was named the Pacific League MVP.


International career

Kondoh represented 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 ...
in the
2017 Asia Professional Baseball Championship The 2017 Asia Professional Baseball Championship (APBC 2017), sanctioned by the World Baseball Softball Confederation The World Baseball Softball Confederation (WBSC) is the international Sports governing body, governing body for the sports ...
, 2019 exhibition games against
Mexico Mexico, officially the United Mexican States, is a country in North America. It is the northernmost country in Latin America, and borders the United States to the north, and Guatemala and Belize to the southeast; while having maritime boundar ...
, and
2019 WBSC Premier12 The 2019 WBSC Premier12 was an international baseball championship featuring the 12 highest-ranked national teams in the world, held by the World Baseball Softball Confederation (WBSC). It was the second WBSC Premier12 event. The championship w ...
. On February 27, 2019, he was selected at the 2019 exhibition games against Mexico. On October 1, 2019, he was selected at the
2019 WBSC Premier12 The 2019 WBSC Premier12 was an international baseball championship featuring the 12 highest-ranked national teams in the world, held by the World Baseball Softball Confederation (WBSC). It was the second WBSC Premier12 event. The championship w ...
. He led the tournament with nine walks. On January 6, 2023, Kondoh was chosen to participate
2023 World Baseball Classic The 2023 World Baseball Classic (WBC) was an international professional baseball tournament and the fifth iteration of the World Baseball Classic. It began on March 8, 2023, and ran until March 21. It was originally scheduled to take place in ...
as a member of Japan national baseball team. He contributed to the team's championship with a batting average of .346, a 2 home runs, a OBP of .500, and an OPS of 1.115.


References


External links


Career statistics - NPB.jp


- Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks Official site {{DEFAULTSORT:Kondo, Kensuke 1993 births Living people Baseball people from Chiba Prefecture Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters players Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks players Nippon Professional Baseball catchers Nippon Professional Baseball designated hitters 2019 WBSC Premier12 players Baseball players at the 2020 Summer Olympics 2023 World Baseball Classic players Olympic baseball players for Japan Olympic medalists in baseball Olympic gold medalists for Japan Medalists at the 2020 Summer Olympics World Baseball Classic players of Japan