Ryoji Aikawa
| Ryoji Aikawa | |||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
 Aikawa with the Tokyo Yakult Swallows | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Yokohama DeNA BayStars – No. 81 | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Catcher / Manager | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Born: July 11, 1976 Ichikawa, Chiba, Japan | |||||||||||||||||||||
Batted: Right Threw: Right | |||||||||||||||||||||
| NPB debut | |||||||||||||||||||||
| August 21, 1999, for the Yokohama BayStars | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Last NPB appearance | |||||||||||||||||||||
| October 3, 2017, for the Yomiuri Giants | |||||||||||||||||||||
| NPB statistics | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Batting average | .260 | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Home runs | 69 | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Runs batted in | 475 | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Stats at Baseball Reference | |||||||||||||||||||||
| Teams | |||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||
Medals
| |||||||||||||||||||||
.svg.png){kind=icon}
.svg.png){kind=icon}
Ryoji Aikawa (相川 亮二, Aikawa Ryōji; born July 11, 1976) is a Japanese former professional baseball catcher who currently serves as the manager for the Yokohama DeNA BayStars of Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB). He played in NPB for the BayStars, Tokyo Yakult Swallows, and Yomiuri Giants from 1995 to 2017.[1]
Awards
Aikawa was a member of the Japanese national baseball team at the 2006 World Baseball Classic and 2013 World Baseball Classic. He also won the Bronze medal at the 2004 Olympic Games.
Coaching career
On October 20, 2025, Aikawa was appointed as the manager of the Yokohama DeNA BayStars, replacing Daisuke Miura.[2]
Faith
Aikawa is a Christian. Aikawa has spoken about his faith saying, "There are always hurdles and obstacles to overcome in daily life, but knowing God is there helps me get through difficult times. I wish more Japanese people would find Jesus Christ as I have, and I am thankful I have been able to play professional baseball for such a long time."[3]
Family
His younger brother, Juri, is an actor and model.[4]
References
- ↑ "Ryoji Aikawa". Baseball Reference. Retrieved July 13, 2019.
- ↑ "x.com".
- ↑ "Still on the Diamond". April 6, 2015.
- ↑ "JURI Profile" (PDF). Gig Management Japan. Retrieved March 8, 2017.
External links
- Career statistics from Baseball Reference (Minors)
- Career statistics - NPB.jp (in Japanese)
- 1976 births
- Living people
- Sportspeople from Ichikawa, Chiba
- Nippon Professional Baseball catchers
- Yokohama BayStars players
- Tokyo Yakult Swallows players
- Yomiuri Giants players
- Baseball players at the 2004 Summer Olympics
- Olympic baseball players for Japan
- Olympic bronze medalists for Japan
- 2006 World Baseball Classic players
- Olympic bronze medalists in baseball
- 2013 World Baseball Classic players
- Medalists at the 2004 Summer Olympics
- Managers of baseball teams in Japan
- Yokohama DeNA BayStars managers
- Japanese Christians
- World Baseball Classic players of Japan
- Japanese Olympic medalist stubs
- Japanese baseball catcher stubs