University of Georgia Athletics
Ishikawa Aims For Double The Fun
October 29, 2025 | Baseball, The Frierson Files
By John Frierson
Staff Writer
Any day playing baseball is a good day for Kenny Ishikawa. When you can pitch and hit, that's double the fun.
"If I have a good day at the plate, it's good. If I have a good day on the mound, it's good. If I have a good day on the mound and at the plate, that's almost like the best thing I could ever do," Ishikawa said with a big smile during a recent interview at Foley Field.
Over the summer, Ishikawa, from Yokohama, Japan, transferred to Georgia after one season at Seattle University. As a freshman last season, he batted .318 with 23 doubles while also striking out 73 batters in 66.1 innings on the mound, and he will pitch and hit for the Bulldogs this spring.
"When you're young, you're always doing both," Ishikawa said of being a two-way player. "Up until high school, you're still doing both, and then, I just couldn't decide which one I wanted to do, because I really love doing both. I think I can get better at both, so I just want to keep working really hard to improve at everything.
"I just really love being on the mound and being in the box and in the outfield. I don't know if I'm going to do both when I go in the higher levels (of baseball), but right now, this year, I'm trying to do both and be an impact player right here."
When you're a talented hitter and pitcher from Japan as Ishikawa is, being compared to Los Angeles Dodgers superstar Shohei Ohtani is going to happen. The comparisons are probably inevitable, if a bit unfair.
Ohtani, of course, is, at age 31, already one of the greatest baseball players ever. With every jaw-dropping performance, like when he hit three homers and struck out 10 batters in a game to close out the Milwaukee Brewers in the National League Championship Series, Ohtani makes his case as the best to ever roam a diamond.
The 21-year-old Ishikawa probably won't be the next Ohtani, but he can be the best version of himself for the Bulldogs and whichever teams he plays for down the road. Besides, Ohtani is mobbed everywhere he goes in Japan, Ishikawa said, and that doesn't look too appealing.
"I don't think I want to be that famous, but I do want to be good at baseball as much as him," Ishikawa said. "I think it's fun to be that good — hitting homers every day and throwing 100 miles per hour on the mound."
Wes Johnson, Georgia's Ike Cousins Head Baseball Coach, said he's coached numerous two-way players during his long career, but "I've never had one at a level on both sides of the ball as high as Kenny. Kenny will hit for us and play in the field, and will pitch a lot for us. So, a very, very special talent."
It requires a lot of work to hone and maintain that talent. From practice sessions for each discipline to strength and conditioning, to taking care of a body that is asked to do so much, Ishikawa puts in a tremendous amount of time and energy into being a two-way player.
"It is fun, I'm not going to lie, and I just try to have fun out on the field, but you're going to have to make more sacrifices than others," he said.
Because of the limits on how much time coaches can spend with players, Ishikawa has to do a lot of his work on his own, Johnson said.
"We gave him a really good plan, but like I say, there's only so many hours in a day and and there's only so many hours we get to work with Kenny, and he has taken the plan, whether it be he's with me all day pitching, or whether he's been with Coach (Will) Coggin and Coach (Nick) Ammirati hitting, then he's doing his pitching on his own. It's been extremely impressive to see," Johnson said.
Ishikawa learned the game from his father, Noriki, who was a good baseball player in Japan. He met Ishikawa's mother, Denise, who is from the United States, while playing in Hawaii. Ishikawa didn't plan on coming to play college ball in the U.S., but after playing summer ball in Portland, Ore., Seattle reached out to see if he was interested in playing for the Redhawks, who compete in the WAC.
"I was like, why not shoot my shot," he said.
And that's what he's doing at Georgia, too. Ishikawa said he was sold on the Bulldogs quickly after entering the transfer portal and then talking with Johnson and the coaches.
"It was the coaching staff, for sure, and being able to play in the SEC," he said. "It's a higher level of competition, and I'll be seen by more scouts."
Ishikawa has already been drafted, by the Orix Buffaloes in the sixth round of the Nippon Professional Baseball Draft Conference on Oct. 23. Johnson said some MLB scouts he's talked to really like Ishikawa as a pitcher, while others are more interested in him as a hitter, which is a huge compliment to Ishikawa.
"You know, you very seldom come across players at that high of a level where the room is divided on what they think they can do" as a professional," Johnson said. "That just is a testament to how good he really is."
The Bulldogs, who have been going through fall practice for several weeks, will play an exhibition game against West Georgia at Foley Field on Sunday at noon. The event is free and open to the public. Georgia opens its season on Feb. 13, against Wright State.
Staff Writer
Any day playing baseball is a good day for Kenny Ishikawa. When you can pitch and hit, that's double the fun.
"If I have a good day at the plate, it's good. If I have a good day on the mound, it's good. If I have a good day on the mound and at the plate, that's almost like the best thing I could ever do," Ishikawa said with a big smile during a recent interview at Foley Field.
Over the summer, Ishikawa, from Yokohama, Japan, transferred to Georgia after one season at Seattle University. As a freshman last season, he batted .318 with 23 doubles while also striking out 73 batters in 66.1 innings on the mound, and he will pitch and hit for the Bulldogs this spring.
"When you're young, you're always doing both," Ishikawa said of being a two-way player. "Up until high school, you're still doing both, and then, I just couldn't decide which one I wanted to do, because I really love doing both. I think I can get better at both, so I just want to keep working really hard to improve at everything.
"I just really love being on the mound and being in the box and in the outfield. I don't know if I'm going to do both when I go in the higher levels (of baseball), but right now, this year, I'm trying to do both and be an impact player right here."
When you're a talented hitter and pitcher from Japan as Ishikawa is, being compared to Los Angeles Dodgers superstar Shohei Ohtani is going to happen. The comparisons are probably inevitable, if a bit unfair.
Ohtani, of course, is, at age 31, already one of the greatest baseball players ever. With every jaw-dropping performance, like when he hit three homers and struck out 10 batters in a game to close out the Milwaukee Brewers in the National League Championship Series, Ohtani makes his case as the best to ever roam a diamond.
The 21-year-old Ishikawa probably won't be the next Ohtani, but he can be the best version of himself for the Bulldogs and whichever teams he plays for down the road. Besides, Ohtani is mobbed everywhere he goes in Japan, Ishikawa said, and that doesn't look too appealing.
"I don't think I want to be that famous, but I do want to be good at baseball as much as him," Ishikawa said. "I think it's fun to be that good — hitting homers every day and throwing 100 miles per hour on the mound."
Wes Johnson, Georgia's Ike Cousins Head Baseball Coach, said he's coached numerous two-way players during his long career, but "I've never had one at a level on both sides of the ball as high as Kenny. Kenny will hit for us and play in the field, and will pitch a lot for us. So, a very, very special talent."
It requires a lot of work to hone and maintain that talent. From practice sessions for each discipline to strength and conditioning, to taking care of a body that is asked to do so much, Ishikawa puts in a tremendous amount of time and energy into being a two-way player.
"It is fun, I'm not going to lie, and I just try to have fun out on the field, but you're going to have to make more sacrifices than others," he said.
Because of the limits on how much time coaches can spend with players, Ishikawa has to do a lot of his work on his own, Johnson said.
"We gave him a really good plan, but like I say, there's only so many hours in a day and and there's only so many hours we get to work with Kenny, and he has taken the plan, whether it be he's with me all day pitching, or whether he's been with Coach (Will) Coggin and Coach (Nick) Ammirati hitting, then he's doing his pitching on his own. It's been extremely impressive to see," Johnson said.
Ishikawa learned the game from his father, Noriki, who was a good baseball player in Japan. He met Ishikawa's mother, Denise, who is from the United States, while playing in Hawaii. Ishikawa didn't plan on coming to play college ball in the U.S., but after playing summer ball in Portland, Ore., Seattle reached out to see if he was interested in playing for the Redhawks, who compete in the WAC.
"I was like, why not shoot my shot," he said.
And that's what he's doing at Georgia, too. Ishikawa said he was sold on the Bulldogs quickly after entering the transfer portal and then talking with Johnson and the coaches.
"It was the coaching staff, for sure, and being able to play in the SEC," he said. "It's a higher level of competition, and I'll be seen by more scouts."
Ishikawa has already been drafted, by the Orix Buffaloes in the sixth round of the Nippon Professional Baseball Draft Conference on Oct. 23. Johnson said some MLB scouts he's talked to really like Ishikawa as a pitcher, while others are more interested in him as a hitter, which is a huge compliment to Ishikawa.
"You know, you very seldom come across players at that high of a level where the room is divided on what they think they can do" as a professional," Johnson said. "That just is a testament to how good he really is."
The Bulldogs, who have been going through fall practice for several weeks, will play an exhibition game against West Georgia at Foley Field on Sunday at noon. The event is free and open to the public. Georgia opens its season on Feb. 13, against Wright State.
Assistant Sports Communications Director John Frierson is the staff writer for the UGA Athletic Association and curator of the ITA Men's Tennis Hall of Fame. You can find his work at: Frierson Files.
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