Katsuhiro Nagakawa

From BR Bullpen

Katsuhiro Nagakawa (永川 勝浩)

  • Bats Right, Throws Right
  • Height 6' 2", Weight 205 lb.

BR register page

Biographical Information[edit]

Katsuhiro Nagakawa pitched for the Hiroshima Carp in Nippon Pro Baseball for 15 years.

Nagakawa was a first-round pick in the 2002 NPB draft by the Carp out of college. He debuted in 2003, going 3-3 with 25 saves and a 3.89 ERA. In 41 2/3 innings, he struck out 50. The rookie made the Central League All-Star team, and he pitched a shutout inning in the 2003 NPB All-Star Game 1. He tied Jeff Williams for second in the CL in saves, trailing only Shingo Takatsu. In 2004, the right-hander collapsed, going 3-4 with 4 saves and a 7.99 ERA. He gave up 10 home runs in just 41 2/3 innings and Kan Otake replaced him as the Hiroshima closer. John Bale became the closer in 2005 while Nagakawa improved in a relief role, and he was 3-5 with 14 holds and 2 saves. He recorded a 3.13 ERA, and he collected 79 K in 69 innings.

The Miyoshi native took the closer job back from Bale in 2006 and excelled. He went 5-6 with 27 saves and a 1.66 ERA. In 70 2/3 innings, he allowed only 45 hits for a .180 average. His 75 appearances tied Takeharu Kato for the league lead, and tied Marc Kroon for second in the league in saves, trailing only Hitoki Iwase. Nagakawa made his second CL All-Star squad, and he fanned 2 in one inning in the 2006 NPB All-Star Game 2 to get the win. In 2007, the Carp closer went 4-7 with 31 saves and a 3.08 ERA in 61 games. He fanned 74 in 61 2/3 innings and allowed a .225 average. He tied Kroon for 4th in the circuit in games saved, and he tied Iwase for 6th in appearances.

Nagakawa had another great year in 2008, going 4-1 with 38 saves and a 1.77 ERA. He gave up a scant 33 hits in 61 innings and struck out 64 batters. Opponents hit just .158 against him. He tied Kyuji Fujikawa for second in saves (behind only Kroon), and he was 10th in appearances (56). Nagakawa was on Japan's provisional roster for the 2009 World Baseball Classic, but he didn't made it onto Japan's 28-man roster. He was still reliable in 2009, and he collected 36 saves with a 2.973 ERA in 56 relief outings. Nakagawa was 2nd in saves (5 behind Iwase) and 10th in games (tied with Ryota Igarashi and Kentaro Takasaki). He was also voted into the 2009 NPB All-Star Game, and he surrendered 2 runs in an inning in Game 2. He broke Yutaka Ono's Carp team record with his 139th save on May 12, and he was the first Carp closer to get 30 saves in three straight seasons.

The closer of Hiroshima suffered from adductor injuries in 2010, so he only pitched 10 games with a 3.97 ERA. He struggled again as his ERA was 5.16 in 19 games in 2011, and he missed the entire 2012 season. Nakagawa then collected 13 holds with a 2.04 ERA in 29 games in 2013, and he pitched 52 games with a 4.04 ERA and 15 holds in 2014. He notched 9 holds with a 4.78 ERA in 26 games in 2015, but his ERA rose to 6.30 in 11 games in 2016. He missed the 2017 season due to a left knee injury, and he recorded a 4.82 ERA in 22 appearances in 2018. Nakagawa announced his retirement after the 2019 season, and he became the pitching coach of the Carp in 2021.

Overall, Nakagawa went 38-42 with a 3.46 ERA, collected 165 saves and 79 holds in 527 appearances, struck out 605 and pitched 582 innings in 15 seasons in NPB. He threw a forkball and a fastball (peak speed of 95 mph). As of 2025, he was 83rd in appearances (between Tadashi Wakabayashi and Shigeru Sugishita) and 17th in saves (between Hisashi Takeda and Hirotoshi Masui).

Sources[edit]

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