A second year of recovery. Exploring the reasons for Ryoma Nishikawa ‘s success | Pacific League

This season shows signs of recoveryRyoma Nishikawa ‘s batting performance by year © Data Stadium

​Ryoma Nishikawa is in his second year with Orix after joining the team from Hiroshima, where he had been for eight years. Last season, his first year as a free agent, he didn’t achieve the results he had hoped for, finishing with a batting average of .258, but this season he has been producing a lot of hits since the start of the season. He has regained the brilliance he had in his Hiroshima days, and has been leading the batting lineup so far. In this article, we will look back at Nishikawa’s data from last season and explore the reasons for his continued good form since the start of the season.

Shows outstanding strength against fastball2025 Pacific League fastball Average Rankings © Data Stadium

One of the reasons for his success this season is his ability to deal with straight pitches. Last season, his batting average against fastball was .259, which was almost the league average, but this season he is leading the league with fastball pitch batting average of .405. In 2023, the year before his transfer, he had a straight pitch batting average of .333, and although he was originally strong against straight pitches, this season he has been able to hit more straight fastball than usual. So, why has he been performing so well against fastball? Let’s take a look at his approach at the plate.

Swing rate increases after transferRyoma Nishikawa Swing Rate by Pitch © Data Stadium

Looking at the swing rate by pitch type, the percentage of both fastball and breaking ball has increased since the transfer. While his swing rate for fastball was in the low 40% range until 2023 when he was with Hiroshima, it has been around 50% since he transferred to Orix in 2024. It can be seen that he has been consciously swinging at straight pitches for the past two years.

Swing aggressively at pitch in strike zoneRyoma Nishikawa ‘s fastball swing rate by zone © Data Stadium

fastball Nishikawa has increased his swing rate against the ball, but last season he even reached for the ball more often. fastball Last season, however, he often hit at balls in the ball zone, and his swing rate against balls in the zone increased significantly from 27.0% the previous year to 37.0% last season. Even Nishikawa, who excels at “hitting at bad pitches,” had a ball-zone swing rate of .206 last season, which did not lead to any results. This season, however, his ball zone swing rate has been on the decline, while his strike zone swing rate has increased significantly. 67.4% is the highest rate since he became a pro, and his fastball batting average in the strike zone is an astounding .480. His willingness to recognize balls and swing aggressively at pitches that come into the strike zone has led to his good results.

Supports fastballs of over 150km/hRyoma Nishikawa: Batting average for fastball pitches over 150 km/h © Data Stadium

Last season, his batting average against fastball over 150km/h was in the single digits, a low figure. His contact rate was also below the league average at 77.3%, resulting in many strikeouts. However, this season his contact rate has improved to 84.9%, and he has performed well against fastballs, recording a batting average of .304.

This season, his 10th year as a pro, Nishikawa played his 1000th game on May 20th, and on the 25th against Softbank, he hit fastball to achieve his 1000th hit. In this milestone year, he is looking to win the league for the first time in two years, and even become Japan’s best. number 7 player is determined to regain his dominance, and will continue to rack up hits to help his team win.

*All figures in the text and table are as of May 29, 2025.

Text and Data Stadium