Hirokazu Ibata

Hirokazu Ibata (Japanese:井端 弘和, born May 12, 1975) is a Japanese professional baseball coach and former player in Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB). He is currently the manager of the Japanese national baseball team.

Hirokazu Ibata
Ibata with the Yomiuri Giants
Infielder / Coach
Born: (1975-05-12) May 12, 1975
Bats: Right Throws: Right
NPB debut
September 8, 1998, for the Chunichi Dragons
NPB statistics (through 2015 season)
Games	1896
Batting average	.281
Hits	1,912
Home runs	56
Runs batted in	510
Teams
As player Chunichi Dragons (1998–2013) Yomiuri Giants (2014–2015) As coach Yomiuri Giants (2016–2018) Japan national baseball team (2023-present)
Career highlights and awards
8× All-Star (2001, 2002, 2005, 2007–2010, 2011) 7× Golden Glove Award (2004–2009, 2012) 5× Best Nine Award (2002, 2004–2007) Asia Series MVP (2007) Japan Series champion (2007) 2013 World Baseball Classic All-Tournament Team
Medals Men's baseball Manager for Japan World Baseball Classic 2023 Miami Team

Baseball career

Ibata played second base for the Yomiuri Giants and short stop for the Chunichi Dragons but is able to play at other positions.

After retiring at the end of the 2015 season, Ibata took up new Giants' manager, Yoshinobu Takahashi's invitation to join his coaching staff.

External links

• Nippon Professional Baseball career statistics from JapaneseBaseball.com
• Career statistics and player information from Baseball Reference (Minors)