is a retired Japanese professional baseball player. He currently is a coach for the Yokohama DeNA BayStars. He batted left-handed and threw right-handed. Ishii was regarded as one of the best Japanese shortstops of the late 1990s and early 2000s. Though late in his career his stats declined due to age, he still contributed with his precise fielding and solid batting abilities, as well as his veteran leadership. Ishii entered the professional leagues with the Yokohama Taiyo Whales, and played with the franchise for most of his career. (The team changed its name to the Yokohama BayStars in 1993.) Biography Ishii joined the Yokohama Taiyo Whales from outside the draft in 1988. His uniform number was 66. He played as a pitcher during his early career, and marked his first professional victory in 1989. He also got a hit in his first victory. Ishii compiled a record of 1-4, with a 5.69 ERA in his three years as a pitcher. Ishii converted to the infield in 1992. He became the team's regular third baseman the same year. The team changed its name to the Yokohama BayStars in 1993, and Ishii changed his uniform number to 0. He played a full season at third base, batting second. He won the Central League Golden Glove award and led the league in steals. He changed his number to 5 in 1994. He played in the All-Star Game for the first time in 1995. He switched from third base to shortstop in 1996. He was an all-star for five consecutive seasons from 1997 to 2001. Ishii began to bat lead-off in 1997. He received a Best Nine Award as the best shortstop in the Central League in 1997. He would receive this award for five consecutive years, until 2001. The Yokohama Baystars won the Central League pennant, as well as the Japan Championship Series in 1998 (38 years after their last championship in 1960). Ishii led the league in steals and hits, and received his fourth Golden Glove award at shortstop. He led the league in steals for three consecutive seasons (1998~2000). In 1999 he marked 1,000 career hits, 1,000 games played, and 200 career steals. Ishii led the league in hits for the second time in his career in 2001. Ishii went into a huge slump in 2003, getting fewer than 100 hits in a season for the first time since 1992. He