Rob Kajiwara is a two-way ambidextrous baseball player, playing shortstop right-handed, and pitching left-handed. He played baseball at Green River College in Auburn, Washington, and was scouted by some pro teams, but he was uninterested in pursuing baseball in the continental United States due to homesickness and culture shock, and ended up dropping out of college to return to his native Hawaii. He cares much more about family and principles than about money or fame. He played in the Oahu Baseball League for several years. He currently lives most of the year in Okinawa, pursuing his dream of playing professional baseball for a Ryukyu / Okinawan team. 
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Bats: Both
Throws: Both
Position: Pitcher & Shortstop
Height: 6 feet, 2.5 inches / 191 cm
​Weight: 215 pounds / 97.5 kg

Baserunning
Left Handed: Home to First: 3.92 seconds
Right Handed: Home to First: 4.02 seconds

Batting
(averages over the past five years in the Oahu Baseball League)
.513 BA        .683 OBP        .898 SLG         1.581 OPS
1 homerun per 18 at bats
1.3 stolen bases per game
95% successful stealing rate
9.75 at bats per double
9.75 at bats per triple
​2.5 BB/K

Pitching
Right Handed: Fastball: 92-96 mph Curveball: 78-81 mph Changeup: 86-88 mph Split-finger: 88-90 mph
Left Handed: Fastball: 83-86 mph Curveball: 68-73 mph Changeup: 76-79 mph Split-finger: 77-80 mph


Playing Style & Philosophy
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Position Player: As a switch hitter, I am roughly equal from both sides of the plate. I walk more than I strike out, and have the ability to both hit for contact and power. I have always had a high on-base percentage with few strikeouts. I am a patient hitter who works counts and am not afraid to take walks. I have 20/12 vision, and have good pitch selection. I avoid using a leg kick in order to make better contact, and instead use a modified tap-step for timing, and rely on my strong legs and back to generate power. I am a line-drive hitter, and purposely look to drive the ball middle-away. I hit the ball hard to all fields. I will sometimes pull the ball, but believe that pulling the ball foul is a sin. I have purposely trained for years to hit the ball hard on a line, slightly elevated, every time. I have a level swing, with natural slight elevation in my launch angle. I have above-average speed, can steal bases, and can stretch out extra base hits. As a shortstop, I have a strong arm (as a former right-handed pitcher) and good range for a guy of my size. My speed and athleticism has allowed me to remain at shortstop in spite of my relatively large size.

Pitching: As a left-handed pitcher, I rely on finesse, deception, and vertical movement. I utilize a significant over-the-top pitching motion which helps create an illusion of vertical movement, and offers a different look than what hitters are used to. My slow 12-6 curveball has much break to it and is probably my best pitch. I also use a circle-change which tends to have downward movement. I throw both my curve and changeup at different speeds in order to keep hitters guessing. These pitches make my mid-to-upper 80s four-seam fastball look faster than it really is. I will pitch up in the zone to keep hitters off-balance, and will throw any pitch in any count. The splitter is the fastest of my off-speed pitches, and offers a fourth pitch to keep hitters guessing.

Although I used to also pitch right-handed and can throw significantly harder from my right side, I have recently stopped pitching right-handed in order to preserve my right arm to play shortstop.

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Check out Rob's baseball blog: ​https://kajiwarabaseball.blogspot.com/