◆ Koshino expects that "Rakuten 's current catcher will be a great learning experience."

On the 18th, Rakuten announced that they had reached an agreement with Hikaru Ito, who declared free agency from DeNA. Ito only played in six games in the first team this season and exercised his overseas free agency rights after the season ended.

Commenting on Ito's transfer, Akio Saito, commentator for Fuji TV ONE's "Professional baseball News 2025," broadcast on the 24th, said, "DeNA has catcher Yudai Yamamoto at the top of their game, as well as Shion Matsuo and Yasutaka Togashi, so he won't get many opportunities to play. I think it was the right decision for him to transfer to Rakuten. Rakuten has a lot of catcher on their roster, but their batting average isn't quite there. During his time Orix Ito was a player who could play third base and make use of his batting ability, so I think we can expect him to do well."

Another commentator, Koshino Kenji, analyzed, "Rakuten has a lot of lively and interesting pitcher. In terms of how to lead this pitcher staff, they have Hikaru Ota, Kengo Horiuchi, and Tsuyoshi Ishihara, but I think they still don't have many options for striking out batters. In that regard, Ito, a veteran, will be a great learning experience for Rakuten 's current catcher to see how he leads, how he brings out the best in pitcher, and how he attacks opposing hitter. He has a living example for them, so I think he will be able to contribute."

☆ Cooperation: Fuji TV ONE "Professional baseball News 2025"