Seibu Lions Lions catcher Ginjiro Sumitani (38) attended the contract renewal ceremony at the team office in Tokorozawa, Saitama on the 4th, and announced that he had signed a multi-year contract last offseason. He signed for an annual salary of 40 million yen, which is the same as his current salary (estimated amount).

This season, his 20th year as a pro, he played in 40 games with a batting average of .235 and no Home Run. He continued to accompany the first team and showed his strong batting skills, hitting two walk-off runs, but he declared firmly, "No matter how old I get, I'm never satisfied, so I'm always going to aim for my career high and keep on improving."

One of the team's oldest fielder Takumi Kuriyama outfielder (42) recently announced his retirement at the end of next season. When asked about his retirement, he grinned and said, "Until I'm about 62.... If the team says, 'We don't want you,' that will be the end. But I want to stay active as long as possible, one year at a time, with no regrets.