Nippon-Ham infielder Kotaro Kiyomiya (26) said on the 19th that he was looking forward to facing Rakuten Eagles 's Maeda, who will be returning to Japanese baseball next season. At his joining press conference, Maeda named Kiyomiya as someone he would like to face, to which Kiyomiya replied, "I'm happy to have my name mentioned by such a great person." When he was in his first year of junior high school, he faced Maeda on a TV program while he was with Hiroshima Carp, and hit hit went through the gap between first and second base. "slider was really sharp. I remember there was a huge difference between what I saw and what actually happened," he recalled. He was excited about their first match in 14 years, saying, "I'm looking forward to it. I want to be in a good condition to compete."

On this day, he participated in a talk show in Sapporo. Wearing the new Adidas Japan national soccer team uniform, with which he has an advisory contract, he said, "I think there's a wall to overcome to get to the top eight, but if we all wear this and fight as one, we'll be strong." He sent his support to Moriyasu Japan as they take on the World Cup, which begins in June next year. (Haruki Kawakami)