Softbank Hawks Isami Nomura infielder The first round of negotiations on March 16 was held in abeyance. Although he did not receive an increase in salary this time, he explained, "It's not about the amount, but about the fact that this is a once-a-year thing. We talked about various things," he explained, "I asked him to increase the number of uniforms because they were torn. That was the reason for the second time," he revealed with a smile.

In his fourth season, he seized an opportunity created by injuries to key players and became starting line-up from May. He played in 126 games, achieving personal bests in batting average (.271), 12 Home Run, 40 RBI, and 18 stolen base. In the Japan Series, he hit the game-winning home run in Game 5, which decided the championship. He also participated in the All-Star Game and was selected for Samurai Japan, making it a breakthrough year for him, but he vowed, "I don't want it to end in one year. It takes two or three years to become a top player, so I want to get closer to that." In his rookie year in 2022, he had double-digit Home Run and double-digit stolen base, but his performance declined in his second and third years. "I know it won't be easy," he said, steeling himself.

Next season, Nomura will be in serious competition with Imamiya for the starting shortstop position. Manager Kokubo has also declared that the two will compete against each other. Last year, Nomura trained independently under Imamiya, but in January next year he will be training alone in Shiga. He is grateful, saying, "I wouldn't have achieved these results this season without that independent training," but Imamiya has also encouraged him, saying, "I've conveyed what I needed to convey. You can do it on your own now." He is graduating from Imamiya's tutelage and challenging his mentor, saying, "This will also lead to an improvement in the level of baseball career from now on."