◆Nippon Life Insurance Central vs. Pacific League Interleague Play 2025 Nippon-Ham 5-0 Hiroshima (14th, ESCON)
On the 14th, Nippon-Ham won the game against Hiroshima (ESCON) with a score of 5-0. They once again increased their lead to 10. starting line-up Yuki Nomura infielder 24), who started in two consecutive games after returning from a left internal oblique muscle tear, hit his first home run since returning in the first at-bat in the second inning, a solo home run over the left field fence for the first run of the game. In the seventh inning, he hit a timely triple over the center field fence, and finished with two RBI and two hit in four At Bat. He also had hit in his return game on the 13th, and has maintained his good form since the start of the season despite being out for about a month. Expectations for him as a mainstay are only growing.
Nomura swung the bat with a sense of force, being aware of the timing. The ball flew up high and hit the front of the second-tier seats in left field, bouncing back onto ground. At the top of the second inning, he hit a 135 km cutter from Hiroshima starter Tokoda for his seventh solo home run over the left field fence. On his first home run since returning, he said, "I wasn't good at dealing with the straight pitches, so I adjusted my timing a little earlier, which led to a good result." On the bench, manager Shinjo welcomed him by crossing his index fingers on both hands to make a small X. "I knew he'd do it," he said with a laugh.
He was out for exactly one month. He injured his left side in a game against Orix (ESCON) on May 14th, and returned to the first team in a game against Hiroshima (ESCON) on the 13th. He was given the go-ahead to be promoted again after five farm team games with a batting average of .500, with seven hit in 14 At Bat. Initially, manager Shinjo set the promotion threshold at 12 hit. However, after watching the actual footage, he promoted him ahead of schedule, saying, "I've been able to get my condition up through rehabilitation, so I wasn't nervous at all." He was confident in his promotion back to the first team.
His efforts since the exhibition match outweighed the one-month absence. "Since the exhibition match, I have been making repeated adjustments to find the best way to hit each day, and that's how I got to that point," he said, looking back at his good form before his withdrawal. Even during the period when he couldn't swing the bat, he stood in bullpen and was conscious of not losing his sense of the game in any way other than his movements. When he returned to the game, he didn't think about the injury or the results, but instead made adjustments for each at-bat. "I think I've been able to get good results because I've been able to hang in there in a normal condition." In the seventh inning, he hit a timely triple that hit the top of the center wall. He returned to the lineup in good form.
The team also defeated the tough opponent, Tokoda, with a total of three hits. With this comfortable victory, the team's lead was brought back to 10. Since his return, Nomura has played in a different batting order than his regular position since the start of the season, but he said, "I think it would be best if I could end up as the fourth batter after batting, but I hope I can produce results in the position I'm assigned to." A reliable "core player" has returned to the batting line-up that has gone through repeated trial and error. (Yamaguchi Yasushi)
〇…Gunji led Hosono, who was his first partner, well and assisted him in his first professional win. He also supported him with a bat, hitting his fourth solo home run over the left field fence in the fourth inning. He revealed that the scorer had given him an "instruction manual" for Hosono, saying, "He's the only one who has an instruction manual. He's pitcher with a lot of commitment. I was hoping that we could bring a breath of fresh air to the team with this new combination."
Related News
・ [Match details] Nippon-Ham vs Hiroshima
・ [Nippon-Ham] Haruki Hosono, 2023 first-round draft pick, left-handed pitcher with fastest speed of 158 km/h, wins his first pro win with 8 strikeouts in 6 innings
・ [Hiroshima] 8th shutout game loss with worst 15 struck out this season... Handed first professional win to Nippon-Ham 's 2nd year draft pick left-hander
・ [Hiroshima] Manager Arai: "It was a bit rough and difficult to narrow it down," he said, handing Nippon-Ham 's Hosono his first professional win / Q&A
・ [Nippon-Ham] Yuki Nomura scores first with his 7th solo home run, hitting a huge shot to left field in his second game since returning, but manager Shinjo marks the team with a thumbs down on the bench.
