On the 20th, Orix Buffaloes Buffaloes infielder Hirooka Taishi sent his support to former The Giants infielder Okamoto Kazuma, who has decided to join the Blue Jays of Major League Baseball. The two were a year apart at Chiben Academy, and in 2014, when Okamoto was a third-year student and Hirooka was a second-year student, they played at Koshien in both the spring and summer tournaments. Hirooka, who played alongside right-handed hitter for two and a half years at The Giants from 2021, commented, "I'm glad he's decided to move to the majors. When I went pro, I thought there was no way I could make it if Okamoto hadn't performed well. I'm sure he'll achieve the same kind of results in the majors."

"After all, I'm going to be hitter... I'm really looking forward to seeing what happens. I've spoken to Okamoto about how the majors place a lot of importance on OPS (on-base percentage + slugging percentage), something Hirooka himself values," he said, pointing out that one thing to look out for is OPS (on-base percentage + slugging percentage), which is something Hirooka himself values. During his seven years with The Giants, from 2018 to 2024, when Okamoto cleared the required number of at-bats, he never fell below 80%, which is considered the mark of a top-class hitter. In 2023, he recorded a league-best 95.8%. "I think he'll exceed that (80%) (even in the majors). I'll be looking at it with a very (biased) eye," he said with a smile.

On this day, he opened up his training session to the public in Okinawa Prefecture with The Giants pitcher Sakamoto. "Not just in terms of batting, but also in terms defense and his way of thinking. There's still so much I want to see," he said, sharing a rich time with his former The Giants teammate. Now in his 11th year as a pro, he is trying to establish himself as a regular after 25 years in which he took his first required number of at-bats. He uses stimulation as his strength and plays a central role in the Olympus.