On the 24th, Softbank Hawks outfielder Ukyo Shuto set his goal of "60 stolen base with a 90% success rate." He held a talk show in Fukuoka Prefecture sponsored by medical equipment manufacturer Colantotte. The speedster, who just signed a five-year contract worth 2 billion yen on the 23rd, set specific targets for the first year of his contract.

His goal is to reach 60 stolen base the highest number since Honda Yuichi (Softbank) in 2011. "No player has stolen bases since Coach Honda. I've been taught that, so I want to always have that as my goal," he said firmly. Last year, he was crowned the stolen base leader for the fourth time in three consecutive years, but due to repeated injuries, he only managed 35 stolen base in 96 games. However, he only failed four times, for an astonishing success rate of 89.7%. "One more success would have brought me to 90%. I wanted to clear that mark," he reflected. "I want to be at least 85%. If I'm below 80%, maybe it's not worth running," he said, showing his strong commitment to his success rate.

Since 2000, only Honda (Softbank Hawks) in 2011 and Akahoshi Norihiro (Hanshin Tigers) who stole 60 or more stolen base three years in a row from 2003 with 61, 64 and 60. Looking at the success rate in the years in which they achieved it, Honda had a 77.9% success rate, while Akahoshi has had 85.9%, 84.2% and 83.3% since 2003. This shows how high the hurdle of "90%" that Shuto is aiming for is.

Starting this year, unified bases (extended bases) are being adopted, which will shorten the distance between bases by approximately 11 centimeters, which will also be a tailwind. However, he said, "There are some things that I won't know until I actually see it, but it's not something that I'm particularly concerned about." In 2020, he played in 103 games, his personal best of 50 stolen base. After participating in two consecutive WBC tournaments, he aims to complete the 143-game season. He is confident that his number of stolen base will naturally increase as long as he stays injury-free.

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