◆Pacific League: Lotte 3-4 Softbank Hawks (2nd, ZOZO Marine)

Lotte outfielder Katsuya Kakunaka (39) started in his retirement game against the Softbank Hawks (ZOZO) and went 0 hits in 3 At Bats in a lose, but he delighted the home fans with his signature 'Kakunaka style' during the post-game ceremony.

Most of the 29,460 spectators who filled the stands remained at the stadium. The batting specialist who spent all 20 years of his career with Lotte, wearing number 3, stood before the microphone under their collective gaze. After praising Softbank Hawks for winning their third consecutive Pacific League title this season, he entrusted his dreams to his juniors, saying, 'There are many players in The Marines right now who could transform significantly if they just find a single spark. I want to see The Marines win the championship and become a perennial winning team.' There was also an unusual moment during his speech when he took out his smartphone and called out to the crowd, saying, 'I'm going to post a comment on Instagram now. Please give me a record-breaking number of likes.'

In his 1,514th career game, he started as the number six hitter in left field and moved to right field starting in the eighth inning. With his unique, low-center-of-gravity no-step form that produced a massive number of hits, the batter stood in the box three times in his final game. Although he declined his fourth plate appearance, which was supposed to come with two outs and a runner on first in the eighth inning, telling Manager Saburo, "My legs have reached their limit," he fully delivered his gallant figure to the fans. Amidst countless fluttering pieces of confetti and echoing chants of 'Kakanaka,' he bid farewell to the ground. (Shunsuke Ami)