"Rather than focusing on the numbers, I want a title, so I'm going to aim for the saves title. My goal is 40 saves, and I think I need at least 30 saves to even come close to winning the title, so I'm setting my sights on 30 saves for now, and hopefully I can get into a position where I can aim for the title."

Lotte's Rikuto Yokoyama set the goal of becoming the 'saves leader' during a press conference after his contract renewal on November 27 last year, and he lived up to his word this season by recording 35 saves and winning the title for the most saves.

Yokoyama, who was entrusted with the closer role at the very end of last season and recorded 12 saves, took on the final inning of winning games from the start of this season, stating, 'It is meaningless unless I do it as the closer for the entire year. I want to appeal to the manager and coaches so they feel that whenever such a situation arises, I can be used at any time, and that the save situation must absolutely be Yokoyama, and I hope to produce results.'

In the opening game against the Seibu Lions on March 27th, which was his first appearance of the season, he took the mound in the 9th inning with a 3-1 lead. He struck out the leadoff hitter Canario swinging with a 149 km/h fastball after a 1-ball, 2-strike count, then retired Shuta Tonosaki on a third-base grounder, and finally struck out Seiya Watanabe swinging with a sinker after a 1-ball, 2-strike count, leading the team to their first win of the season.

In the game against Rakuten Eagles on April 19, with no outs bases loaded and not scoring a single run in the 9th inning of 8-5, Yokoyama took the plate in the bottom of the inning. In addition to the long offensive inning, the game was going to be tilted in favor of Rakuten Eagles. "It was a long offensive inning, but I kept my concentration and was ready for bullpen," he said. He allowed Yuya Ogo to lead off and fly out to right field, but allowed Daisuke Nakashima to fly out to first, Hiroto Kobukata to right field, and Ryosuke Tatsumi to hit a ground ball to end the game. I think that kind of thing (being prepared without losing concentration) is leading to good results now, and I hope to continue it in the future," he said proudly.

In the game against the Rakuten Eagles on April 29, he took the mound in the 9th inning with a 5-3 lead and closed out the game by retiring three hitters on just three pitches: Yoshiaki Watanabe was out on a foul fly to left on a 150 km/h fastball first pitch, McCusker grounded out to second on a first-pitch fastball, and Hikaru Ota flew out to center on a 150 km/h fastball first pitch.

After finishing March and April with 8 saves, tied for the league lead, he appeared in 12 games in May, including two instances of pitching three days in a row, and recorded a new franchise record of 11 saves in a single month. While pitching three consecutive days twice is certainly impressive, what was even more remarkable was how he firmly shut the door when the momentum seemed to be shifting toward the opponent. In the game against the Rakuten Eagles on May 22nd, the team failed to score despite having a two-out bases loaded chance in the 9th inning while leading 2-1, and the offensive half of the inning lasted a long time. Despite the risk of momentum shifting to the opponent, he closed the game perfectly by getting three consecutive batters struck out. In the following game against the Rakuten Eagles on May 23rd, he took the mound in the bottom of the 9th with a 7-6 lead after the team had scored five runs in the top of the 9th to come back from a 2-6 deficit; although he gave a Walk to the leadoff batter Hideto Asamura, he retired the following hitters to earn the save. In the game against Hiroshima on May 27th, after the team failed to score during a bases loaded chance in the 9th inning with a 5-4 lead, he took the mound in the bottom of the 9th and, despite giving a Walk to the leadoff batter Montero, he successfully put a zero on the scoreboard.

Yokoyama explained, "I've been told that I'll pitch if the lead is reversed, so I'm preparing accordingly. I'm not in a hurry, and I think I'm able to concentrate and prepare my body properly without having too much time to spare."

In June, he pitched in 9 games and recorded 5 saves, reaching a total of 24 saves by the end of the month, which was the highest in both leagues. Notably, in 7 out of those 9 games in June, he finished the 1 inning with 15 pitch or fewer. He earned saves with 'energy-saving' pitch, such as 4 pitch in 1 inning against Yakult on June 4th, 7 pitch in 1 inning against DeNA on June 14th, and 6 pitch in 1 inning against the Rakuten Eagles on June 21st. Regarding the factors behind being able to be a closer with a low pitch count, he analyzed himself, saying, 'I strongly feel that opposing batters are swinging from early count, so I think I am happening to be a closer with few pitch as a result of accurately hitting the corners from the first pitch and the opponents swinging early.'

In July, he appeared in only four games. After pitching in the game against the Rakuten Eagles on June 30, there was a gap of more than a week before his next appearance against the Orix Buffaloes on July 10. "I didn't think it was difficult, but the results weren't very good, so it was a month where I felt I had to improve more and more," he said, as his monthly ERA for July was 5.40.

As of the end of July, he had 26 saves. He expressed his enthusiasm for the battles in August, saying, 'I want to earn even more saves, so I intend to work hard to ensure I don't let any opportunities slip when I pitch in save situations.' On August 23rd, in a game against Nippon-Ham, he reached 30 saves for the season, becoming the seventh player in club history to do so. 'I wasn't particularly conscious of it, but I think it's a good thing,' he said, adding with determination, 'I'm playing with the goal of winning the save title, so I hope to continue pitching without losing focus until the very end of the season.'

Since July, save opportunities have decreased, while title rivals Machado (Orix Buffaloes) and Kazuki Sugiyama (Softbank Hawks) have been racking up saves. Nevertheless, he expressed his determination, saying, 'Of course, the team's win comes first. I believe that prioritizing the team's win will eventually lead to my own title, so I just hope to pitch in a way that helps the team win.'

In the final stages of the season, there were some frustrating outings with blown saves against the Seibu Lions on September 26th and the Softbank Hawks on October 2nd. Although overtaken in save totals by Sugiyama and Machado, he pitched one inning with zero runs against the Rakuten Eagles on October 4th—his third time pitching in three consecutive games this season—acting as the closer to record his 35th save of the year and secure his first-ever most saves title.

I feel more relieved than anything that I actually won it, and I'm glad I did. There were many times when things weren't going well, but the manager and coaches continued to play me patiently, so I think I was able to win it thanks to them.

I wonder if he felt a sense of fulfillment or difficulty in fighting through the entire year as a closer.

I felt a great sense of both fulfillment and difficulty. Amidst so many different learning experiences, I was able to grow as a person, so I think it was a good thing.

Yokoyama firmly seized the opportunity to win the title. I hope he turns this into confidence and leads the team to even more wins next season than he did this season.

Interview and text by Yuta Iwashita