2026 Professional baseball Draft Conference supported by Lipovitan D (22nd)

Koki Sugimoto (26), a pitcher for the South Korean professional baseball team KT, was selected by the Softbank Hawks as the third pick in the developmental draft.

A right-handed pitcher who played at Koshien in the summers of 2017 and 2018 with Ogaki Nihon University High School before moving on to Nihon University. Afterward, he joined the Tokushima Indigo Socks of the Shikoku Island League Plus and played there for three years.

He moved to KT by utilizing the 'Asia Quarter' system introduced in the Korean baseball league starting from the 2026 season. He is a power pitcher whose weapons are a fastball reaching a top speed of 154 km/h and a sharp-breaking cutter.

In his first year after the transfer, he appeared in 73 games as a set-up man and recorded 25 holds, earning the title for the most holds.

Koki Sugimoto. Born May 19, 2000, in Ishikawa. 26 years old. 182 cm, 90 kg. Right-handed pitcher and right-handed batter.