On the 22nd, the Softbank Hawks made meticulous preparations for the decisive battle. Ahead of the SMBC Japan Series 2026 against DeNA starting on the 24th, the team held a full practice at Yokohama Stadium, the venue for the first game. As part of their routine, they devoted their full effort to mastering the stadium by using a fly ball machine brought from Fukuoka.

All outfielders and catchers caught high fly balls one after another. During practice, a strong wind blew, changing directions toward home plate and left field. At the request of outfield defense and base running coach Takayuki Onishi (55), who calls it the "most difficult stadium for fly balls," a machine was also brought along for the Yokohama trip. Although it was not during the interleague games, he took measures saying, "We can take time for practice this time. I want the height of the fly balls to be close to an actual game." As the players received more repetitions, they were able to make each catch with composure.

Just as Coach Onishi intended when he said, "I think it will lead to a sense of security," outfielder Yuto Kawamura (27) commented, "There aren't many opportunities to catch such high fly balls in a game. It feels like a lucky charm." They will leave no openings in their pursuit of consecutive national championships. (Toshiki Moriguchi)