On the 23rd, pitcher Shin Nakai (4th year, Shimonoseki Kokusai) of Komazawa University, who was selected as the second-round pick by the Orix Buffaloes in the draft meeting on the 22nd, received a post-selection greeting from manager Mamoru Kishida, amateur scouting group leader Kazuo Yamaguchi, and scout Yukiya Sano at the school's hardball baseball club dormitory in Tokyo.

During high school, he was active as a right-handed short stop and pitcher with a maximum speed of 147 km/h, and was the runner-up at Koshien in the summer of 2022 during his third year. After entering university, where he focused on being a pitcher with professional aspirations, he further increased his ball speed, clocking a maximum of 158 km/h in a league match against Tokyo University of Agriculture at Todoroki this spring. On the day of the draft, he started the game against Senshu University at Todoroki and contributed to the Toto Division 2 championship with a 1 runs complete game win. Looking back at the draft where he was selected immediately afterward, he smiled and said, 'Honestly, being incredibly happy was the main thing.'

Within the team, the starting rotation reinforcement was a key point as aces Miyagi and Yamashita are sidelined long-term due to surgery. Manager Kishida reached out to him, saying, "I selected you as a pitcher who can join the starting rotation immediately. Please lend us your strength," which renewed his determination. He tightened his expression and said, "I was told they want me to be a contributing force starting in February. Since they have such high expectations for me, I want to do my best to live up to them."

A right-handed pitcher who admires Shota Imanaga of the Cubs, his senior from university. 'My greatest weapon is my powerful fastball. I want to win the Rookie of the Year award so that I can make an impact from my first year. Beyond that, I want to play actively for as many years as possible,' he said with conviction.

Shin Nakai. Born April 22, 2004, in Kasai City, Hyogo. 22 years old. Started baseball in the first grade at Kuae Elementary School with the Kuae Baseball Sports Youth Group. Played for Hyogo Hokuban Senior while at Kasai Junior High School. At Shimonoseki Kokusai, he joined the bench with number 6 starting from the summer of his first year. He appeared in Koshien in the spring of his second year and the summer of his third year. He was the runner-up in the summer of his third year. 177 cm, 83 kg. Right-handed pitcher and right-handed batter.