Personally, I just performed the surgery and haven't done anything else. I want to work hard so that we can carry this momentum into next year.

Lotte's Kenta Chatani looked back on this past year in this way.

Chatani played in the first team throughout the season for two consecutive years in 2023 and 2024, and while he appeared in a career-high 88 games in 2024, last season he appeared in 43 games with a .222 batting average and 2 RBI.

Looking ahead to the 2026 season, he expressed his enthusiasm, saying, 'Every single day is a battle, so I want to focus solely on how to produce results when I get the chance to play.' He showed his determination, stating, 'What I need to do hasn't changed over the last few years. There is no doubt that my opportunities are limited, such as a single at-bat coming off of defense. I want to work hard so that I can change the course of the game in that one at-bat.'

He started this season in the minor leagues, recording 1 hit in the minor league opening game against Nippon-Ham on March 14, his first multi-hit game of the season against the Rakuten Eagles on March 17, and a three-hit game against Oisix on March 29. While he often started on the bench, he recorded a hit in all 4 games where he was in the starting line-up during March and April. While appealing for a promotion to the first team with a .538 batting average, he had not appeared in a minor league game since the match against Oisix on April 3, and on May 29, he underwent 'endoscopic decompression for pars defect' at a hospital in Hyogo Prefecture.

On the practice day at Lotte Urawa on July 30, he participated in the overall practice, taking batting practice and fielding grounders as a first baseman, and returned to actual game action in the Yakult second-team game on July 31. From the August 7 game against The Giants' second team, he also played on defense, recorded his first hit since his return in the August 9 game against The Giants' second team, and had two hits in the August 11 game against Nippon-Ham's second team.

During an interview after the minor league practice on August 18th, he muttered, 'There are still quite a few areas I haven't seen yet, things I haven't caught up on, and places where I'm falling behind.' He then looked forward, adding, 'I want to work hard to somehow make up for that.'

Chatani is known for his aggressive approach, swinging at the first pitch, but on August 11th, in a game against Nippon-Ham minor league team, he hit triple cutter thrown by Sorato Kawakatsu on the seventh pitch of the at-bat, with a 2-ball, 2-strike. On that day, he threw 6 pitches in his first at-bat, 7 in his second, 6 in his third, and 4 in his fourth, showing that there were days when he made the pitchers throw a lot of pitches. Perhaps he wanted to see more of pitcher 's pitches while at bat?

"Yes, since I've been away from actual matches for a while, I'm trying to be aggressive in my attacks, and then be able to persevere when I'm cornered."

Regarding his movement since undergoing back surgery, he noted his current challenges, saying, 'I still feel like my senses, or rather my sense of speed, haven't quite caught up yet, so I want to work on getting back up to pace.'

He was promoted for the first time this season on August 20. In his first appearance of the season against Nippon-Ham on August 21, during his second at-bat in the 8th inning with one out and no runners while trailing 2-3, he hit the second pitch—a 143 km/h splitter thrown by Shoma Kanemura after one strike—into center field for his first hit of the season. He then scored from second base with a head-first slide on a hit to center fielder by Misho Nishikawa.

In the game against the Softbank Hawks on August 27, where he was in the starting line-up as the number 9 short stop, he recorded an infield hit in his second at-bat and a sacrifice bunt in his third at-bat, but he only had two hits this season. He was removed from the first-team roster on September 11 and finished the season without being promoted back to the first team. He was limited to 7 games this season, with a .182 batting average, 0 Home Runs, and 0 RBIs.

During the autumn practice held at Zozo Marine Stadium after the regular season ended, he swung his bat and said, "There are endless themes to work on, but I'm becoming able to swing strongly, so I want to focus on that." After special batting practice, there was also a scene where he spent a long time discussing batting with hitting coach Kenta Kurihara.

Even now, while consistently hitting line drives, he is conscious of hitting 'stronger, lower, and more powerful balls.' Regarding his batting form, he said, 'I changed my stance a little. I'm doing it through trial and error,' and he was hitting with a slightly more compact swing.

Chatani said regarding his ongoing efforts, "I have no choice but to continue, so yes." When interviewed in August about the condition of his lower back, he mentioned, "I still feel like my senses, or rather my sense of speed, haven't quite caught up yet." However, he now emphasizes with determination, "It's getting better than it was then. I want to keep pushing it even further."

"I think it's a matter of not being able to play if I can't hit, so since hitting is my only option, I want to do my best to somehow get a hit." The battle for next season has already begun.

Interview and text by Yuta Iwashita