Since I was with the first team for the entire year for the first time, it gave me confidence. It won't mean anything unless I continue this, so I want to keep playing from next season onward without being sidelined.

Lotte's Rikuto Yokoyama fought through the entire season in the first team this year, his seventh as a professional, without being removed from the first-team roster even once since the opening day for the first time in his career.

Last season, he achieved his long-term goal of 50 appearances in a single season, recording career-high numbers with 20 holds, 12 saves, and 47 strike outs. His number was also changed from '60' to '15'. Regarding the off-season leading into this year, he trained hard, stating, 'Since I pitched in 50 games, I did reduce the intensity of my throwing in some areas, but I didn't take any long breaks and continued training throughout December. I was also doing standing throws and pitching practice properly in January, so I didn't do anything to drastically reduce my workload.'

After making his first appearance of the season in a practice game against DeNA on February 19, he pitched 7 innings across 7 games in practice and exhibition matches, recording an ERA of 0.00. As a result, he secured a spot on the opening day roster in the closer position.

In the opening game against the Seibu Lions on March 27, he took the mound in the 9th inning with a two-run lead at 3-1. He commented, 'I was able to pitch with good control. Since it was the opening game, there was a sense of tension, but I was able to deliver my best performance. In that regard, I think it was good that I could pitch without unnecessary strain.' He threw 13 pitches, allowed 0 hits, recorded 2 strike outs, and gave up no runs as the closer, contributing to the team's first win of the season, Manager Saburo's first win as a manager, and Kaito Mori's first professional win.

"It's meaningless unless I can be the closer for a whole year, and I want to be someone that can be used whenever such a situation arises. I want to impress the manager and coaches so that they think of me as the go-to person for save situations, and I hope to produce results."

I wonder if he has an image of himself being able to keep pitching through the entire year.

"Every year, I tend to slump in performance from late April to around May. I can see various metrics from Hawk-Eye and understand my own physical condition, so I hope to be able to maintain my performance throughout the season by understanding my strengths and weaknesses."

He showed exceptional stability, closer the opposing team hit for four consecutive games from his first appearance. In the game Seibu Lions on April 12th, he took the mound in the 9th inning with the score 1-0 and gave up a game-tying RBI single to Sosuke Genda, but his performance during the week of April 14th (Tuesday) was outstanding.

The Nippon-Ham match on April 15 was held in heavy rain. Yokoyama took the mound for the first time this season with two outs and no runner in the 7th inning of 8-7. After finishing Chusei Mannami with a swing struck out from 1 ball 2 strike, in the 8th inning of 8-7, which became a inning straddle, he threw 1 ball to Taiki Narama with two outs and one on second base, and then stopped for about 20 minutes due to rain.

"Honestly, I think it was a difficult situation, but on the other hand, if I had continued to challenge them with two outs and runners on first and second, they might have hit the ball, so having a break allowed me to calm down and think. I was able to talk with Toshiya Sato about how to start the game and what kind of image I wanted to have closer, so I was able to resume the game with a good image and pitch accordingly. In that sense, I think it was a good interruption for me, and I think it was a good experience."

After the interruption, he struck out Narama swinging on the sixth pitch, a sinker thrown from a 2-ball, 2-strike count, and escaped with zero runs. Following his relief appearance where he pitched across multiple innings the previous day, he took the mound in the 9th inning with a 5-3 lead in the Nippon-Ham game on the 16th. Although he allowed one hit, he closed out the game with no runs, recording two of the three outs by having the batters struck out.

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.

He pitched in three games during the week of April 14th, and each time he was mound, it was a tough situation. This suggests that he has the team's trust in him.

"I'm grateful just to be given the opportunity to play in matches, and being entrusted with important moments is a valuable experience. I think it's good that I've been able to live up to those expectations."

Yokoyama analyzed that he tended to lose his form from late April into May, but during the two-game series against the Rakuten Eagles starting April 28th, he pitched in consecutive games as both were save situations; in the game on the 29th, he retired the side by getting three outs in one inning with just three pitches.

"So far, I haven't had any particular problems, I've been able to pitch in games, and my physical condition is perfectly fine, so I hope to take good care of myself and be able to play throughout the entire season."

In the game against the Softbank Hawks on May 8, which was his first appearance since the game against the Rakuten Eagles on April 29, he took the mound in the 9th inning with a 5-3 lead but failed to protect it, resulting in a walk-off loss. However, from the game against the Softbank Hawks on May 9 to the game against Yakult on June 4, he recorded saves in 12 consecutive games. From the game against Nippon-Ham on May 14 to the game against the Orix Buffaloes on May 16, he experienced pitching in three consecutive games for the first time in his professional career, and he worked at full capacity again with his second three-game stint of the season during the three-game series against Hiroshima starting May 26.

He fought through the challenging period from late April to May on the first-team roster. Reflecting on this, he said, 'Until last year, I wasn't even on the first team in May, so I think it was good that I was able to be a part of it this season.' However, he remained focused, adding, 'That challenge might shift to June this season, and it's meaningless unless I continue pitching on the first team for the entire year without letting my guard down, so I hope to keep working hard.'

Having fought through the challenging month of May, he set a new franchise record with 11 saves in a single month. 'I think it's a good thing that the results are showing. Since my job is simply to act as a closer and hold them to zero in the situations I'm called to pitch, I just want to focus on pitching in each game for now. The season is still long, so I hope to keep going without worrying too much about the numbers.'

June

In June, he pitched 9 innings across 9 games, recording 4 holds, 5 saves, and an ERA of 0.00. In 7 out of those 9 games in June, he finished the inning within 15 pitches. He earned saves with "energy-saving" pitches, throwing 4 pitches in 1 inning against Yakult on June 4, 7 pitches in 1 inning against DeNA on June 14, and 6 pitches in 1 inning against the Rakuten Eagles on June 21.

Regarding the factors behind his ability to closer with few pitches, he offered this self-analysis: “I really feel that opposing batters are swinging at count early and often, so I’m able to throw to the right spots right from the first pitch. Since they’re swinging early, I think that’s why I’m closer with so few pitches.”

On the other hand, the strike out rate as of the end of June was 6.55, which was the lowest since 2023 when he became a regular on the first team (2023: 9.61, 2024: 7.93, 2025: 7.51). One wonders if he wants to firmly strike out batters in situations where he can aim to have them struck out.

"Of course. struck out are the least risky way to get an out, so if we can aim for struck out, that's good. It's always better if we can get one."

July

In July, due to the team's situation, his appearances dropped significantly to just four games, compared to twelve in March and April and twelve in May. Regarding the difficulty of having long intervals between appearances, he muttered, "I didn't think about it being difficult, but since the results weren't very good, it was a month where I felt I had to improve more and more."

He participated in the All-Star Game for the first time as a manager's selection and had a fulfilling time, saying, 'I was able to talk with many different players, and it was a lot of fun. I'm glad I could experience it.'

As of the end of July, he has 26 saves. With only four more needed to reach 30, he expressed his determination, saying, 'I want to rack up even more saves, so I intend to perform solidly and not let any opportunities slip away when I pitch in save situations.'

◆ Pitched in 50 games for two consecutive years, most saves

After recording his first save of the second half of the season in the game against Nippon-Ham on August 1st, he went on to pitch in 8 games during the month and earned 4 saves.

In the game against the Rakuten Eagles on August 20th and the game against Nippon-Ham on August 21st, he pitched on consecutive days for the first time since the games against The Giants on June 6th and 7th. The game against Nippon-Ham on August 22nd was cancelled due to rain, but if the game had been played, would he have been able to pitch for a third consecutive day?

I am prepared to pitch three or four days in a row, so if I am told to go, it is our job to always be ready to go at any time. I hope to continue performing like that whenever such situations arise in the future.

He reached 30 saves in the game against Nippon-Ham on August 23. For Yokoyama, it was merely a 'passing point,' as he remarked, 'I wasn't particularly conscious of it, but I think it's a good thing.'

He spoke with determination, saying, 'I am playing because I want to win the save title, so I hope I can continue pitching without losing focus until the very end of the season.'

On September 15th, in a game against Nippon-Ham, he achieved 50 appearances for the second consecutive year. Despite reaching this milestone, he remained unsatisfied, stating, 'Being able to pitch 50 games for two years in a row gives me confidence and I think it's a good thing, but it's only 50 games, so I hope to aim for even more.'

During this period, rivals such as Machado (Orix Buffaloes) and Kazuki Sugiyama (Softbank Hawks) were racking up saves, and the title race was becoming fierce. "Of course, the team's win comes first, but I believe that prioritizing that will ultimately lead to my own title, so I 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 appeared in 56 games this season, recording 3 wins, 4 losses, 7 holds, 35 saves, and an ERA of 2.82. After the season ended, he participated in autumn training at Zozo Marine Stadium, but on October 21, he underwent endoscopic decompression surgery for lumbar spondylolysis at a hospital in Hyogo Prefecture.

Looking ahead to next season, he vowed to further improve his level, saying, 'The ability to strike out batters, which was mentioned throughout this season, is still insufficient for a closer. I want to spend this off-season thinking for myself about what to do to improve that, while looking at data and working toward enhancing my own abilities.'

Interview and text by Yuta Iwashita