◆ RAXUS Asia Professional baseball Championship 2026 Taiwan 0-5 Japan (12th, Tokyo Dome)

Samurai Japan secured a win against Taiwan in their first game of the Asia Professional Baseball Championship. This marked the first Samurai win for Manager Tadahito Iguchi in his debut tournament. Yudai Shoji infielder, who played as the number nine batter and second baseman, contributed with his speed despite going zero hit in four At Bat.

In the seventh inning, he reached base on a dropped third strike after leading off the inning. With his speed, currently ranked second in the Pacific League stolen base rankings this season (22 stolen bases), he immediately looked for an opportunity. Facing the opponent's third pitcher, a left-hander, he received one pick-off attempt after the first ball and then took off on the second pitch. 'From my perspective, it was easy to distinguish between his pick-off move and his delivery to the plate. I started with a clear rationale,' he said, perfectly executing the stolen base. He then reached third base on a battery error on the third pitch. Masaki then hit the fourth pitch into center field, allowing him to step on home plate for the fourth run.

In his first time representing Japan, he takes pride in his role, stating, 'In international tournaments, I'm obviously happy if I get a hit, but when I'm not getting any (hit), it's about how I get on base. My job is to somehow link play to the top of the lineup, even through errors or a Walk.' The 'Hawks' number 9 and 1 duo,' in whom Manager Iguchi also has high expectations, immediately got to work.