◆Pre-season game Softbank Hawks 4x-3 Yakult (3rd, Mizuho PayPay)

Softbank Hawks 's Hikaru Kimura took the mound from the fifth inning in second place and closer the second inning perfect. It was a good pitch with a sharp straight and breaking ball and 4 strike out. "The good thing is that I want to throw in a winning pattern, so I'm sticking to the results from the open game," the 25-year-old right-hander said as he looked ahead.

Last season, Fujii, Matsumoto Yu, and Sugiyama were responsible for the final three inning of winning games. However, Fujii is out for the season due to right elbow surgery, and there are concerns about Matsumoto Yu's readiness for the season immediately after the start of the season, as he is a member of the WBC Japan national team. Manager Kokubo praised Hikaru, saying, "Hikaru was incredibly good." Regarding using him in the final innings of winning games, he was positive, saying, "He would be a candidate. In his current condition."