On March 14th, at Zozo Marine Stadium, Chiba Lotte Marines Lotte pitcher Yuto Yuto Kimura created his own original "Professional Gum." He participated in a "Gum Select" event, where he customized his gum by choosing his preferred shape, hardness, and flavor.

"Professional Gum" is provided to various athletes under the supervision of Visiting Professor Tomotaka Takeda (Japan Sports Association certified sports dentist) of the Department of Oral Health Science, Sports Dentistry Laboratory, Tokyo Dental College. It was developed with the aim of supporting athletes with their "chewing power" through "chewing" during training and competition, and is characterized by its minimal change in hardness while chewing.

This time, pitcher Kimura selected the following types of professional gum (shape, hardness, and flavor): "stick, hard, and energy." In addition to pitcher Kimura, this year, second-round draft pick rookies pitcher Kazuya Ojima and pitcher Kyuto Ueda, as well as players Kiyoto Ueda and Akito Takabe, have also created their own original professional gums.

▼Comments pitcher Yuto Kimura ▼
"I knew that chewing power is linked to performance, but I haven't really focused on chewing training until now. So, I decided to seriously work on 'chewing' from now on, and this time I've made the gum harder to train. I'll do my best with my original gum so that I can perform at my best from the opening of the season and throughout this season."