Seibu Lions Seiya Watanabe outfielder (23) was looking forward to his first " triumphant return" as a professional on the 1st. Koshien

Watanabe was drafted second overall in the 2012 draft by Hiroryo through the University of Commerce. He participated in the spring Senbatsu tournament as a sophomore at Hiroryo and stepped on sacred ground for the first time, but in his junior year in 2008, both the spring and summer Koshien tournaments were cancelled due to the Corona disaster. They finished second in their own tournament sponsored by the Hiroshima Prefectural High School Baseball Federation, but "I worked so hard just to go to Koshien. When the tournament was canceled, I couldn't put it into words," he said.

Last season, his freshman year, when he primarily played left field, he had no games at Koshien and this will be his first opportunity as a pro at regular season. "When I played at Koshien in my sophomore year (spring), I played third. I'm going to play as usual because if my feelings change, I'll move differently, but it's been a while since I've seen the scenery, so I'm savoring what it must have been like to play Koshien as a third-year player. I will return to the same sacred place as third baseman and show my revenge from 6 years ago by going on a rampage. (Ayami Ohnaka)