Ryota Igarashi, who appeared on "Pro baseball News 2026" broadcast on Fuji TV ONE on the 4th, commented on Kazuya Kazuya Ojima of the Lotte Marines, who started the game against Yakult Swallows.

With early offensive support, Kojima threw powerful fastball to the inside corner of right-handed hitter, forcing a mountain of groundouts. He earned his second win of the season with 7 innings pitched, 114 pitches, 3 hits hit, 8 strike out, 2 BB, and 1 runs.

Igarashi praised him wholeheartedly, saying, "It was fantastic. fastball was especially good against right-handed batters. When they were expecting fastball, he'd slider. Right-handed batters have no way to make contact with the ball in this spot (inside). They try to hit it, but they just can't connect. He's also struggling to keep the ball inside, so when right-handed batters are made to focus on the inside like that, they end up hitting the outside change-up or fork. I think Kojima controlled the pace from start to finish. It was perfect."

☆ Cooperation: Fuji TV ONE "Professional baseball News 2026"