◆Nippon Life Interleague Series 2026: Hiroshima 7-4 Orix Buffaloes (June 6th, Mazda Stadium)

Orix Buffaloes outfielder Yosuke Kubota (18) had decided on his swing. "I was going to swing at about three pitches." He joined the team in 2013 as the fourth pick in the draft from Sapporo Nichidai High School. He came up to bat as a pinch hitter, leading off the fifth inning, for his first professional at-bat. His opponent was Hiroshima's ace pitcher. He challenged Morishita's fastball three times in a row. In the end, he struck struck out looking. He made his debut as the third fastest high school graduate rookie in the last five years, after Ikeda and Yokoyama Sei, and the fastest debut from the team's "2007 generation."

He hails from Hokkaido. For the "Orikko Day" in May, where players are free to design the names on the back of their uniforms, he "adopted" "Tokyo Horumon." It shares the same name as the popular offal restaurant (Tokyo Horumon) run by his family in his hometown of Yuni-cho, which has been loved for half a century. "I'm glad it became a topic of conversation." He wasn't able to wear it in his rookie year, but he intends to debut it in the first team next season, saying, "If I could, it would be a way to make my parents proud..."

The team suffered its worst losing streak of the season, four games in a row, with one draw in between, but manager Kishida expressed optimism about Kubota's potential, saying, "He's a player with great spring in his step. He's very appealing." Like legends Ichiro and Yoshinobu Yamamoto, he was also drafted in the fourth round by the Orix Buffaloes. He has the potential to become a major star. (Shunta Nanbu)