The final results of the player voting for the "Mynavi All-Star Game 2026" (July 28th at Tokyo Dome, 29th in Toyama) were announced on the 9th, and Seibu Lions Lions infielder Natsuo Takizawa will be selected for second baseman position, and infielder Tyler Nevin for first baseman position. Nevin will be making his first appearance, while Takizawa will be making his second All-Star appearance in two consecutive years, following his selection last year as a manager's recommendation.

In his fifth professional season this year, Takizawa played in 75 games, recording a batting average of .286, 67 hit, 1 Home Run, and 19 RBI.

Following his appearance last season, where he was selected by his manager, this will be his second All-Star Game appearance in two consecutive years. "I am truly honored to have been selected by the players. Last year I was so nervous that I didn't have many opportunities to ask other players questions. This year I would like to talk to more players and absorb as much as I can," he said, his eyes shining.

For Takizawa, a graduate of Niigata's Sekine Gakuen, Toyama Municipal Baseball Stadium, the venue for the second day, holds bitter memories from his second year of high school in the fall, when he played in the semi-finals of the Hokushinetsu tournament. "I think it was a game where we didn't qualify for Koshien," he recalls. Now, returning as a professional baseball player, he will run around freely and rewrite those memories.