Shohei Tateyama, who appeared on "Pro baseball News 2026" broadcast on Fuji TV ONE on the 23rd, commented on the incident that caused a stir in the stadium during that day's game Orix Buffaloes, regarding whether or not Softbank Hawks 's Yuki Yanagita 's long fly ball was catch cleanly.
Yanagida, who came in as a pinch hitter with one out and bases loaded 5-5, Ren Mukunoki went to hit the fastball on the third pitch thrown from the first strike of the first ball, and center fielder Haruto Watanabe Orix Buffaloes attempted a jumping catch at the center fielder wall and missed the glove, allowing runner and Taisei Makihara to step on home plate for a walk-off hit.
It looked like Softbank Hawks had won with walk-off, but Orix Buffaloes requested a review. The call was upheld, and Softbank Hawks won walk-off.
Tateyama commented on the play, saying, "It was a deep fly ball by Yanagida. It was definitely sacrifice fly, but it was unclear whether it was a complete catch or if he dropped it when switching to throw. The runner on third base tagged up properly. Even if he dropped it, he had definitely left the base. runner on second baseman base couldn't move because he didn't know whether it was a tag up or a fair ball. It was a very difficult situation where the third out conversion would apply, and Manager Kishida was also appealing. If it was determined that it wasn't a complete catch, and the ball was passed to third base and then to second base for second baseman out, then no runs would be scored. What runner have to do is, if it is judged that the ball wasn't catch, they have to try to advance to the next base. If it is judged that it was a complete catch, they have to return to their base."
He continued, "When you're on defense side, you can't give up until the very end, so even in the game-ending situation, fielder can't leave fair field. An appeal play is valid until the next pitch or until they leave fair field, so there's video review, requests, and appeal plays, and it was a very difficult situation, but I learned a lot from watching umpire 's judgment and realizing that you always have to decide whether to aim for the next base, leave the base, or return to the base."
☆ Cooperation: Fuji TV ONE "Professional baseball News 2026"
