◆ "He's starting to seem reliable, like he'll get the job done if you leave it to him."

Orix Buffaloes 's Ryo Ota had a stellar performance on the 26th against Lotte, including hitting a home run for the second consecutive game. In the final three-game series of the first half of the season, he recorded a batting average of .500 (6-for-12), 2 Home Run, and 5 RBI.

Ota is heading into the second half of the season with a good feeling, as a key player in the team's comeback. On the Fuji TV ONE program "Pro baseball News 2026" aired on the 26th, MC Tomotaka Sakaguchi said, "He's hitting for power now, and he looks good," while commentator Kenichi Tanizawa analyzed the reason for his good form, saying, "His batting form is very relaxed, and he starts from his lower body and connects it to his upper body. That's why the swing of the bat head is very fast."

Another commentator, Yutaka Takagi, suggested, "I think it would be better to fix batting order. He's really reliable, so I think he'd be good at the cleanup spot." Sakaguchi agreed, "That's so true. He's the kind of player you want to have a steady presence." Takagi encouraged him, saying, "He's showing the kind of reliability you'd expect if you told him to do it, so I hope he does his best." Sakaguchi added, "He's the kind of player you want to carry the team on his shoulders."

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