◆ Sports Hochi Journalist Column "From Ryogoku"

I'm in my third year as a working professional. I feel the value of my peers more than ever before. Since being assigned to cover the Softbank Hawks this season, I've spent my days not knowing left from right. While they help me by pointing out things to be careful of, they also make me want to work hard so I don't fall behind. They are an important presence to me.

In that regard, admittedly, my feelings toward the 2025 draft class, who joined in my first year on the beat, are naturally growing stronger. Fifth-round pick Takahashi and developmental fifth-round pick Taka Suzuki were born in 2001, the same year as me. There are also players with whom I share commonalities, such as developmental sixth-round pick Nagasaki, who was on the same baseball team as me in junior high school, and I sincerely hope for their success.

Amidst all this, the only rookies who made the opening day roster were second-round draft pick Inagawa and third-round draft pick Suzuki Go. Suzuki Go has established himself in the first team, mainly as reliever, while Inagawa has not pitched in the first team since his appearance in the game against Rakuten Eagles on April 1st (Rakuten Eagles Mobile). It may seem like the two have had very different fortunes, but that doesn't matter. From a reporter's perspective, the feeling is still "there's something nice about them."

Every time Go Suzuki returned to the 'Wakataka Dormitory' in Chikugo, Fukuoka from his travels with the first team, they would talk in the sauna and visit each other's rooms. When Inagawa, who was adjusting his pitch motion, talked about his current situation saying, 'Lately I've been doing net throws,' Suzuki would invite him by asking, 'Want to go play catch?' and they would reportedly spend about an hour throwing the ball to each other in the indoor practice facility.

Inagawa underwent surgery on the lateral meniscus of his left knee in July and joined the rehabilitation group. Suzuki Go is spending the final stage of the season, with the championship on the line, on the first team. Although they spend their days in different places, they are both university graduates, and I believe there is much they understand about each other precisely because they are fighting in their respective environments. I want to see a game where a relay between these two, who joined the team in the same year, brings home a victory. (Softbank Hawks beat writer, Toui Moriguchi)

Toui Moriguchi (Joined in 2024. Covered soccer last year. Current obsession: saunas.)