Chiba Lotte Marines announced the selection of members for the Chiba Lotte Marines Junior Team, which will participate in the "NPB Junior Tournament KONAMI CUP 2026." Applications were accepted via the official club website from June 22 to July 6, and 16 members were selected from approximately 800 applicants through a series of tryouts.

The team will be managed by club alumnus and The Marines Baseball Academy principal Yukihiko Sato, with coaching duties handled by club alumni Tomohisa Otani (Technical Coach at the same academy) and Naoto Ogawa (Technical Coach at the same academy).

The members of the 2026 Chiba Lotte Marines Junior Team are as follows.

・Natsuki Asato (Red Fires)
・Sora Mizui (Urayasu Bay Marines)
・Ryusei Ito (ASAI KIDS☆UNITED)
・Hinata Kadoya (Chiba Ichihara Marines)
・Yuki Koizumi (Takezono Victories)
・Yuto Ishii (Tsuganodai Red Wings)
・Rikuto Ishii (Tsuganodai Red Wings)
・Yuki Ishihara (Suga Chishio BLOOMS)
・Rayu Kamada (Shisui Big Arrows)
・Takumi Sato (Yotsukaido Blue Stars)
・Kodai Iizumi (Yutaka Nines)
・Tsubasa Shinozawa (Red Fires)
・Sota Nakanishi (ASAI KIDS★UNITED)
・Koya Matsushita (Midori-cho Red The Eagles)
・Kazue Furuhata (Yagiri Condors)
・Yuchi Hiruma (Toyogami Juniors) Total 16 members

Manager Sato commented,

"We have now selected the 16 players who will compete as The Marines Junior 2026. During the selection process, each player showed their individuality, their passion for baseball, and their determination to grow. I am looking forward to working with these 16 players. Over the next four months, I hope they will grow not only in their baseball skills but also as individuals by supporting one another. Under the theme 'PLAY FREE. WIN HARD.' and the slogan 'Intensely, Enjoyably, to Win,' we will give our all until the very end, never forgetting our gratitude to those who support us. These 16 players will join forces, grow by overcoming various challenges, and aim for our first championship since 2010."

The "NPB Junior Tournament," in which The Marines Junior 2026 will participate, is organized by the Nippon Professional Baseball Organization and the 12 NPB clubs. It was established in 2005 with the hope that children could feel closer to their goal of the "dream of professional baseball." This year's tournament, the 22nd edition, will be held from Saturday, December 26th to Tuesday, December 29th at Meiji Jingu Stadium and Giants Town Stadium.

A total of 16 teams will compete, including the junior teams of each of the 12 NPB clubs, the junior teams of the farm league participating clubs Oisix Niigata Albirex Baseball Club and Hayate Ventures Shizuoka, and the junior teams of the Route Inn BC League and Shikoku Island League plus, which are selected from leagues affiliated with the Japan Association of Regional Professional Baseball Leagues. The Marines Junior 2026, under Manager Sato, will aim for their second championship since 2010.

Text by Sari Ikeda