Chiba Lotte Marines held a special collaboration event with the anime "Ace of the Diamond" during the game against Tohoku Rakuten Eagles at Zozo Marine Stadium today, the 17th. Ryota Osaka, who plays Eijun Sawamura, Takahiro Sakurai, who plays Kazuya Miyuki, and Shintaro Asanuma, who plays Yoichi Kuramochi, performed the ceremonial pitch.

▼Ryota Osaka (Eijun Sawamura)▼
"I put all my spirit into throwing toward the mitt! I'm relieved it reached safely. Today's pitching... I'd give myself 75 points! This was my first time standing on the mound at Zozo Marine Stadium, and I was overwhelmed by the actual scale of it.

I could feel the fans' excitement, the sense of anticipation, and the unity with the team firsthand, and I was able to see a truly wonderful view. Thank you very much!"

▼Takahiro Sakurai (Kazuya Miyuki)▼
"Even though I play the catcher who is supposed to stand firm, I was overwhelmed by the atmosphere of the real stadium and felt restless the whole time (laughs). Being able to stand on that mound while experiencing the atmosphere of a professional game felt like a miracle, and I was so happy!"

▼Shintaro Asanuma (Yoichi Kuramochi)▼
"I was in the unusual role of the batter this time, and I witnessed pitcher Sawamura's fastball firsthand (laughs). It was frustrating because he didn't hold back, but the view from the batter's box was the best! I hope that through this event, people will discover the joy of baseball at the stadium!"