Similar to the previous three drafts of active players, each Pacific League team acquired one new player.

The 2025 professional baseball draft was held on December 9th, with each Pacific League team acquiring one new player. Given that many players have made significant progress after being drafted, there will be considerable interest in how these newly acquired players perform in their new teams.

This time, we'll be reviewing the professional careers of six players who moved to Pacific League teams through the 2025 draft. We'll take a look back at their performance with their previous teams and introduce the roles they are expected to play in their new environments.

Taiki Kikuchi (The Giants → Hokkaido Nippon-Ham pitcher)

pitcher Taiki Kikuchi joined the Yomiuri The Giants in 2021 as the 6th pick in the developmental player draft. In his first year as a professional in 2022, he earned a spot on the main roster and appeared in 16 games. The following year, 2023, he appeared in 50 games, recording 4 wins, 4 losses, 11 hold, and 1 save, with ERA of 3.40 and strike out rate of 10.38, demonstrating his high strike out ability and playing a key role in bullpen.

In 2024, he was unable to make a first-team appearance and was moved to a development contract during the offseason. However, in 2025, he returned to the main roster and posted excellent results in 7 games with ERA of 1.80 and strike out rate of 14.40. For Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters, whose relief pitching staff faltered towards the end of the season, which was one of the reasons they missed out on the championship, he could be the final piece of the puzzle to lead the team to the top.

Naoki Sato (Fukuoka Softbank → Tohoku Rakuten Eagles)

　Naoki Sato joined Fukuoka Softbank as their first overall pick in the 2019 draft. While he was known for his strong defense skills, he lacked consistency, batting below .100 for three consecutive seasons starting in 2021, his second year as a professional. In the offseason of 2023, he was moved to a development contract. He earned a return to the main roster in 2024, but his batting average that year was only .190, and his hitting continued to be a major weakness.

However, in 2025, his hitting improved significantly, with a batting average of .239, Home Run, and an OPS of .700. He also made use of his speed to record 10 stolen base. As a super-sub in outfield, he appeared in 104 games and contributed to the team's league championship. After a breakthrough year, will he be able to get even more playing opportunities in his new team?

Tokumasa Chano (Orix Buffaloes → Saitama Seibu Lions)

　Tokumasa Chano joined Orix Buffaloes in 2022 as the fourth pick in the developmental player draft. In his first year as a professional in 2023, he earned a spot on the main roster and starting line-up in the opening game. Utilizing the batting skills he honed in the independent league, he supported the team in the early stages of the season, playing in 91 games and achieving a batting average of .237, contributing to the team's league championship.

In 2024, his batting average improved to .269 compared to the previous year, but he only played in 16 games, and in 2025, he only played in 3 games. If he can replicate his impressive early-season performance in his new team, he could be the catalyst for a team struggling with a lack of scoring power.

Koudai Inoue (Hanshin Tigers → Chiba Lotte Marines)

Koudai Inoue joined Hanshin Tigers Tigers in 2019 as the second overall pick in the draft. He was considered hitter since his time at Riseisha High School, and in 2024, his fifth year as a professional, he won Western League hitter with a .308 batting average. He also recorded three Home Run in the first team, including his first professional home run, but his batting average was a low .212, and he was unable to establish himself as a regular in the first team.

This season, he showed his power hitting ability in the minor leagues with 8 Home Run and 34 RBI, but his batting average was .230, a drop from the previous year, and he only played in one game in the major leagues. At just 24 years old, he still has plenty of room to grow, so it will be interesting to see if he can unleash his natural batting talent in his new team and become the player who can save the team that is struggling with a lack of power hitting.

Shota Hiranuma (Saitama Seibu Lions → Orix Buffaloes)

　Shota Hiranuma joined Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters in 2015 as the fourth overall pick in the draft. In 2019, he played in 73 games with a batting average of .236, and in 2020, he played in 52 games with a batting average of .228, securing playing opportunities in the first team at a young age. In the middle of the 2021 season, he was traded to the Saitama Seibu Lions. In 2022, he recorded a batting average of .260 in 30 games and hit his first home run since the trade in a direct confrontation with Tohoku Rakuten Eagles, who were competing for third place, contributing to the team's A-class finish.

In 2023, he batted .245 in 67 games, and in 2024, he batted .265 in 45 games, maintaining consistent performance. In 2025, despite a batting average of .218, he played in 60 games, covering four positions: first base, second base, third base, and outfield. Leveraging his reliable hitting and versatility, he is expected to play a wide range of roles both offensively and defensively in his new team.

Toshiya Nakamura (pitcher Chiba Lotte Marines → Fukuoka Softbank)

　Toshiya Nakamura pitcher was drafted fifth overall in the 2018 draft by Chiba Lotte Marines. He was somewhat inconsistent in his first two years as a pro, ERA scoring 4 runs, but pitched well in 2021, ERA 3.08 with 38 inning in 14 games; in 2023, he appeared in 17 games, mainly as a long reliever, ERA 2.31.

In 2024, he pitched 34 inning in 17 games and ERA 3.71, and in 2025, he pitched 20 inning in 15 games and ERA 3.15, posting consistent above-average numbers for three years in a row while playing a wide variety of roles. In his new home, he will continue to be a valuable left fielder who can inning straddle the lineup, and he will look to make the leap to become an integral part of bullpen.

Will there be a player who will grow significantly in his new environment and become an indispensable member of the team?

The rise of Shun Mizutani, who transferred to Hokkaido Nippon-Ham in the 2023 active player draft, was a great boost for the team, which finished second for the second consecutive year. The question remains whether the six players who have now transferred to Pacific League teams can achieve significant growth in their new environments and become indispensable members of their respective teams. Their performances in the upcoming 2026 season will be worth watching closely.

Written by Ryota Mochizuki