Managers Tsuyoshi Shinjo, Mamoru Kishida, and Kenya Kenya Wakatsuki Kotaro Kiyomiya It’s also revealed that he will be the fourth batter in the first game.

Pacific League Insight

2025.10.10(金) 17:20

Ahead of the first stage of the 2025 Persol Climax Series first baseman League, which begins on October 11th, a press conference was held at ES CON FIELD the day before. Hokkaido Nippon-Ham manager Tsuyoshi Shinjo and player Kotaro Kiyomiya, as well as Orix Buffaloes manager Mamoru Kishida and player Kenya Wakatsuki, took to the stage.

Orix has a challenger spirit. Hokkaido Nippon-Ham use the cheers of their home stadium as their power source.

We are the challengers, so I want everyone to go wild as much as they can.

This was said by Kishida, manager of the third-place Orix team, which advanced to the postseason in his first year in the postseason. This season, they were 12-12-1 with Hokkaido Nippon-Ham, but “I got the impression that they managed to hold on,” he said, looking back on the season’s matchups. I’m going to borrow from their chests and give it my best shot,” he said, vowing to put up a good fight in this year’s PERSOL CS Pa.

Wakatsuki, who has won three consecutive Pacific League championships since 2021, also has a challenger’s spirit, saying, “I have felt the fear of teams coming up from the bottom, so this time (as the third-place finisher), I want to be on the top of our game.

In contrast, Hokkaido Nippon-Ham will advance to the PERSOL CS Pa for the second year in a row. Shinjo said, “Orix, who has won three consecutive championships, has more experience,” but he also expressed hope for the cheering of the fans at their home base, saying, “Thanks to the support of ES CON FIELD, the players give off tremendous power, so I want to leave it to the players who have grown over the past four years.

Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Last year, the “Kickoff” team lost its first game in the first baseman stage, but continued the momentum from the second walk-off win game to advance to the final stage by winning the third win game. However, he lost 0-4 (including the advantage) against the champion Fukuoka Softbank. While expressing his frustration, Kiyomiya said, “I’ve had a tough battle with Orix, so I can’t really look ahead. I think we have no choice but to win every single battle,” he said, concentrating on the battle ahead.

The first game will see both Hiromi Ito and Shumpeita Yamashita start. The key to success will be a first baseman ball to first base!

The starting pitchers for Game 1 were announced to be Hokkaido Nippon-Ham-Hiromi Ito Fighters pitcher Orix and Shumpeita Yamashita pitcher Shunpei Yamashita. At the same time, it was also revealed that Kiyomiya would be batting fourth, with manager Shinjo explaining his reasoning: “He hit some good balls to center fielder (in the Red-White game), so I think I’ll put him in fourth position.”

Manager Shinjo added, “I’d be happy if they could stop first baseman balls from flying too far to first base (in Orix ‘s offense),” to which Manager Kishida replied with a grin, “(The strong batting lineup) will make a solid adjustment today and practice hitting first baseman balls to first base.” Wakatsuki also added, “We haven’t been able to hit against pitcher Ito, so I’d like to try a push bunt to first base,” continuing his verbal attack on first baseman Kiyomiya.

Kiyomiya responded with a laugh, “Tomorrow I’ll practice first baseman out to first base first!” He continued, “It’s a short-term battle, so I think it’s important to be able to switch gears even if you make a mistake. Even if I make an error, I’ll switch gears and do my best next time.”

This season, Hokkaido Nippon-Ham have a team batting average of .266 against Orix Buffaloes. On the other hand, Orix have also recorded a high team batting average of .261 against Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters.

The first game will be a duel between two excellent pitcher, but as both Managers Shinjo and Kishida said, “I think the fans will enjoy it if we can score points,” it looks like it will be a batting duel. The “2025 Persol Climax Series Pacific League” is about to begin, so keep an eye on how it plays out.

AloJapan.com