Maki Shugo (25) of the Yokohama DeNA Basestars has hit 20 home runs for the third consecutive year since his debut. It is the sixth record in Nippon Professional Baseball history.
Maki started at second base in the fourth inning against the Yomiuri Giants at the Tokyo Dome on 12 December.
He struck out in his first at-bat in the second inning and again in his second at-bat in the fifth. Trailing 0-3 with one out in the seventh inning, he took a first-pitch forkball (138 km/h) for a solo home run over the left field fence. It was the first run of the game off Yomiuri starter Yamazaki, who had pitched a scoreless sixth inning.카지노사이트
It was Maki’s 20th home run of the season. It was the third consecutive year he reached the 20-homer mark.
In his rookie year in 2021, he played in 137 games, batting .301 with 22 homers, 71 RBIs and an OPS of .890. In 135 games last year, he batted .291 with 24 homers, 87 RBIs and an OPS of .861, his second straight year with 20 homers.
According to Japanese media, only five players in Nippon Professional Baseball have achieved 20 home runs in three consecutive years from their rookie year: Kiyohara (Seibu to Giants) 1986-98, Hara (Giants) 1981-92, Arito (Lotte) 1969-76, Ishii (Kintetsu) 1990-94, and Mori (Junichi) 1958-60. Maki became the sixth all-time.
After hitting the home run, Maki said, “I was able to grasp the changeup well. I didn’t hit it in my previous at-bat, so I tried to hit it aggressively.”
Maki hit a come-from-behind two-run home run (No. 19) in the top of the ninth inning against Yomiuri on the 11th, trailing 1-2. Home run in two consecutive games.
It was Maki’s 73rd of the season, moving him into sole possession of first place in the RBI category, ahead of Kazuma Okamoto (Yomiuri, 72). He is third in home runs behind Okamoto (31) and Munetaka Murakami (Yakult, 22).