SoftBank sweeps the Japan Series after four hard-earned wins
A sweep without an easy night: SoftBank rallied past DeNA 4–2 in Game 4 to secure its second straight title and 13th overall.
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Baseball · NPB · Pitcher
Kazuki Sugiyama
2026 Season performance
In the 2026 regular season, Sugiyama made 55 appearances and threw 53 innings with a 3.23 ERA, 35 saves and 80 strikeouts. His strikeout production and closing workload stand out; limiting extra baserunners remains important after 23 walks.
Updated 2026-11-10Career background
Sugiyama attended Suruga Sogo High School and played industrial-league baseball for Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Hiroshima before SoftBank selected him in the second round in 2018. His NPB first-team record began in 2019. Early opportunities were limited, and he worked 42⅓ innings across ten appearances in 2022.
His workload grew substantially in 2024: fifty outings, fourteen holds and a 1.61 ERA. He then recorded 31 saves in 2025. After entering professional baseball from an industrial-league club, he progressed from sporadic appearances to regular late-inning work, taking on more assignments protecting a lead.
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