SoftBank Hawks players celebrate winning the Japan Series against the Hanshin Tigers at Koshien Stadium in Nishinomiya, Hyogo Prefecture, on Oct. 30, 2025. (Kyodo)


NISHINOMIYA, Japan (Kyodo) — The SoftBank Hawks’ first Japan Series title since 2020, clinched in Thursday’s 3-2 extra-inning Game 5 victory over the Hanshin Tigers, coincides with a talented generation of players at the club reaching the peak of their powers.


Infielder Ukyo Shuto, outfielder Tatsuru Yanagimachi and closer Kazuki Sugiyama are among several Hawks players in their late 20s who have become the nucleus of a club looking to reclaim its position as the dominant force in Nippon Professional Baseball.


Shuto, 29, set a new Japan Series record with five hits in a 10-1 Game 2 rout that evened the ledger at 1-1 and gave the Hawks momentum they carried to a 4-1 series win.


“I did my job as well as I could,” Shuto, a younger member of SoftBank’s Japan Series-winning rosters in his first two years as a pro in 2019 and 2020, said after the milestone performance.


In contrast to the illustrious senior players above him on those teams, Shuto has developed into a vocal, hands-on leader who has been in constant communication with his younger teammates and can often be seen shouting encouragement from the dugout.


“My predecessors pulled the team along, leading by example, but I couldn’t possibly imitate the way they did it,” said Shuto, who also serves as president of the players’ association.


One of many players to respond was infielder Hikaru Kawase, who plated the crucial go-ahead run in Game 6 of the Pacific League Climax Series final stage against the Nippon Ham Fighters.


“I wanted to liven things up together with him,” the 28-year-old said.


Driven by the disappointment of last season’s Japan Series loss to the DeNA BayStars, this year’s team fought through obstacles, including injuries to key players such as veteran leaders Yuki Yanagita and Kensuke Kondo.


With the core of its roster in their prime, SoftBank has designs on returning to its glory days of the 2010s, which yielded six of the Fukuoka club’s 12 Japan Series.