One minute into the game, the Tokyo Dome was already shaking. In his first at-bat wearing the national team uniform, Tomoya Masaki‘s bat did what it had done all season.

On November 12, Japan opened the Asia Professional Baseball Championship with a 5-0 win over Taiwan at the Tokyo Dome, and at the center of it stood Masaki (27, Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks), starting at first base and batting leadoff. In a tournament built around young players, Masaki was the rare veteran exception — and this was his first-ever selection to the national team. The game was also Tadahito Iguchi‘s debut as national team manager.

A leadoff homer, then one off the upper deck

In the first inning, Masaki drove a 145 km/h fastball from Taiwan’s left-handed starter Lin Tzu-wei to the left of the back screen — a leadoff home run, just like the team-record seven he hit for SoftBank this season. Manager Tadahito Iguchi greeted him with a huge smile and a high-five.

His second at-bat, in the third, was bigger. On a full count, Masaki launched a ball to the upper deck beside the left-field pole — 129.5 meters, at an exit velocity of 179.1 km/h. It flew so high the crowd briefly went quiet, then erupted. In international tournaments with professional players, no Japanese hitter had ever opened with a leadoff homer and followed it with a second straight home run in his next at-bat. Masaki was the first.

He added an RBI single in the seventh and finished his debut 3-for-4 with two homers and three RBIs. Afterward, he said he figured everyone was nervous, so he wanted his at-bat to give the team momentum — and that it turned out in the best possible way.

The last scene of a season that began on an operating table

Masaki’s season began with surgery in March. He did not return until May — and when he did, the job waiting for him was the leadoff spot. He opened games the opposite way from the speedsters who usually bat first: with power, and with zero stolen bases. He finished with 28 home runs and a Japan Series MVP award, the best year of his career.

That same bat showed up in his first national team game. Iguchi said the first-inning home run gave the team courage. Taiwan’s manager, Kao Chih-kang, admitted his side had been thoroughly overwhelmed.

Japan extended its winning streak in this tournament to eight, dating back to the first edition in 2017, and took its first step toward a third straight title. The star of opening night was a leadoff man who proved, at 27, that a first national team uniform does not have to come late — as long as the bat is on time.

Source: Nikkan Sports (Japan), November 12, 2026 · Sports Hochi (Japan), November 12, 2026 · THE ANSWER (Japan), November 12, 2026

Photo: AI-generated image