Four Japanese WBSC U-18 Baseball World Cup bronze medal winners selected in NPB Draft

Four Japanese WBSC U-18 Baseball World Cup bronze medal winners selected in NPB Draft
28/10/2022
Catcher Shion Matsuo and outfielder Shogo Asano (pictured above) were picked in the first round, reliever and catcher Kaito Noda was selected in the third round, and pitcher Haruto Yamada was drafted in the fifth round.

Catcher Shion Matsuo and outfielder Shogo Asano, who helped Japan earn a bronze medal at the XXX WBSC U-18 Baseball World Cup, were among the first-round picks at the latest Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB) Draft.

The Yokohama DeNA BayStars drafted Matsuo out of the Osaka Toin High School.

At the U-18 Baseball World Cup, held in Florida USA in September, Matsuo started eight games at catcher and one as the designated hitter. He went 9-for-28, a .321 batting average, with nine RBIs. He didn't commit errors and caught two runners stealing.

The Tokyo Yomiuri Giants drafted Asano out of the Takamatsu Commercial High School.

The switch-hitting outfielder started all games in left field. He went 8-for-24, a .333 batting average, with a home run and four RBIs. He committed one error.

Relief pitcher and catcher Kaito Noda became the third member of the U-18 Baseball World Cup bronze medal team NPB club drafted. The Saitama Seibu Lions drafted him in the third round.

At the U-18 Baseball World Cup, Noda mainly pitched out of the bullpen and appeared in one game as catcher without getting an at-bat. As a reliever, he appeared in four games and didn't allow a run over 4.1 innings, striking out two.

Pitcher Haruto Yamada was the fourth member of that team drafted. The Saitama Seibu Lions picked him in the fifth round.

Yamada appeared in three world No. 1 Japan games at the U-18 Baseball World Cup. He pitched 4.2 innings, allowing five earned runs and striking out four.

NPB clubs also selected eight members of the collegiate team which competed in the Haarlem Baseball Week in the Netherlands.

Pitchers Riku Kikuchi (Senshu University, Chiba Lotte Marines), Kora Yazawa (Nippon Sport Science University, Nippon Ham Fighters), Kosei Shoji (Rikkyo University, Tohoku Rakuten Golden Eagles), Ryuhei Sotani (Hakuoh University, Orix Buffaloes) and outfielders Takuya Hiruma (Washed University, Saitama Seibu Lions) and Shota Morishita (National Central University, Hanshin Tigers) became first-round picks.

The Yomiuri Giants selected outfielder Masaya Hagio out of Keio University in the second round. In the third round, the Yokohama DeNA BayStars picked infielder Takuma Hayashi out of Komazawa University.