A unique record was set in the game between the Hiroshima Toyo Carp and the Yokohama DeNA BASS.

Hiroshima achieved a walk-off victory of 8-7 after a close contest that went to the 11th inning at Mazda Zoom-Zoom Stadium in Hiroshima Prefecture.

Surprisingly, the game ended with 22-year-old outfielder Tamura Susuke, who had not hit a single home run in the first team, stepping up to the plate. With both teams tied at 7-7, Tamura, who replaced pitcher Moriura Daisuke at the bottom of the 11th inning, hit a walk-off home run that cleared the right-field wall off the first pitch from Yasuhaki Yamazaki, known for his 232 career saves. This was Tamura's first home run in his professional debut.

Tamura, who joined Hiroshima as the 4th overall pick in the 2021 rookie draft, has recorded a batting average of .246 (33 hits in 134 at-bats), 1 home run, 8 RBIs, 8 runs scored, and 1 steal in 54 games in Nippon Professional Baseball but had not yet built a significant career. However, with his walk-off home run, he certainly made a strong impression on fans. Japanese media Full Count noted, "The excitement among Carp fans reached a peak with his star-like performance," and added quotes from fans such as, "Tamura Susuke is definitely going to be a star," "the future of the Carp," and "I cried," "I was so grateful to see such a scene."

"This is really amazing," Tamura said with a smile. "I was just focusing on one fastball. When it came, I was determined to hit it, and fortunately, the exact pitch I imagined came to me. We took the lead, but they caught up in the middle. My teammates kept the consolidation going, and we made the tie again. When my name was called, I entered the batter's box with the mindset of 'I will absolutely finish this.'"

While Tamura rose to stardom with his first professional home run as a pinch hitter, veteran relief pitcher Yamazaki became the subject of an unfortunate record. Yamazaki, who has an impressive career record of 550 games (529⅓ innings), 22 wins, 37 losses, 93 holds, and 232 saves with a 2.82 earned run average, allowed a painful walk-off home run in this game.

In the bottom of the 11th inning, with the teams tied at 7-7, Yamazaki took the mound in place of Shimauchi Sotaro and conceded a walk-off home run to Tamura after just one pitch, resulting in a loss for him. Japanese media Sponichi Annex explained, "Yamazaki became the losing pitcher with just one pitch. This marks the first record since Heinai Ryuta (Yomiuri) did it on Aug. 18 last year in the Central League, and it is the 28th record of its kind across both leagues."

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