Rookie's first RBI

Kota Hirayama drove in his first Nippon Professional Baseball runs on Tuesday, lining a seventh-inning single that lifted the Yomiuri Giants past Chunichi, 2-1. (nikkansports.com) The hit came with no outs and runners on second and third at Nagano Olympic Stadium on April 21. Hirayama turned on a slider from Chunichi starter Yumeto Kanemaru and sent it through the middle for a two-run go-ahead single. (nikkansports.com) (youtube.com) Chunichi had led 1-0 before the Giants’ seventh-inning rally. Yuto Kohama’s first professional hit helped set the table, and Hirayama’s single accounted for both Giants runs in the 2-1 final. (sanspo.com) (news.ntv.co.jp) For Hirayama, the swing capped a fast climb that started earlier this month. The Giants announced on April 5 that they had signed the 22-year-old infielder to a standard roster spot after he entered the organization as a 2023 development draft pick. (giants.jp) The Giants list Hirayama’s first top-team appearance as April 8 against Hiroshima and his first hit as April 11 against Yakult. Their player page now shows seven first-team games, 14 at-bats, two hits and two runs batted in. (giants.jp) That made Tuesday’s at-bat more than a routine single. Nikkan Sports reported it was Hirayama’s 13th plate appearance in Nippon Professional Baseball, and the go-ahead knock halted a two-game Giants losing streak. (nikkansports.com) (msn.com) Hirayama’s promotion had already drawn attention during spring games. Yomiuri Shimbun reported that he hit two home runs in five preseason appearances before the club moved him onto the main roster and gave him uniform No. 69. (yomiuri.co.jp) By Tuesday night, the milestone clip was circulating widely on social media alongside broadcast highlights of the Giants’ comeback. For a player who was still on a development contract on April 5, his first runs batted in arrived as the swing that decided the game. (youtube.com) (giants.jp)