On Mother’s Day, Hiroshima Carp infielder Tai Sasaki (23) expressed heartfelt gratitude to his mother, Junko, recalling how her inconsistent tosses during his junior high and high school years ultimately became a key part of his training.
Sasaki, born December 24, 2002, in Ogaki, Gifu Prefecture, attended Gifu Commercial High School and hit a total of 41 home runs in high school, including the Koshien exchange games. After playing at Aoyama Gakuin University, he was selected by Hiroshima as their first-round pick in the 2024 draft. In his rookie season, he played 54 games, recording 49 hits, a .271 batting average, 0 home runs, 6 RBIs, and 2 stolen bases. Standing 178 cm and weighing 84 kg, he bats right-handed and throws right-handed. His estimated salary for this season is 18 million yen.
“Mom, thank you,” Sasaki said. “From middle school through high school, I went to cram school until 10 p.m. every weekday. After dinner, I’d practice hitting in the space next to our house. Even though she was working during the day, my mom would come out every night to toss balls to me. But her tosses were really bad—completely unpredictable. Looking back now, I realize how hard it must have been for her to juggle work, preparing dinner, cleaning up, and still helping me practice. In a way, hitting those erratic tosses might have been better training than perfect ones. It forced me to adjust quickly and improved my hand-eye coordination.”
He added, “I used to get called out from cram school sometimes, and my mom would just say, ‘If you want to quit, that’s fine.’ She always respected my decisions but never stopped supporting me. I’m truly grateful for everything she did.”