[Nippon-Ham] Hiromi Ito wins his first Sawamura Award, an award he's always dreamed of. He's the second player to do so in 18 years, following Darvish, and the first Hokkaido native to do so. | Pacific League League.com - NPBHUB

[Nippon-Ham] Hiromi Ito wins his first Sawamura Award, an award he’s always dreamed of receiving. He’s the second player to do so in 18 years, following Darvish, and the first Hokkaido native to do so.

Sports Hochi

2025.10.27(月) 17:00

Hiromi Ito

Nippon-Ham pitcher Hiromi Ito won his first Sawamura Award on the 27th. He is the team’s second player to receive the award in 18 years, following Darvish in 2007. It is also the first time a player from Hokkaido has achieved this feat. “As pitcher, it’s an award I’ve always dreamed of and a goal I’ve set for myself, so I’m truly honored to have been chosen. I’m truly happy that my pitching throughout the season has been recognized. I believe that the results I’ve achieved this year are due to the fact that I’ve practiced with purpose, starting with my own training, and pitching with all my might in the games throughout the season with the goal of helping the team win. I would like to express my gratitude to Manager Shinjo, who believed in me and encouraged me, to everyone on the team who supported me, my family, and of course, to the fans who continue to support me,” Ito said in a statement.

In his fifth year as a professional, he started 27 games and won 14 wins, winning the most wins for the second year in a row and winning the most strike out with 195 strike out. He kept the starting rotation from the opening, and ERA showed a sense of stability with 2.52 and a win rate of 60.3 and 6%. There was not a single game in which he left without five innings, and he marked 6 complete game, and innings pitched marked 196 2/3 innings, which is more than 20 inning behind Seibu and Imai in second place.

　堀内選考委員長は、「新庄監督、ただもんではないなという風に感じております。非常に原点回帰というんですか、そういう感じの談話をよく私も耳にしたり、目にしたりしてます。完投するってことが本当にできんのかな、去年までそんなことしてないのに、今年できんのかなと思ったら非常に多くなってるんですね。ここでも伊藤君ともう１人、北山君ですか？　４つやったり、他の投手も結構完投してんですよね。だから私は沢村賞を狙ってもらうには、日ハムのピッチャーが一番、監督もそういう風に考えてくれてんじゃないかな。非常に喜んでおります」と、両リーグ断トツの２３完投をマークした日本ハム投手陣を大絶賛した。

The 28-year-old has also been selected as a member of the Samurai Japan training match against South Korea on November 15th and 16th. “I am very happy to receive this award, and I would like to continue to train hard every day in order to reach even greater heights,” he said. With this new title in hand, the great ace from the north will embark on a new stage.