[July 17, 2025] Lotte's Kyuto Ueda: The 'Phantom First Pro Home Run' That Vanished in the Rain
Chiba Lotte Marines' 2023 first-round draft pick, Kyuto Ueda, experienced a rare event in NPB history: what he thought was his long-awaited first professional home run was nullified due to weather conditions.
Kyuto Ueda's supposed first pro home run... becomes a phantom
On July 17, at the Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks vs. Chiba Lotte Marines game at Kitakyushu Citizen Stadium, the starting pitchers were left-hander Haru Matsumoto for SoftBank and Yuto Kimura for Lotte.
The game was interrupted multiple times by rain. In the top of the 6th inning, with the score tied at 2-2, Lotte's leadoff hitter Aito hit his first single of the season off SoftBank's third pitcher, Toya Kawaguchi. Then, with no outs and a runner on first, Kyuto Ueda connected with a 133 km/h forkball that hung over the plate, driving it into the right-field stands for a go-ahead two-run homer. This was Ueda's first home run in a first-team official game in his second professional season.
Kyuto Ueda's first home run in his professional career.
The Lotte lineup, riding the momentum, added more runs with an RBI single by Yasunori Yasuda, temporarily extending the score to 6-2 during that inning.
However, during Lotte's attack in the top of the 6th inning, with two outs and the bases loaded, the rain intensified rapidly, and the game was suspended again. The game was eventually called without the weather clearing up.
The scoreboard at Kitakyushu Citizen Stadium still showed the '4' for Lotte's top of the 6th, but the announcement of a '2-2 draw' echoed through the stadium, drawing cheers from Hawks fans and groans from Marines fans.
Why was Lotte's top of the 6th inning attack nullified?
Official Baseball Rule 7.01 (Handling of Called Games)
Official Baseball Rule 7.01(g)(4) [Note]
(2) If the visiting team scores a run that gives them the lead in the top of an inning, but the game is called before the top half of the inning is completed, or before the bottom half begins, or if the bottom half begins but the home team does not score enough to tie or retake the lead.
According to the Official Baseball Rules, if a game is called in the middle of an inning after it has become an official game, and the home team has not tied or reversed the score, the result (and records) are determined by the score of the last completed equal inning for both teams.
Therefore, the score from the 'last completed equal inning' (the 5th inning), which was official by the time the game was called, stands. Any runs scored after Lotte began their attack in the top of the 6th are nullified; all 4 runs were wiped out, and the 6th-inning attack does not remain in the official record.
Ueda's home run was also invalidated. It literally became a 'phantom first pro home run'.
Yuto Kimura's third win vanishes, along with his first pro complete game and Aito's first hit of the season
Lotte's starting pitcher Yuto Kimura had allowed 2 runs through 5 innings. If the game had been called after the bottom of the 6th with the lead intact, it would have been his 3rd win of the season, but that also became a phantom.
Instead, his first professional complete game was recorded.
Similarly, Aito's first hit of the season, Fumishio Nishikawa's third hit (multi-hit game), and Yasunori Yasuda's RBI single were all invalidated.
Ueda himself said, 'It's fine because it remains in my memory. I'll just hit another one at Marine.'
◇Comment from Ueda
'I hit a forkball. I just swung with everything I had. We had been tied and the momentum wasn't great, so I wanted to do something, and I'm glad I was able to hit it well.'
However, regarding the fact that his memorable first professional home run became a 'phantom home run,' Ueda later said,
'Well, it's fine because it remains in my memory, right? I'll just hit one at Marine.' he said, acting upbeat.
Ueda, who said he was told by his family that he was born at a hospital near Kitakyushu Citizen Stadium, expressed his joy, saying, 'My grandfather was also there to watch.'
I heard from my parents that I was born in a hospital right there (near the stadium). My grandfather was there to watch, so I'm glad I was able to put on a good show for him.
Meanwhile, Toya Kawaguchi was registered to the active roster this June, and this was his sixth appearance, but his first professional run allowed and the appearance itself became a phantom, keeping his ERA at 0.00.
Third time a 'first professional home run' has been invalidated, first time due to weather
Cases where a first professional home run was canceled in an NPB first-team official game include Hisataka Yukisawa (Nippon-Ham, passing a runner) on April 29, 1976, and Chris Marrero (Orix, missing a base) on June 9, 2017. However, Ueda is the first in history to have his first professional home run become a 'phantom' due to a called game caused by weather.
Nippon-Ham rookie Hisataka Yukisawa's 'first professional home run was a grand slam' becomes a phantom
On April 29, 1976, Nippon-Ham's college-graduate rookie Hisataka Yukisawa came to the plate with one out and the bases loaded in the bottom of the 8th inning in a game against the Kintetsu Buffaloes at Korakuen Stadium, with Nippon-Ham trailing by a large margin of 3-12, and smashed a shot into the left-field stands. Yukisawa was supposed to have hit his first professional home run—a grand slam at that—in only his third professional at-bat, but he accidentally passed the first-base runner between first and second base and was called out. The 'phantom home run' was recorded as a 'single,' a 3-run RBI single. Moreover, if there had been two outs, it would have been three outs and the side would have been retired, ending the inning with no runs scored. In the end, Yukisawa finished his rookie year with zero home runs, and hit his first professional home run on May 11, 1977, in a game against the Lotte Orions.
This is the fourth time in 38 years that a 'phantom home run' has occurred due to a called game
Similarly, 'phantom home runs' due to called games have occurred only four times in 38 years, including those by Kisaku Yamakawa (Giants) on April 27, 1949, Koji Minoda (Hankyu Braves) on July 19, 1984, and Bob Horner (Yakult Swallows) on August 9, 1987.
Koji Minoda's 'go-ahead home run' becomes a phantom
On July 19, 1984, in a game between the Seibu Lions and the Hankyu Braves at Seibu Stadium, Koji Minoda hit a go-ahead home run off Seibu starter Hisanobu Watanabe in the top of the 7th inning with the score tied, but the game was called due to rain immediately after, and Minoda's 20th home run of the season was canceled. Incidentally, rookie Hisanobu Watanabe was spared a loss and was credited with his first professional complete game.
Bob Horner's 'game-tying home run' also becomes a phantom
In 1987, when active Major Leaguer Bob Horner joined Yakult and created the 'Horner whirlwind,' a phantom home run also occurred in a game against the Hanshin Tigers at Heiwadai Stadium in Fukuoka on August 9. In the top of the 7th inning with Yakult trailing 0-1, Horner hit his 18th solo home run of the season to tie the game, but the game was called immediately after, rendering Horner's shot invalid and giving Hanshin a 1-0 victory. Hanshin starter
Matt Keough earned a shutout victory with six scoreless innings, while Yakult starter Daisuke Araki was the losing pitcher, marking a contrast in their fortunes.
Profile of Kyuto Ueda
Kyuto Ueda is a right-handed, left-hitting infielder from Okazaki City, Aichi Prefecture, who joined Lotte as the first pick in the 2023 draft after attending Aichi Sangyo University Mikawa High School and Meiji University. In his first year (2024), he appeared in 21 first-team games, batting .259 with 0 home runs and 7 RBIs. This season, he made the opening day first-team roster but was removed from the roster in late April, and had just been promoted again after producing results in the farm league.