[Koshien 2026] “I’m Proud to Stand on the Same Stage as My Father” — Ryunosuke Tsuji Chases a Three-Generation Baseball Legacy

The super high-school level player set to electrify the midsummer Koshien: Ryunosuke Tsuji【Riseisha】

The 108th National High School Baseball Championship (Summer Koshien) has finally gotten underway. One of the biggest surprises in this year’s regional tournaments, which saw a succession of giant-killing upsets, was the fourth-round elimination of Osaka Toin, the spring national champions.

Riseisha emerged victorious from the fiercely competitive Osaka tournament instead. The team’s captain is Ryunosuke Tsuji, a third baseman whose grandfather and father were both professional baseball players.

“My father (Ryutaro, formerly of the Orix Buffaloes and currently the Saitama Seibu Lions’ farm infield chief coach) was also one of the players who excelled at Koshien. I’m really happy that I finally get to stand on the same stage as him.”

Tsuji’s greatest strength is his ability to hit the ball with power to the opposite field. Anyone who faces him can immediately see that he has worked hard to build a physique with a professional career in mind.

“My favorite part of my physique is my latissimus dorsi, and I’m somewhat confident about it. It contributes to my swing speed, which also has a positive effect on the velocity of the ball off the bat, and I think it has definitely helped me produce more hits. I owe this physique to my mother’s cooking. I’ve always been a small eater, but because my mother’s cooking, especially her hamburg steaks, is delicious, it makes me more hungry.”

He is being tipped to become the first-ever professional baseball player to emerge from three generations of the same family.

“I’ve never felt burdened by that. My grandfather (Tetsuya, who played outfield for the Chunichi Dragons) passed away two summers ago, but I went to Koshien and told him that I would become a professional baseball player just like him. I consider that my way of saying goodbye. I definitely want to make that dream come true.”

The designated hitter rule was introduced this spring, while video review was introduced this summer. Will the champion of this new era emerge from among the “Big Four”?

From the combined August 21–28, 2026 issue of “FRIDAY”