Overview
- In the eighth inning of a Yakult Swallows–Yokohama DeNA BayStars game at Meiji Jingu Stadium, a slipped bat from José Osuna hit home-plate umpire Takuto Kawakami in the head and knocked him to the ground.
- Medical staff treated Kawakami on the field before he was taken to a hospital, where outlets reported intensive care, and Newsweek said he underwent emergency surgery.
- Nippon Professional Baseball called the incident an “extremely serious matter” and announced an immediate review of safety gear used by plate umpires.
- The review includes potential helmet-style, full-head protection, since traditional wire masks mainly shield the face and leave the sides and top of the head exposed.
- Officials judged the contact accidental with no interference call, and Osuna posted a public apology, in a case that has renewed attention to similar MLB umpire injuries and could push other leagues to revisit their gear.