Ukyo Shuto


Ukyo Shuto is a Japanese professional baseball infielder for the Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks of Nippon Professional Baseball.

Early baseball career

Shuto participated three times in the Japan National Collegiate Baseball Championship and once in the Meiji Shrine Baseball Championship while studying at the Tokyo University of Agriculture Hokkaido Okhotsk.
In 2017, he was selected most valuable player in the Hokkaido Universities Baseball League.

Professional career

On October 26, 2017, Shuto was drafted as a developmental squad player by the Fukuoka Softbank Hawks in the 2017 Nippon Professional Baseball draft.
In 2018 season, he played in informal matches against Shikoku Island League Plus's teams and amateur baseball teams, and played in the Western League of NPB's minor leagues. On October 3, despite being a developmental squad player, he was selected as the Japan national baseball team for the 2018 U-23 Baseball World Cup because of his speed and defense.
On March 26, 2019, Shuto signed a 6 million yen contract with the Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks as a registered player under management. In the 2019 season, he played mainly as a defensive player and a pinch runner and recorded 25 stolen bases while being caught five times while batting.196/.212/.294 in 102 at bats. On October 1, unusual case, Shuto was evaluated for base-running technique as a pinch runner and was selected as the Japan national baseball top team for the 2019 WBSC Premier12 tournament. He led the tournament with four stolen bases.