{
  "id": 14638905,
  "title": "Star high school pitcher Oda to skip NPB draft, move to US",
  "url": "https://urgent.news/2026/10/15/star-high-school-pitcher-oda-to-skip-npb-draft-move-to-us",
  "topic": "world",
  "section": "World",
  "published": "2026-10-15T07:30:10.000Z",
  "source": {
    "name": "The Mainichi",
    "slug": "the-mainichi",
    "url": "https://mainichi.jp/english/articles/20261015/p2g/00m/0sp/029000c"
  },
  "original_language": "en",
  "account": "Japanese high school pitching sensation Shoki Oda has announced he will skip the Nippon Professional Baseball draft and pursue a career in the United States. The 18-year-old right-hander from Yokohama High School has garnered considerable attention from both Japan and the States, making him a frontrunner for a first-round pick in the upcoming draft scheduled for October 22nd. During a press conference at his school near Tokyo, Oda stated his motivation for this decision as his desire to become the best pitcher in the world. He emphasized his readiness to face the challenges ahead. Oda played a pivotal role in his team's triumph at last year's invitational spring Koshien tournament and led them to the semi-finals in the summer edition. At 186 centimeters tall, Oda boasts a formidable fastball along with a diverse arsenal of breaking pitches.",
  "summary": "YOKOHAMA (Kyodo) -- Japanese high school pitching phenom Shoki Oda announced Thursday he will skip the Nippon Professional Baseball draft and begin pu",
  "key_points": [
    "Shoki Oda, 18, skips NPB draft.",
    "Moves to US to become best pitcher.",
    "Led team to semi-finals in summer."
  ],
  "editors_take": null,
  "illustration": null,
  "coverage": {
    "outlets": 1,
    "also_reported_by": []
  },
  "ai_generated": true,
  "disclaimer": "Summaries, key points and the editor’s take are written by software from other outlets’ reporting and may contain errors — always check the linked original."
}