Yuri Teramoto carried No. 17 to the Dodger Stadium mound on Sunday, then sent a ceremonial first pitch into the glove of Dodgers right-hander Roki Sasaki before Los Angeles met the San Francisco Giants. For the 16-year-old from Hanamaki Higashi High School, it was a long way from a freshman season in Iwate—and a glimpse of the baseball future she hopes to chase.
An Iwate arm on a major league mound
Teramoto, a 5-foot-10 right-hander who has reached 73 mph, was selected to throw the first ball as part of an Iwate youth delegation visiting the U.S. West Coast. Sasaki, himself raised in Iwate Prefecture, took the ball behind the plate as the crowd responded to Teramoto’s clean delivery.
Before taking the mound, Teramoto acknowledged the nerves that came with the assignment.
“I’m nervous, but I’m also really excited,” she said.
Once she began her motion, the anxiety gave way to a confident throw. Teramoto took in the size of the ballpark afterward, clearly savoring a moment she called a dream for any player of the game.
- Teramoto is a first-year student at Hanamaki Higashi High School in Iwate Prefecture.
- She wears No. 17, the number Shohei Ohtani wore at the school.
- Yusei Kikuchi and Rintaro Sasaki also wore No. 17 at Hanamaki Higashi.
- Rintaro Sasaki was taken by the Miami Marlins in the 2026 MLB Draft.
- Teramoto wore “IWATE 17” across her back at Dodger Stadium.
A trip shaped by Iwate’s history
The visit was arranged by Iwate Prefecture and Iwate Nippo in recognition of the prefecture’s 150th anniversary and the 15th anniversary of the Great East Japan Earthquake and tsunami. Teramoto was among 50 Iwate high school students traveling the West Coast from Sept. 15 through Sept. 22.
The itinerary gave the group a close look at the major league routine before Teramoto got her own turn under the lights.
- On Sept. 19, the students visited Angel Stadium, met Kikuchi and watched the left-hander work through a bullpen session.
- Teramoto studied Kikuchi as he threw repeatedly into the catcher’s target, getting a firsthand look at the work required on a big league staff.
- The following day, the group reached Dodger Stadium, where Teramoto was handed the mound for the pregame ceremony.
Hanamaki Higashi has become one of the defining baseball schools in the prefecture, having produced Kikuchi, Ohtani and Rintaro Sasaki. Roki Sasaki, though not a Hanamaki Higashi product, also emerged from Iwate before reaching Major League Baseball.
Ohtani’s example led her north
Teramoto grew up in Kumamoto Prefecture in southern Japan, but moved nearly 900 miles north this spring to enroll at Hanamaki Higashi. She said Ohtani’s example was central to that choice.
“Ohtani is someone I’ve always looked up to,” Teramoto said. “When baseball gets difficult, I read books about him for encouragement. The way he approaches setting goals has helped me enjoy practicing more.”
Girls’ baseball opportunities have expanded in Kumamoto and across Kyushu, but Teramoto believed Hanamaki Higashi offered the right balance for her next three years. She said the school gives her room to concentrate on both academics and baseball.
No. 17 added another personal connection. Teramoto said it was already her favorite number, making it especially meaningful to inherit a number associated with Ohtani, Kikuchi and Rintaro Sasaki.
A growing path for girls’ baseball
Girls’ baseball has gained more players and support throughout Japan in recent years. When Hanamaki Higashi started its girls’ baseball program, Ohtani contributed a batting machine to the school.
“We use it every day,” Teramoto said. “I’m very thankful for it.”
The broader push was visible earlier this month at Tokyo Dome, where Ichiro Suzuki played in an exhibition against an all-star group of Japan’s top high school girls’ baseball players.
For Teramoto, Sunday’s pitch was not an ending point. She wants to study in the United States one day and continue playing baseball here. Iwate has already sent Kikuchi, Ohtani and Roki Sasaki to the sport’s largest stage, while Rintaro Sasaki works toward his own major league opportunity in the Marlins organization. Teramoto’s pitch at Dodger Stadium was one small turn in that same baseball line, delivered with No. 17 on her back.
