Daiki Tohmei

2.1. High School and University

Rather than entering through sports推薦 (suisen, recommendation), Tohmei enrolled at Toin Yokohama University through the AO admissions process. He began pitching in the Kanagawa University Baseball League from the spring of his first year. During this period, he showed significant growth, especially in his pitching velocity, earning the Best Player Award in the autumn league season of his first year. In the spring of his second year, he helped lead his team to its first league championship and a spot in the All-Japan University Baseball Championship Series. However, due to an injury, he did not get an opportunity to pitch in the championship.

By his third year, Tohmei's performance peaked, earning him the League MVP and Best Pitcher awards in the spring, once again contributing to his team's league championship and advancement to the All-Japan University Baseball Championship. In the championship series, he engaged in pitching duels against formidable opponents such as Hiroshi Urano of Aichi Gakuin University in the first round and Koji Fukutani of Keio University in the second round. In the second-round game against Keio, he held their batters hitless until one out in the seventh inning but ultimately lost the victory in the final innings. In the autumn of his fourth year, he secured his second League MVP award. He won a pitching matchup against Tomoyuki Sugano of Tokai University in the Meiji Jingu Tournament representative deciding game, though his team was eliminated in the first round of the tournament itself.

During his tenure at Toin Yokohama University, Tohmei appeared in 52 league games, accumulating a total of 371.2 innings pitched, 30 wins, 11 losses, 234 strikeouts, and an ERA of 1.86. He was also selected for the Best Nine team four times. Despite submitting a professional draft application in the autumn of his fourth year, he was not selected by any team in the 2011 NPB Draft. Consequently, he joined Fuji Heavy Industries (now known as SUBARU) after graduation.

2.2. Corporate League Baseball

Upon joining Fuji Heavy Industries, Daiki Tohmei quickly made an impact. In his first year, he earned the MVP award during the qualifiers for the 83rd Intercity Baseball Tournament, leading his team to the main tournament as the North Kanto's first representative, where he also pitched. In his second year, when he was again eligible for the NPB draft, he contributed to his team's runner-up finish in the JABA Shizuoka Tournament and received the Fighting Spirit Award. Although his team missed out on the main Intercity Baseball Tournament for the second consecutive year, Tohmei saw significant improvement under Tsuguo Abe, who returned as a coach in the summer. He subsequently participated in the main tournament as a reinforcement player for Hitachi, Ltd.. In the 2013 NPB Draft, the Orix Buffaloes selected him in the second round. He officially joined the team with a reported signing bonus of 80.00 M JPY and an annual salary of 12.00 M JPY. He was assigned uniform number 26.

Immediately after being drafted by Orix, Tohmei participated in the 39th All-Japan Non-Professional Baseball Championship as a pitcher for Fuji Heavy Industries. He pitched complete game shutouts against JR Kyushu in the first round and Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Hiroshima in the semifinals. In the final match against Kazusa Magic, which his team narrowly lost 0-1, he made a relief appearance and pitched without allowing any runs. Throughout the tournament, he threw a total of 20.2 innings without conceding a single run.

3.1. Orix Buffaloes Era

2014 season: Tohmei started his professional career strongly, joining fellow rookie pitchers Kazumasa Yoshida and Akifumi Oyama in the first team's spring training. He continued to perform well in the exhibition games, earning a spot on the opening day roster as a relief pitcher alongside Oyama. This marked the first time in ten years that multiple rookie pitchers had made the opening day roster for the Orix Buffaloes. On March 28, he made his official NPB debut in the opening game against the Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters at Sapporo Dome. Entering in the bottom of the 12th inning with the score tied, he faced two batters, allowing one hit and one walk, which loaded the bases. He then gave up a sayonara hit to Eichi Kotani, resulting in the team's second consecutive opening day walk-off loss, a first in NPB history since the two-league system was established.

In his fifth appearance on April 17, against the Nippon-Ham Fighters at Hotto Motto Field Kobe, he earned his first professional win by pitching 2.1 innings of scoreless relief from the fourth inning. Notably, on the same day, two other rookie pitchers, Katsuki Matayoshi of the Chunichi Dragons and Takuya Toyoda of the Saitama Seibu Lions, also recorded their first professional wins, marking the first time in 59 years that three rookie pitchers achieved their first victories on the same day in an NPB first-team game. In late May, Tohmei transitioned into a starting pitcher role. He secured his first win as a starter on June 7, against the Hanshin Tigers at Hanshin Koshien Stadium, marking his first time pitching at the iconic ballpark. Despite suffering five losses in July, he recorded three wins in three starts in August. He concluded his rookie season with five wins, matching his teammate Kazumasa Yoshida.

2015 season: Tohmei established himself as a regular in the starting rotation from the beginning of the season. Although he managed only three wins in the first half of the season due to health issues and other factors, he went on a four-game winning streak starting in mid-August. On September 9, against the Seibu Lions at Seibu Prince Dome, he achieved his first 10-win season, which he sealed with his first career complete game and shutout, allowing only two hits over nine innings. He extended his winning streak to five games and finished the season with a record of 10 wins and 8 losses, posting an ERA of 3.35.

2016 season: Tohmei secured his first win of the season in his initial first-team appearance on March 30, starting against the Nippon-Ham Fighters at Sapporo Dome. However, subsequent appearances were plagued by a recurring pattern of walks leading to runs, preventing him from accumulating further wins. He suffered seven losses in the first half of the season alone. During the season, he was moved to a relief pitcher role and also sent down to the minor league for adjustment. On August 9, in a game against the Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks at Kyocera Dome Osaka, he was called to pitch in relief after starting pitcher Yuki Nishi was forced to leave the game due to injury. Tohmei pitched three scoreless innings, earning his first professional hold. He later returned to the starting rotation due to Nishi's extended absence. However, he was unable to break his pattern of issuing walks, drawing repeated criticism from manager Junichi Fukura, who described him as a "typical pitcher who loses." Tohmei finished the season with a single win followed by a 10-game losing streak. On November 8, he underwent cleaning surgery on his right elbow.

2017 season: Tohmei made only three appearances in the first team, without recording a win or loss. On August 25, he underwent a second cleaning surgery on his right elbow. Following this, he did not return to competitive play, focusing entirely on rehabilitation.

2018 season: He spent the first half of the season rehabilitating in the minor league. During his adjustments, he pitched in 20 games in the Western League, but his record was 1 win and 6 losses. On September 12, in his fourth first-team appearance of the season against the Seibu Lions at Hotto Motto Field Kobe, Tohmei secured his first win in two and a half years since his first appearance in 2016, putting an end to his personal 12-game losing streak that had begun in April of the same year. In his final appearance of the season on September 28 against the Nippon-Ham Fighters at Kyocera Dome Osaka, despite being credited with a loss in a tight 1-2 game, he pitched effectively, throwing 107 pitches over seven innings and allowing only two runs-his highest pitch count since his surgery the previous year. He finished the season with a respectable ERA of 2.27.

2019 season: Tohmei made the opening day roster for the first time in three years. On March 30, he started the second game of the opening series against the Nippon-Ham Fighters at Sapporo Dome, pitching against his former teammate Chihiro Kaneko, whom he credited for helping him during self-training. The game ended in a draw, with neither pitcher earning a decision. By late April, he had made four starts and secured one win. However, he was sent down to the minor league for adjustment starting in May. He returned to the first team in early July as a relief pitcher, making only three appearances before the season concluded.

2020 season: Tohmei's appearances in the first team were limited to just two games. On November 4, he received a release notice from the Orix Buffaloes. He expressed a desire to continue his professional career and participated in the 12-team tryout in December.

3.2. After Leaving Orix

In January 2022, Tohmei joined Johoku Real Estate as an employee. His decision to join the company was influenced by the presence of former professional baseball player Yuya Kamata there.

5.1. Career Statistics

5.2. Major Records

5.3. Uniform Number and Entrance Song

• Uniform Number:** 26 (2014-2020)
• Entrance Song:** "Tamashii Revolution" by Superfly