Run All the Way Home
A farewell to Takashi Ogino, the Marines’ quiet star with the fastest legs and the loudest cheers
It was a rough season for the Chiba Lotte Marines and their fans. They finished in last place, manager Masato Yoshii was forced to resign, and everybody has to watch Roki Sasaki thrive with the Dodgers in the postseason.
Well, it got worse. Lotte has released several players, including longtime starting pitcher Ayumu Ishikawa and veteran reliever Hirokazu Sawamura. But none of these hurt as much as one: outfielder Takashi Ogino.
Ogino was a first round draft pick back in 2009, and has been one of the most popular players ever since. His career has been marked by injury (he’s only played in 100 or more games three times), but his speed, his defensive ability, and his charm, more than make up for all the time he’s missed. He’s also Kana’s favorite player - the first game we went to, Ogi-san was in the lineup. She fell in love the instant his face appeared on the scoreboard. I still remember her turning to me and asking who the good-looking guy was.
And his cheer song is legendary.
ラララ…駆け抜けろホームまで 荻野貴司(演奏)打て荻野(タ・カ・シ！)
La la la... Run all the way home, Takashi Ogino!(Chant) Hit it, Ogino! (Ta-ka-shi!)
Yes, cheering as a Lotte fan while sitting in the outfield seats involves a lot of jumping up and down.
Our house is filled with that face. Trading cards, posters, keychains, even the cover from one of his signature bento boxes at the stadium. We have at least five Ogino uniforms, all in different colors, along with t-shirts, sweatpants, and I think a pair of socks with his silhouette on them. We’ve only been fans for a few years, but you’d think it was the entire time he’s been on the team.
He played a key part in a big postseason comeback a few years ago, known as the Makuhari Miracle. It also features my favorite player, Katsuya Kakunaka, who is probably next to go.
The announcement came shortly after news that longtime pitcher Ayumu Ishikawa would also depart, sending a mild shock through Lotte fandom. Within hours, “荻野退団” (Ogino leaves) was trending online. Many couldn’t believe it. Some accused the front office of disloyalty; others said this is what a real rebuild looks like. A few fans noted the sad practicality: Ogino turns 40 this month, spent the year in the farm system (though he did hit .317 there), and the outfield is now packed with Fujiwara, Nishikawa, Takabe, Yamamoto, Yamaguchi, and Oka. Plus, he hasn’t actually stolen a base in years. There’s simply no room for him.
Fans mourned the end of an era but acknowledged the logic of a team trying to reset after a last-place finish, the resignation of Masato Yoshii, and the appointment of Saburo Ohmura as manager.
Still, it hurts. For years, Ogino’s speed and smoothness were a kind of comfort—the way he turned a single into a double, or kept a rally alive when the bats went cold, or ran down a ball in the outfield. Even his off-field projects, like the Ogi Farm food truck outside ZOZO Marine and Bisto 0* inside the stadium, became fixtures of team life.
*Zero for the number he wears, not the letter O for Ogino. I still mess up the name. We’ll be at Ogi Farm this weekend to pick potatoes.
The team reportedly offered him a coaching position, but Ogino said he still wants to play, and the club chose to respect that. Had he opted to retire, there would’ve been a farewell game at ZOZO Marine Stadium. Instead, it’s a quiet goodbye after sixteen seasons in black and white. Many fans were stunned that Ogino was actually leaving without a farewell game or retirement ceremony.
His comment to the fans was touching: “This season will be my last wearing a Marines uniform. To all the fans who’ve supported me over these sixteen years, and to the staff and everyone who’s stood by me, I’m deeply grateful. I don’t yet know what the future holds, but I hope I can show you all that I’m still playing, still full of energy, somewhere on the field again. Thank you very much for the past 16 years!”
We thought his last sprint would be around ZOZO Marine’s bases. Turns out, he’s still running, just somewhere else.
駆け抜けろホームまで. Run all the way home, Ogino.