Busan: The Lotte Giants have filled their Asian quota with the signing of Japanese pitcher Masaya Kyoyama. The Korea Baseball Organization (KBO) club announced that Kyoyama, a 27-year-old right-hander, has agreed to a one-year contract valued at US$150,000.

According to Yonhap News Agency, the KBO has a new rule starting in 2026 that allows clubs to carry a player from an Asian country or Australia, in addition to their usual trio of foreign-born players. This offseason, eight out of the ten KBO teams have already signed Asian quota players, with six of those being Japanese. The Giants also filled their three other foreign player spots with pitchers Jeremy Beasley and Elvin Rodriguez, along with returning outfielder Victor Reyes.

Kyoyama has been associated with the Yokohama DeNA BayStars in Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB) since 2017, initially playing for their minor league team before making his NPB debut in 2018. Over 84 career NPB games, Kyoyama has accumulated a 14-23 record with six holds and a 4.60 ERA over 277 2/3 innings. He has recorded 222 strikeouts and 160 walks.

The Lotte Giants signed Kyoyama following a test conducted in Miyazaki, Japan, during their end-of-season training camp in November. The team noted that Kyoyama can reach speeds of 155 kilometers per hour with his four-seam fastball and is capable of delivering a splitter with a significant vertical drop.

Giants general manager Park Jun-hyuk stated that Kyoyama will provide depth to the team's starting rotation, with his experience as a middle reliever also making him a viable option for the bullpen. The team is set to have a strong NPB influence next season, with both Beasley and Rodriguez having pitched in the Japanese league, and the recent hiring of former Hanshin Tigers pitching coach Satoru Kanemura as the new pitching coordinator.