Seibu Lions has indefinitely suspended infielder Hotaka Yamakawa despite Tokyo prosecutors deciding not to indict him over allegations of rape ©Getty Images

Japan's Pacific League team Seibu Lions has indefinitely suspended infielder Hotaka Yamakawa despite Tokyo prosecutors deciding not to indict him over allegations of rape.

Due to insufficient evidence, the 2023 World Baseball Classic (WBC) gold medallist was not charged by prosecutors after he was accused of allegedly raping a woman at a hotel in Tokyo last November.

However, Seibu Lions has sanctioned the three-time Pacific League home run leader.

"We take this situation very gravely and have punished the individual in order to encourage him to do some serious self-reflection," Lions President and chief executive Tsuyoshi Okumura said, as reported by Kyodo News.

The 31-year-old was removed from the club roster on May 12 after a 20-year-old woman filed a report against him to the police.

Japan won the WBC in March in Miami after a 14-year absence by defeating the United States 3-2 ©Getty Images
Japan won the WBC in March in Miami after a 14-year absence by defeating the United States 3-2 ©Getty Images

"This situation was caused by my failure to consider my position as a professional baseball player, and I will reflect deeply," Yamakawa said.

In May, Bunshin Online reported that the woman, who accused Yamakawa of rape, suffered injuries to her lower body.

Yamakawa was the Most Valuable Player (MVP) in the 2018 Pacific League season and was leading the RBIs for the first time last year.

Japan won the WBC in March in Miami after a 14-year absence by defeating the United States 3-2. 

They are the only nation to have won the tournament more than once.

Shohei Ohtani was judged the MVP of the tournament.