World Baseball Classic (WBC) Japan representative “Samurai Japan” player Hodaka Yamakawa answered questions from reporters on the 24th before the “Samurai Japan Series” Softbank game to be held tomorrow. Q: As a fielder, what is your awareness and preparedness about being the only fielder to practice on holidays? I thought that wearing a Japanese uniform would make my body tense even during normal practice. After entering the second course, I wanted to play as much as possible as much as possible, just like Seibu, so I played today with that intention. Q: The warm-up games will start tomorrow, but the point I’m conscious of in batting is Yamakawa: Honestly, of course I’m going to appeal. However, tomorrow will be my first real game, so my ideal is to be able to swing the pitcher’s ball in the same way as in batting practice. I don’t think it will work that way, but for the time being, I’m thinking of swinging the ball strongly against the pitcher’s ball. Q: What do you think about the battle for position? Yamakawa: It’s not surprising that anyone can appear in the game, and I think there will be days when the sun doesn’t appear. I don’t know if things are good or bad. For the time being, I’m thinking that I have no choice but to prepare myself in the best possible way so that I can perform at my best no matter what the situation is. The result is the part that you don’t know until you try it. However, it is different from regular competition for my own team, so I would like to prepare as a member of the team to win the world championship. Q: What do you think Manager Hideki Kuriyama is looking for in Yamakawa? I think there is. Of course, I imagine a home run, but it’s not just a home run. However, as a role to score points, if there is a situation to hit a home run, I will hit a home run, and if it is not so, I will connect to the next player even if I am out, I will connect anything to the back, such as a four-ball. I think that is also a big role. I think it would be great if we could put all of this together and put it into one of the batting orders, “decide when you connect”. Q: What kind of conversation did you have with pitcher Yu Darvish? I’m not the only one, but I thought that Mr. Darvish (Yu) was amazing. I don’t think there was anyone who didn’t speak. We went with six people, and I thought it was amazing that they passed the ball so that everyone could speak evenly, but the second half was all about baseball technology. Q: In particular, what kind of technical theory did you talk about? Yamakawa: There were a lot of stories about the batter. Mr. Darvish, if anything, listened to it and said, “Hey! That’s the kind of feeling you have. Various people have different feelings.” Of course, I also heard various stories such as Mr. Darvish’s sense, but it was mainly batting theory. Q: What words stick in your mind? Yamakawa: We talked about data. As for the data, I really liked it. Currently, data is being developed overseas, so should we move towards a situation where we can find the answer, or is it a situation where we don’t know the answer? But batter basically doesn’t know the answer, so it’s a sensory theory…everyone’s answer is different, so it’s more interesting this way is impressive. Q: The majors are progressing in the use of data, but has there been talk of wanting to improve it in Japan? There are too many answers in baseball, and if you go too far toward it, you’ll lose a little bit of your individuality, your answers, and your ability to sharpen your senses. We talked a little bit about that too. I think there is no answer to batting, and that’s why I think it’s interesting. Q: Various data come in at the WBC, but Yamakawa doesn’t rely 100% on the data. But I think the batter should sharpen his senses. For that reason, I don’t know the answer, so I have to practice a lot. However, if you want to win a match, you need a lot of data, so in that sense, I think I’m adding my own sense while adding data. Q: In today’s practice, you changed your turn at bat for each swing. By doing so, it becomes a feeling of air that is closer to the actual battle. I think it’s a very good exercise. It takes only a moment to hit a ball, but before you hit it, take your time as a routine, then enter the at-bat and hit the batting pitcher’s ball straight, but swing firmly against it and then again. changing. I’ve done this for several laps in my own training, and since the game is basically decided by one ball, I thought this practice would be the most suitable for actual competition.
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