Nippon-Ham of Yuya Shindo catcher renewed his contract inside his home base ESCON on March 20, signing for 12 million yen (estimated amount), an increase of 1 million yen.
This season, he played in 13 games for the first team. He started as starting line-up in 10 games, but with a batting average of .77, he was unable to produce results with the bat. "At this stage, I think I'm a defense catcher, so I want to hit well. Rather than being able to hit among catcher, I want to be catcher who is considered to have good batting skills when looking at the entire fielder. I'm looking to hit long balls," he said, looking ahead to next season.
With Fushimi's trade transfer now confirmed, it looks like he will have more opportunities next season, but he said, "Regarding the trade with (Fushimi) Toratake, it's not really because of the trade. I had already decided to play regardless of the trade."
Towards the end of the season, he teamed up with Tatsuya to pitch shutout game win. He also wore starting line-up mask in the first and final games of the CS final series, when Tatsuya was the starting pitcher. "Being able to play in a game like that, I was able to really feel the weight of each point, each hitter, and each pitch." He will use this thrilling experience to try to become the starting catcher next season.
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・ [Nippon-Ham] Haruki Hosono renews his contract for 17 million yen, an increase of 4 million yen. "My first goal is to pitch 100 inning" for next season.
・ [Hiroshima] Kenya Suzuki will receive an annual salary of 30 million yen, an increase of 3 million yen. He was drafted in the second round of the draft and joined the team in his first year. He made 24 appearances and had an ERA of 1.89.
・ [Yakult] Naoki Matsumoto signs for 18 million yen, a decrease of 1 million yen: "I have the ability to produce results even if I'm injured or not in good shape."
・ [Yakult] Tatsuyo Takeoka signed for 15 million yen, a decrease of 1 million yen. He had undergone surgery to remove his tonsils in December last year.
・ [Hanshin Tigers] Kairi Shimada takes a 2 million yen cut, "I couldn't do anything" and "I want to be able to play left field" for next season
