After undergoing Tommy John surgery on his right elbow in March, Orix Buffaloes ・ Yuki Udagawa pitcher (27) resumed bullpen pitch at the team's facility in Maishima, Osaka, on March 10. It was also the first time in 10 months that he used an incline. I'm finally baseball back to being a player," he said joyfully, catcher standing up and carefully throwing 15 pitches.
"I did what I had to do, so before I knew it, I was in bullpen... It wasn't as scary as I thought it would be, and it felt good." He reviewed his form from last season, when he struggled with problems in his right shoulder and right elbow, and during his rehabilitation he introduced training to increase his range of motion. He also seems to have noticed an improvement in the movement of his rib cage, which he has placed the utmost importance on, and nodded, saying, "What I've been doing was correct. It's just a matter of time."
From now on, he will enter bullpen at intervals of basically five days, and if all goes well, he plans to pitch at full strength at the Miyazaki training camp in February. Although he is a strong arm who experienced the world championship at the 2023 WBC, he will start anew next season wearing number 121. "I came from the development team, so I know how difficult it is. I want to move up again based on my own ability," he promised to make a comeback. (Nambu Shunta)
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