Lotte's Yuki Karakawa spoke about his enthusiasm for next season, when new manager Saburo will take over.

In terms of pitcher this season, Yuto Kimura a second-year high school graduate, started the season as a reliever, but moved to the starting lineup midway through the season and recorded three wins, including his first professional shutout game. Young pitcher also showed growth, with Shunsuke Nakamori and Haruya Tanaka making their presence felt in the first half of the season, and Koshiro Hiroike in the second half.

With the rise of young players becoming more prominent, what kind of performance will he hope to show under new manager Saburo?

"It's the same with fall training camp, and I think it's good for the team to have a lot of young talent coming on board, but I don't think that's all there is to a long season, so pitcher in our position are definitely needed. So I think it's our role, or rather, it's important, to perform in a way that doesn't differ from pitcher who are in the rotation or pitching as the main starters, so I would like to contribute in that area."

Manabu Mima, the oldest pitcher this season, has retired, while Ayumu Ishikawa and Hirokazu Sawamura, who are a year older than him, have left to continue playing. As a result, Karakawa and Naoya Masuda, who are in the same year, are now the oldest pitcher on the team. "Both Nishino and Masuda are constantly evolving and making minor changes and trying all sorts of new things, so I'm inspired by them and working hard to keep up so I don't get left behind."

He said that his goal for next season is to pitch in 15 games, "There are pitcher attractive young pitcher, so I think I need to pitch in a way that makes them want to pitch, so I think that's important." During the off-season, he plans to train on his own in New Zealand, and then on Ishigaki Island.

Interview and text by Yuta Iwashita