"To be honest, I really wasn't able to do anything this year, but I had a long period of time when I went to the farm team and was able to carefully review what I needed to do and work on it, so I would like to make use of that next year. I am sorry and frustrated that I wasn't able to contribute as a member of the first team."

Lotte's Shogo Nakamura had a disappointing year in his 11th professional season, playing in only 20 games, his worst performance since turning pro. He also underwent lumbar thoracic surgery at a hospital in Fukushima Prefecture on September 8th, towards the end of the season.

Last season he tried playing third base, but for this season he volunteered to return to second baseman for a long time, and I've gained a lot of insights and experiences there. I wanted to have another chance there, so my desire to play second baseman grew stronger over the second baseman year. With all of that in mind, I asked the manager and he's letting me play there now."

In exhibition games, his batting average was .188, but in his third at-bat in the sixth inning against The Giants on March 22nd, with the score tied at 2-3 and two outs and no runner on base, he persevered against Keller with a 3-2 strike, and drew Walk after deciding on a 134 km/h splitter on the 13th pitch.In his fourth at-bat in the ninth inning with the score tied at 3-4 and no runner on base, he hit a tying Home Run into the left-field stands on the third pitch thrown by Martinez with a 1-1 count, a 149 km/ strike fastball. His form was improving as he headed into the opening game.

Although hit after the season began, he got his first hit of the season in the game against Rakuten Eagles on April 4th. Then, in the game Rakuten Eagles on April 6th, in his first at-bat in the 3rd inning with no outs and no runner on base and the score 0-2, he hit a 129 km/ change-up, the fourth hit thrown by starting Tatsuki Koja with a 1 ball and 2 strike, to left field for a hit. In his third at-bat in the 8th inning with no outs and no runner on base and the score 0-4, he achieved his first multi-hit hit of the season with a hit to right hit that took an irregular bounce near first base.

The team as a whole had three hit that day, hit of which were Nakamura's. After the game, manager Masahito Yoshii said of Nakamura, "Both were lucky hits, but I think he'll get a break from those, so I'm looking forward to seeing what he does in the future." He also had hit against Seibu Lions on April 9th, making hit three consecutive games. He was hit as a pinch hitter against Softbank Hawks on April 11th, but had two hit hit including his first of the season, against Nippon-Ham on April 16th. In the April 18th game against Rakuten Eagles, he was 0-At Bat 3, but in his second at-hit with two outs and no runner on base in the 5th inning with the score at Walk, he persevered against Hayakawa, drawing a walk on the 10th cutter after a 3-2 strike.

On April 22 against Seibu Lions, he hit walk-off a 1-1 10th inning one-out bases loaded second batter, Kaima Taira bounced a 155 km fastball third pitch center fielder from 1 ball 1 strike to . On April 23 against Seibu Lions, he touched up from second to third on Polanco's right sacrifice fly in a 3-2 3rd inning one-out double, Ryusei Terachi timely infield during hit. He came back alive. hit again on April 25 against Nippon-Ham and raised his batting average to .275 after the same game, but he had no hit after that game and was removed from the first-team roster on May 6.

In his first regular season appearance since 2017, he showed his class with four hit in a game against Yakult Swallows The Giants league team on August 31st, and underwent back surgery on September 7th.

In an interview on September 14, 2023, Nakamura spoke about his commitment to playing in matches, saying, "I do have injuries and sore spots, but rather than not playing because of them, I try to find ways to play even when I'm in pain, and I think there are many things I can do even in those situations. There are many things that can only be done by playing in matches, so it would be easy to rest, and I do take days off now to rest, but ideally I want to play in every match and contribute to the team. I've seen my seniors do that, playing through injuries, and seeing players who have played in consecutive matches, I've wanted to become a player like them, and I also feel that I have to contribute while I'm playing in matches," showing his strong determination as he fought ground.

Despite his determination to play in games, he decided to have back surgery in September during the season. When asked why, he explained, "I was constantly in pain, but I continued to give it my all, but the situation worsened, and I felt that it might be best to have surgery, so I decided to have surgery." He revealed, "I consulted with Saburo and Fukuura, and after consulting with many people, I decided to go ahead with the surgery."

He said, "Right now I can move around without any restrictions, and I feel like I need to increase my output even more." "As Saburo-san said, if I can hit, I'll be able to play in the games, so I think I need to raise my level in hitting and defense, of course, but I want to make sure I can make an impression with my batting from the camp and exhibition games." Amidst the rise of young players, Shogo Nakamura is able to make precise situational judgments, such as making the opposing team throw a lot of pitches, running base running with the next goal in mind, and hitting a sacrifice fly to advance the runner in a no-out, runner-on-second situation. We hope to see him hit with all his heart next year.

Interview and text by Yuta Iwashita