On the 31st, Softbank Hawks manager Hiroki Kokubo (54) revealed his plan to rotate the starting pitchers every five days from the start of the season. He said, "Six days is not a given. I've asked them to be prepared for that," and has already communicated this policy to the pitcher. The team will be going full throttle from the start of the season, aiming for their first three consecutive league championships since moving to Fukuoka.
With the departure of Arihara, who has been the team's most wins player for two consecutive years, the starting rotation for 2026 is still undecided. That's why they'll be fighting without showing any weaknesses. "For now, this is just a simulation until the end of the interleague games, but it will increase the number of times good pitcher will be on the mound," he said, explaining the benefits of pitching every five days, which Ozeki only did once in the first half of 2025. "I'll have him pitch around 100 pitches a month," he said, intending to shorten the intervals between pitches while limiting the number of pitches.
"You can't be afraid of worries in order to evolve," he said, and the theme for his second consecutive year of winning the No. 1 spot is "breaking it down." 2013 was a tough start, finishing last in April, but in 2014, he aims to take the lead and make a run for victory from the start. (Shimao Koichiro)
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