Lotte manager Saburo gave an interview on the 2nd and spoke about his thoughts on this season, his first year in office. The main questions and answers are as follows.

He started last season as the second-team manager and was promoted to first-team head in June. After the season ended, he was appointed as the first-team manager. What kind of year was it?

Manager Saburo: "In the early spring of last year, in the farm team, I worked hard to push them up by having them do tough training and practicing batting practice. After the interleague games, I moved up to the first team, and when I thought about the future of the team, I felt that these kids' strengths were necessary, so I gave them a chance to experience a lot of work. In that sense, it was good, but it would have been even better if we had won more games. In the end, we ended up in last place, so I think we need to rebuild again."

A year ago, did you imagine you would be in your current situation as the first-team manager?

Coach Saburo: "No, I didn't. Rather than that, I was only thinking about producing a lot of good players."

As the head of the first team from midway through the season, he looks back on last season.

Manager Saburo: "I think we could have scored a few more points. I think we could have scored if we had done things better, but there are some things to reflect on and I think we need to try new things."

How did you view Lotte's pitcher staff last year?

Manager Saburo said, "Originally, I think this team has won because of pitcher. But despite that, everything was just wrong. I think there were a lot of areas where the batting lineup and pitchers weren't clicking together."

At the draft meeting, the team selected a total of 10 players, including development players, including Ishigaki Gen (Kendai Takasaki) in first place and Mori (Meiji University) in second place.

Manager Saburo: "This was truly the best draft I've ever had. I think we'll have the answer in a few years, so I'd like to work hard until then, including on player development."

Who do you plan to entrust with the role of closer this season?

Manager Saburo said, "We will take last year's performance into consideration to some extent, but we want to have a competition from this spring training camp and give the position to the person who performs best. The season is long, so we want to differentiate between winning patterns and losing patterns. We also need to manage how to sustain that throughout the year. We will discuss that with pitcher coach and coordinator, but we have an image in mind."

What are your thoughts on having a relief pitcher three consecutive days?

Manager Saburo: "I'm not too particular about that, but it depends on the time of year. If we get to the second half of the season, around September or October, and there's pitcher that we want to pitch because we're in a good position in standings, maybe that's possible. But basically, I try to avoid (throwing three pitches in a row) as much as possible in the early and middle innings."

Masuda is just two saves away from achieving 250 career saves.

Manager Saburo: "Of course I want to let him do it because there are only two more to go, but I've told him to set that aside and grab it for himself. If he performs well, I think he can achieve it, so it's up to him."

What are your expectations for Inoue, the former Hanshin Tigers player who joined the team in last year's active player draft?

Manager Saburo: "His power hitting is fantastic, so the hardest part is figuring out how to utilize that. I think he has potential, though. I've actually been watching him for several years now, and I thought he was a good hitter. Since we've had this opportunity, I'd like to do something to help him. He might play third base or first baseman, or whatever position he's in, but I want him to compete and produce results. I'm thinking of telling him, 'You don't need to worry about your batting average anymore.' I'll tell him to just swing hard and hit strong balls, extra-base hits, home run, but 'just swing hard and hit strong balls.'"

Will they be focusing on foot attacks this season?

Manager Saburo: "Of course I want stolen base, but more than stolen base, I want them to be good base running, or rather, have the courage to advance to the next base. I would be happy if that leads to scoring. People say we can't hit, but other teams can't hit either. In this era of strong pitching and weak batting, I think the only way to win is through the power of base running."

The season opener is on March 27th against Seibu Lions. Who will be entrusted with the starting mound?

Manager Saburo: "I haven't made any decisions yet. Of course, I want them to compete, but I think there are a lot of things to consider. I'll take that into consideration and think about it when the time comes."

Who do you think is the key player?

Manager Saburo said, "There are players like Terachi, Yamamoto, and Nishikawa (who emerged last year), and pitcher like Kimura and Tanaka Haruya, and if they can perform better than last year, the team's strength will increase even further. In addition to that, I think Soto and Polanco, as well as the mid-career and veteran players, will work hard and improve together, so in that sense, I would like the young fielder and pitcher to show their abilities in order to raise the team's strength."

The idea is that this spring's training camp will see the young players start in Miyakonojo on the first team, while the veterans start in Ishigakijima on the second team.

Manager Saburo: "I haven't thought that far yet. I want the team to enter the exhibition games in good condition, give everyone a chance, and whoever produces results, regardless of whether they're young, mid-career, or veteran, I want to go."

This season, Fujioka will return to shortstop from second base.

Manager Saburo: "When I spoke with him, he said he wanted to play short stop. I think he should give it a go. Whether it's second baseman or short stop, I'm fine with where he is. I thought it would be best for him to play where he can best demonstrate his abilities. short stop requires a lot of movement, so even if he doesn't do well at short stop, he could play second baseman third base, to ensure he has the mobility that diminishes with age. But I would like him to become a short stop shortstop."

What is the composition of starter staff?

Manager Saburo: "If we go by last year's performance alone, Taneichi is definitely the one. Kimura and Tanaka Haru are also in the list based on last year's performance alone. I also hope Kojima will do his best. I think Taneichi is the only one that's been decided."

Last season, Kimura and Tanaka Haru were given ample time between pitching appearances and were allowed to start.

Manager Saburo: "I think the gap will narrow year by year. It depends on his condition, though. I don't think Shuta Ishikawa is capable of this much more. I'm really hoping he'll pitch even better this year than he did at his best."

What is the lineup like?

Manager Saburo: "The fourth batter... I think home run hitter would be good if possible. It limits the options. I'm thinking of rearranging the batting lineup while watching the flow of the game, but I want to keep the basic lineup stable. I'll think about it again."

Last season, Terachi took the regular spot at catcher thanks to his batting ability. How will the competition catcher play out this season?

Manager Saburo: "The person I want to see the most is Sato. I think it would be better wall if he could stay injury-free and play all year. But Teraji also needs to improve his batting, and as catcher, I want to see how much he has changed this year from the experience he had last year. We'll have to assess that a little, but basically, I want Sato to do his best, and I want Teraji to do his best too. I think Matsukawa and Tamura also have a chance. However, I think they need to be better at hitting than those two, not just at defense, and I'm not sure if that's a high hurdle, but everyone has a chance."

There are many mid-level and veteran players, including Fujioka and Tamura, who are showing their enthusiasm for this season.

Manager Saburo: "First of all, it's good that they feel that way. I'm happy about that. But I think they must have felt frustrated that they had to give up their regular spot to a younger player last year. I want them to use that as a springboard and compete this year with the mindset that they're a regular on the first team."

This will be his first time managing the first team.

Coach Saburo: "I wonder if they will do what I imagine them to do. I think there are some kids who can do that, and some who can't. The more players who can do that, the better the results will be. I would be grateful if there were more players who could do this much without raising my image too high."

Developing players also requires patience.

Manager Saburo: "Regarding foreign players and young players, there might be some differences like that. Professional baseball is both equal and not equal for everyone. Of course, there might be some differences. But basically, I want to give playing time to those who have produced results. However, there may be exceptions."

As you aim to win the championship and become the best in Japan in your first year in office, what goals do you want to achieve?

Manager Saburo: "Speaking of fielder, I'd like them to improve their on-base percentage. There are players with low batting averages but high on-base percentages. When you look at the stats of our batters compared to other teams, the on-base percentage is overwhelmingly low. We're aiming for OPS, but I think on-base percentage is something that can be improved even without hitting well. I think that's a skill. I hope they can get on base more often, run the base running well, and score runs with fewer hits. Ideally, we'd like to win by outhitting the opponent, but I don't think it will go that smoothly. So, we're thinking about how to score runs when we can't hit. It's not exactly risk hedging, but we're thinking about that."

What are your expectations from the newly appointed first-team coaching staff?

Manager Saburo: "I'd like Mr. Mitsuyama (First Team Head Coach and Chief Battery Coach) to oversee the battery and the entire team. I think he's the perfect person for the job, so it's a great help. As for Nishioka (First Team Chief Hitting and base running Coach), I'd like him to bring his own style to the game, as we have a lot of players who are still developing, so I hope he can guide them in the right direction. This is Kobayashi Hiroyuki's first time as a pitcher coach, but how should I put it, he's not like a hierarchical coach-player relationship; he's more like a friend, and I think he's good at drawing out the best in his players, so I hope he'll use that to help pitcher grow. As for Matsuyama (First Team Chief infield defense base running Coach), he knows a lot about infield defense and base running that I don't. I trust him, and I hope he'll tell me anything, good or bad."

Manager Saburo previously mentioned that Coach Matsuyama is very familiar with baseball of the legendary manager Akira Ogi. What exactly is Ogi's baseball?

Manager Saburo: "Ogi-san is certainly a great manager. Like Bobby Valentine, I don't know Hara (Tatsunori), Ogi-san, or Nomura (Katsuya) personally, but I've read a lot of books and heard a lot of things from them, and I'm hoping to pick out the good parts and make something of my own. I've heard a lot about Ogi-san from Matsuyama-san since I was an active player, and I've heard things like what he looked at and what kind of data he particularly emphasized, so I'm thinking of consulting with analysts and getting some of that kind of material. Ogi-san was the manager Orix Buffaloes in my first year. I often went out to eat with Taguchi-san and Ichiro-san, so even though it was my first year, I thought he had a pretty good relationship with them. I'm already trying to emulate that."

After contract renewal negotiations last year, Taneichi revealed his desire to try his hand at the majors in the future.

Manager Saburo: "I think it's a good thing. I think they should go for it, and I'd like to encourage them. If that happens, I'll be happy to support them. I really hope they can achieve outstanding numbers."

What do you think about the reinforcement situation of other teams?

Manager Saburo: "It's amazing. I think we've made some good reinforcements, but other teams are also doing well at times like these. Seibu Lions in particular, has made some incredible reinforcements, but you never know until you try it out, so I think we'll know whether it was the right decision or not in a year. But it's good, isn't it? Pacific League is getting more exciting. Teams that didn't do well last year, including ours, are making reinforcements to aim higher, so rather than focusing on standings, I want to liven up the entire Pacific League and show everyone, including our team, that this year is different."