Nippon-Ham Fighters pitcher Leo Shibata (19) entered bullpen for the first time this year at the team's second-division facility in Kamagaya, Chiba, on the 17th, and vowed to win his first professional game by mastering the "Dal Curve," modeled on the team's legend, Yu Darvish (Padres), who has a total of 208 wins in Japan and the United States.

breaking ball threw around 30 pitches, mostly breaking balls, and 10 with catcher seated. "I'm getting close to Darvish's curveball. It's the best. It's the ideal form that can't be hit at all," he said, recreating the magic pitch of his senior pitcher "my role model" and whose form he references. "It's almost the same," he said, expressing his satisfaction. Last season, he mainly threw a fastball with a top speed of 154 km/h, slider, and fork, but for the first time since high school, he has allowed his curveball to be thrown. He tried it out in an intrasquad game at ESCON in October before the CS and got a good feeling about it. "Even though there was some inconsistency in the game, hitter' reactions were pretty good, so I'm pretty confident. I'd like to throw it at 130 km/h," he said, describing a high-speed curveball as his ideal pitch.

Last season, his first year as a pro, he made four appearances with ERA of 2.92. He attracted attention by serving as the opening pitcher in the second half of the season, but was unable to secure his first professional win. "One win. One win as a starter. I'd like to pitch around seven innings. If I'm being ambitious, I'd like to complete game. After that, I'll train the batters in the minor leagues," he said. Following in the footsteps of his great senior, this two-way player is aiming to become the first player of his generation to win his first game.