"My defense are improving, and although I haven't quite got the hang of batting yet, I have a good feeling about it."

Lotte's third-year development player, Shinya Matsuishi, is having a fulfilling off-season.

"The atmosphere itself felt the same because I'm always shouting, but the practice was extremely tough," he said, looking back on the tough Miyakonojo autumn camp held in November last year. "It's not that I took a break in November, but the hellish camp was just too tough, so I rested my body and started training overall from December."

In terms of batting, last season was a year of trial and error with "how to get the timing right," but he said, "I finally got it down at the end of camp, but just when I thought I had it down, the season started off differently, and even though I did get it down this time, it might change again once the season starts. I just need to find what's right for me at the time." He discovered the timing that suited his senses during the Miyakonojo autumn camp.

Even with the off-season training, he has a certain sense of accomplishment, saying, "I'm continuing with it without making any changes. I feel like I can take on the challenge in the spring with this."

Since turning pro, he has received a lot of advice on "how to get the timing right" from Manager Saburo (then the manager of the second team), the batting coach, and others. I wonder if he has used that advice in his own work.

"I'm currently doing what I was taught, but I started to get tired mid-season and made some changes, but the way I was taught is the easiest to get the timing right. It feels better, so I think that's what it is."

In his first year, he had a batting average of .207 in 372 at-bats, and in his second year last season, he had a batting average of .208 in 327 at-bats. "Earlier in the season, I somehow had a good batting average, but in the second half I got tired and tried a few other things, and it didn't work out. This year I'm not playing in one format, but I do want to play in a variety of areas without straying from one style to the other."

When he says he got tired in the second half, he played in 106 games in his first year and 97 games in his second season last year, but perhaps he was more tired in his second year than in his first.

"I did get used to it, but the fatigue in my body was completely different. In my first year, I played in games, but I still had pain in parts of my body. In my second year, compared to my first year, my body wasn't as tired or painful, so I think it's just a matter of getting used to it."

There are exactly two weeks until spring training begins on February 1st. "I don't have any regrets, and although I may not be perfect, I hope to be able to move in a way that allows me to do things like defense, hitting, and running."

Regarding this season, Matsuishi himself said, "This is my third year, so I think it's a crucial year, so I hope I can achieve results that will get me promoted to the first team. I want to focus on results."

When asked what he needs to do to get into the first team, he said enthusiastically, "Everything, I want to be able to execute small tricks well and get reliable outs defense." There has been a lot of talk about his wide defense range, but the defense of short stop is that he can make outs on balls that look like they might go through to center fielder, and with his strong arm he can make outs on balls hit deep to the shortstop/third base area. If he can become more reliable in his batting, he will be much closer to being registered as a controlled player. This will be an important year, a "decisive season."

Interview and text by Yuta Iwashita