Lotte's autumn practice was held at Zozo Marine Stadium on the 16th.

In his sixth season this year, Nakamori was promoted to the first team for the first time on May 4th. He pitched 41 1/3 innings across 42 games, primarily in the 7th inning of winning games, recording 7 wins, 1 loss, 19 hold, 1 save, and an ERA of 2.40. Although the team finished their season in 5th place, Nakamori has been selected for the Japan national team for the 'Raxus Asia Professional baseball Championship 2026' to be held in November.

I wonder what kind of preparations are being made during autumn practice in anticipation of Samurai Japan.

The season has ended, but since there are still matches remaining, I want to make sure I do not get injured. I intend to keep my body moving and practice so that I can level up for next season, rather than just focusing on those remaining games.

In an interview on September 28th, he mentioned, "During the off-season, I want to focus on physical training and technical practice." Now that he has been selected for Samurai Japan, one wonders if he is changing the off-season training plan he had originally envisioned.

Since the season is over and I can't let my performance drop, there is a bit of that to deal with, but I'm looking at it alongside my off-season schedule. I think it was probably a good thing that there was a game.

Tadahito Iguchi is the one taking command of Samurai Japan. Speaking of Manager Iguchi, he led Lotte for five years from 2018 to 2022, and Nakamori also has the experience of playing under Manager Iguchi for two years starting in 2021.

Since I wasn't able to pitch for the first team while Mr. Iguchi was the manager, I want to do my best to show him how much I've improved.

◆ Naonori Yasuda: "I hope to grow even more from here on out"

In his 9th professional season this year, Yasuda's number of games played decreased from 93 last season to 76, but he recorded a .257 batting average, 6 Home Runs, 29 RBI, and a .719 OPS.

This autumn, he said, "I'm thinking of focusing on physical conditioning, swing strength, and defense." While he has focused on long-distance hitting during this time of year in previous years, he expressed his enthusiasm regarding that as well, saying, "I want to work hard so that I can hit more home runs."

At this point, do you have a target for the number of Home Run and At Bat for next season?

Rather than focusing on that (the number of home runs), I want to work hard with the goal of reaching an OPS of .800.

He said that in order to achieve an OPS of .800, he is 'working hard with the mindset of trying to increase his slugging percentage.'

This autumn is an important period for the next season. Expressing his determination, he said, 'It is a crucial month, or rather, the off-season has already begun, so I want to work hard to grow even more from here on out.'

Interview and text by Yuta Iwashita