Right now, I am working on building up my body for next year and focusing on my slider, as I wasn't able to consistently throw it for a strike.

Lotte's developmental player Seiun Akiyama is working with specific goals in mind at the Miyakonojo spring camp.

While citing issues with the accuracy of his slider, he pitched in the 8th inning of a practice game against Samurai Japan on November 7th with the score at 4-10. He got his teammate Misho Nishikawa (Lotte), the lead-off hitter, to fly out to right on a first-pitch 142 km/h fastball. Next, he struck out Shu Yamagata (Nippon-Ham) looking on a 6th-pitch 143 km/h inside fastball after a 3-ball, 2-strike count. Finally, he got Ryuki Watarai (DeNA) to fly out to center on a 3rd-pitch fastball after a 1-ball, 1-strike count. He acted as a closer for one inning against three hitter, using just 10 pitches. One wonders if he has an image of this pitch leading into next season.

As he said, "It gave me confidence, but I couldn't throw any strikes with the slider I'm currently working on during the game, so I think that's an area I still need to work on," he threw two sliders in the exhibition game against Samurai Japan, but both were called balls.

Speaking of Akiyama, he was the pitcher mentioned by Atsuki Taneichi—who underwent 'suturing surgery for a left Achilles tendon rupture' on April 30—as a veteran he approached to ask about pitching form. When asked specifically about what he inquired, Akiyama said, 'In my case, we talked about how to use the left pivot foot, or rather, how the knee tends to collapse, and I received advice on that.'

Furthermore, he expressed his enthusiasm for this off-season, stating, "The team has also mentioned my velocity, so I want to improve my physical size and power output." In order to return to the 70-man roster, he intends to focus intently on his development areas not only during autumn training but throughout the entire off-season.

Interview and text by Yuta Iwashita