◆ Practice game Nippon-Ham 8-4 Hanshin Tigers (8th, Nago)

Nippon-Ham On August 8, Kota Tatsu pitcher (21) started a practice game (Nago) against Hanshin Tigers, his first outing of the season. 1 hit no runs and 2 strike out pitched one inning, showing a smooth finish. struck out The first two are the first two to be selected for the WBC Japan team, Shota Morishita outfielder (25) and Teruaki Sato infielder (26), and he got a feel for the Samurai Warrior slash to right field with one pitch, breaking ball including a sweeper.

With 11 pitches that made you feel like a leap forward, he started 2026. The first external game of the season. The Tatsu, who were nominated for the "opening pitcher", drove the leader Maekawa straight with two pitches, and finally took a swing with a fork and struck out three pitches. Morishita also finished with a struck out swing, allowing Di Bainy to hit in the middle, but in the end, he raised Sato and sealed it with a fastball to the right. I laughed calmly at the content of 1 hit no runs 2 strike out, saying, "I think it was good."

His pitch speed was not displayed due to a malfunction on his speed gun, but he himself said, "I think it was probably 152 or 153 (kph)," and his fastball was powerful. He then tried a sweeper on his second pitch to Morishita, and on his third pitch, he tried out a new pitch, a slutter, which is somewhere between slider and cutter. "It was a little off (the new pitch). I couldn't see the reaction, but the sweeper had a good reaction. I think it could be used against right-handed batters." He also got some confidence in the lateral change of pitch, which has been an issue since last season.

He made good use of his match against the Samurai Warrior. Regarding the sweeper, he said, "It curved from the shoulder to the outside. I thought my reaction was good. I think I couldn't even get a hold of it." As an opponent preparing for the WBC, he nodded and said, "I think they're quick to adjust, so it was good to see their reaction to some extent."

Manager Shinjo praised their imposing appearance, saying, "Both Tatsu and Hosono have a presence. Their handling mound was also perfect." Tatsu spoke of his future prospects, saying, "The condition of the ball is good, so I need to increase the number of pitches and make adjustments to throw balls that are easy to repeat." In the third game of the season, which is scheduled to begin, he will take to mound in an improved form. (Yamaguchi Yasushi)