Working on windup pitch from this season Softbank Hawks ・ Tomohisa Ozeki pitcher threw 50 pitches against Yamamoto and Inoue in free hitting at the Miyazaki camp. hit He had four hits of the same quality. I think it was good first of all. it was an opportunity to see how hitter I reacted to the pitches I threw at about 80%, so I focused on the sharpness of the pitches. I was able to confirm that what I was doing was a good direction," he reflected.

Initially, he had planned to pitch in a live BP (batting practice in a realistic game setting), but he chose to pitch in a free batting practice, saying, "I wanted to see how far I could hit the ball without putting in more force than necessary."

Last season, they won 13 games and lost 5, earning the title for best winning percentage.