◆Pre-season game: The Giants 3-0 Rakuten Eagles (23rd, Naha)

pitcher Chiharu Tanaka, who joined Rakuten Eagles as compensation for Norimoto's free agent transfer to The Giants, took the mound in an exhibition game against his former team, the The Giants. He held them runs and allowed only one hit in one inning.

When he took mound in the seventh inning with his team trailing by one run, the leadoff hitter was Yamase, with whom he said he had "partnered (as a battery) the most." His former catcher, who "was looking at me and smirking," hit the sixth pitch, a fastball, to center field. "I felt like he knew everything about me. He hit my fastball way too far forward," he said, feeling a mix of emotions.

The third hitter was Kadowaki, who joined the team at the same time and is in the same grade. This time, he earned an out with sacrifice bunt, saying, "I probably would have laughed if I saw his face, so I just looked at catcher and threw."

In the end, with two outs and a runner on second base, he struck struck out Utsunomiya swinging with his signature fork. Although he admitted that "I put too much power into it and it went a little high," he looked satisfied as he got out of the jam and pitched a runs pitch, saying, "My job is to come back with a score of zero in the end. I'm glad about that."

His first appearance on the mound in an exhibition game drew applause from his former team's fans. "I think I was able to show that I'm in good health and doing a good job pitch by closer the opponent to zero runs, so I'm happy too."

He also met Norimoto before the game. "We had a conversation like, 'Let's both do our best.' I think Norimoto felt that he was the reason he was transferred... so I'm grateful that he came to talk to me. I think he's a really nice guy," he said, expressing his gratitude for the veteran right-hander's thoughtfulness.

It's been a month since his transfer was finalized on January 23rd. He has successfully made it through the hectic start to spring training, and he smiled, saying, "I feel like I'm steadily climbing the stairs one step at a time. I'm progressing at a good pace without getting injured." Determined to make the opening day roster, he renewed his resolve, saying, "I'll do my best to closer every pitching appearance scoreless."