"First of all, I want to work on my batting and be able to hit long balls."

Lotte's Kyuto Ueda was enthusiastic about the upcoming practice games and exhibition games, and true to his words, he has made an impression with his bat in nine external games so far, hitting a batting average of .421 (19-8), one Home Run, and five RBI, including a home run into the right-field stands in a practice game against Lotte of Korea on the 1st.

In an interview last fall, Ueda said, "Mr. Nishioka was teaching me, and my point of contact was too far forward, which meant that when my point of contact was too far forward, I didn't have much time to look at the ball. He told me that there were balls that I could judge, but that I would still swing at them, so in Miyakonojo I was practicing batting while keeping my point of contact close to him and he was teaching me how to put out power within that." However, after a winter, he said during the Miyakonojo spring training camp, "I feel like I've gained some power, but there are times when I don't connect well with the ball, so Mr. (Nishioka) Tsuyoshi and Mr. (Kenta) Kurihara have been teaching me a lot about that, so I hope I can make good use of that."

He has also set a goal of "raising his OPS" for this season, and analyzed what is necessary to raise his OPS, saying, "Last year, there were many times when I swung at balls that I wasn't good at and got Walk. There were also times when I should have aimed for single hit and hit more long hits. I think that's what it comes down to."

When asked if he wanted to increase the number of doble and Home Run, he declared with confidence, "Yes, I would like to increase them."

◆ defense also improved

Watching defense practice at Miyakonojo Spring Training Camp, it seems like he has improved defense defense third base, especially on balls hit down third base line.

Ueda said, "I was taught by Mr. Shogo Nakamura in my voluntary training, and while I want to do that well, I have also learned from Mr. Matsui and listened to Mr. Nemoto, so I hope I can respond well with the pitches I hit in the actual game, not just the ones I hit in the knockout. In a practice game against Korea's Lotte on March 1, he showed defense his ability to get out of a 2-4 seventh-inning game with no outs runner and a strong third base line hit by Taeyang Han right-handed hitter with a single to first base catch and an opposite-field single throw while falling down.

In order to win the regular position at third base, he vowed, "I think the most important thing is to make an impression with my batting, and within that, I would like to be in a position where I can be used throughout the year.I would like to make an impression with my batting, but I also want to be able to base running defense as part of the team."

The competition for the regular third base position is fierce, but no one has been set in stone. This is Ueda's chance to grab a regular spot. The same can be said for other players. Ueda will hit, hit, and hit to win the third base position.

Interview and text by Yuta Iwashita