◆Exhibition game: Softbank Hawks vs. The Giants (10th, Ube)

Softbank Hawks Hawks manager Hiroki Kokubo commented on the future plans of pitcher Hsu Jo-Hsi, who represented Taiwan in the World Baseball Classic, on the 10th.

Taiwan's representative team was eliminated in the first round (Tokyo Dome) as Japan and South Korea, who were in the same group, advanced to the quarterfinals. Xu, who joined Softbank Hawks from the Taiwan Professional baseball League's Wei Chuan this season, started in the game against Australia on the 5th and pitched well, allowing only two hit and no runs in four innings, but it was not enough to lead to win.

The right-handed pitcher, with a maximum speed of 158 km/h, is expected to be a part of the starting rotation as they aim for consecutive Japan Series championships. Regarding his appearances in the pre-season exhibition games, manager Kokubo said, "We've talked about deciding when he'll be fit to pitch when he returns to Japan. (The schedule) hasn't been decided at all." Arrangements are currently underway for him to rejoin the team, including a return to Japan after returning to Taiwan. There are just over two weeks until the start of the season. The manager said, "We've also talked about the possibility of not using something that's already been perfected for training," and will decide on future plans based on how he performs after joining the team.