It was good. I still had that good sensation from before the surgery, so I'm hoping to improve the technical aspects a bit more.

Lotte's Atsuki Taneichi, who underwent surgery for a ruptured left Achilles tendon on April 30, threw 15 pitches while standing in the bullpen at Lotte Urawa on the 30th.

Taneichi played catch with catcher Shota Ueda and then headed to the bullpen. He threw 14 pitches while Ueda, who served as the catcher, remained standing, then asked for "one more pitch" and finished his standing session.

When asked in detail about the part where he said, 'If I could improve the technical aspects a bit more,' he said, 'Since I had been playing catch on flat ground all the time, when I throw on the mound, I feel like I'm not landing and end up lunging forward, so I think that was a point of concern.'

Ueda, who caught Taneichi's pitches, said, "I think he was able to throw strongly, so his condition is probably improving. The rest is just a matter of feel." Regarding the areas where Taneichi has evolved, he revealed, "The power of the ball had a completely different sense of speed compared to when I catch for other pitchers."

Aiming for 160 km/h with unwavering focus

After the All-Star break last season, Taneichi pitched 74 1/3 innings in 10 games, recording 6 wins and 2 losses, 94 strike out, and an astonishing ERA of 1.45. In September and October, he led the league with 4 wins and 48 strike out, earning him his first ever "Daiju Life Monthly MVP Award" in Pacific League pitcher category for September and October.

He was selected to represent Japan in the World Baseball Classic (WBC) held in March of this year, and appeared in three games as a relief pitcher. Armed with a powerful fastball and a sharp-breaking fork, he overpowered the world's hitter and made the name "TANEICHI" famous.

"The biggest thing is that I can now step onto mound with confidence, and I think that's the biggest thing. For the first time in baseball career, I'm feeling excited when I'm on mound. I think I'm able to pitch with a good sense of tension." (Interviewed on April 23, 2014)

With the confidence gained from the WBC, an accident occurred this season amidst expectations for "overwhelming pitching" throughout the year.

While it wouldn't be surprising if he felt down, Taneichi said, "I'm doing a lot of rehab this time, and I feel like I'm able to approach it positively. I think that's because I had the experience of Tommy John surgery, so I think I've developed that kind of mindset." He continues to work hard on his rehabilitation with his usual ambition to become "the best pitcher in Japan."

When I visited Lotte Urawa for reporting, his cast had been removed during pre-game practice for the Orix Buffaloes farm team game on July 21, and he was playing catch at a distance of 20 to 30 meters. During practice at Lotte Urawa on July 26, he was running and playing long-distance catch, and during pre-game practice for the Nippon-Ham farm team game on August 11, his running speed in the outfield seemed to have increased slightly.

Then, during practice at Lotte Urawa on August 18, he had the staff film him throwing from the side and behind during catch, and he checked the footage of himself after the catch. While he had a calm expression when observing practice at Lotte Urawa until August 11, his expression was stern during practice on August 18, and there was an atmosphere similar to that of pre-game practice with the first team.

Taneichi is looking ahead to his recovery, saying, "I'm trying out various things. I don't think it would mean anything if I just went back to how I was after rupturing my Achilles tendon, so I'm hoping to improve my level, and I'm trying things out every day through trial and error."

Looking back, in September 2020 he underwent surgery to reconstruct the ulnar collateral ligament of his right elbow, and after a long rehabilitation, he aimed for a full return to the first team at the Ishigaki Island spring training camp in 2023. He declared, "I want to surpass my past performance and skills. So I don't want to go back to how I felt before, or to be like I was in 2019 or 2020." That same year he achieved his first 10 wins, the following year in 2024 he reached the required number of innings innings pitched, and last season he reached the required number innings pitched for the second consecutive year, recorded a career-high 161 strike out, and especially after the All-Star break he dominated pitch, growing into one of Japan's leading pitcher.

And this time as well, he intends to return not by merely reverting to his former state, but by "evolving." Hearing these words—so characteristic of Taneichi, who has always dedicated himself to training for his own growth—brought a certain sense of relief. One wonders specifically which aspects he aims to evolve...

As I always say, I feel that I'm lacking in every aspect, including speed and control. I practice every day, hoping to find technical elements I can truly master.

Even in an interview on April 23rd after the WBC, regarding what is necessary to further raise his level as a pitcher, he mentioned, "I think it's everything, but among those, I think increasing the average velocity of my fastball, improving the command of other pitches, and being able to throw to the intended spot will be the most important."

Regarding speed, although he clocked a personal best of 156 km/h in the 'RAXUS Samurai Japan Series 2026 Nagoya: Samurai Japan vs. Chunichi Dragons' held on February 27th, is it correct to assume that he is working hard on his rehabilitation with the goal of reaching the '160 km/h' mark he often mentions?

I am practicing with that as my primary goal. I believe I won't be able to achieve it just by talking; I have to take action and think things through as I go, so I'm working toward the goal of 160 km/h.

◆ In a leveled-up form

As I have mentioned in articles many times before, when speaking of Taneichi, I remember as if it were yesterday how he told me with sparkling eyes about observing Ayumu Ishikawa's bullpen pitch practice on April 15, 2018. This was during Taneichi's second year as a pro before he established himself in the first team, when Ishikawa, who was in the first-team starting rotation at the time, did not accompany the team on a road trip and was training at Lotte Urawa Baseball Stadium. He told me, 'I learn just by watching. I was being taught about the quality of his fastball speed and the knack, or rather the way he throws, so I was watching that until the very end.'

Eight years have passed since then. I wonder if there are any passionate young players who ask questions relentlessly, just like Taneichi did in his younger days.

He mentioned the names of two developmental players, Ryota Takeuchi and Seiun Akiyama, saying, "Takeuchi and Akiyama are often the ones who come to ask me about things like form." He also reportedly spoke frequently with his senior, Shuta Ishikawa.

While interviewing Taneichi, one thing that caught my attention—likely a result of his training—was that his upper body appeared to have grown significantly larger. "I lift weights every day," he revealed. Touching his left leg with his palm, he confessed, "My lower body just isn't coming back, even though I'm training like crazy. This feeling... for me, it just feels completely off. I hope I can get my lower body back to where it needs to be."

Taneichi has remained unchanged since his rookie days, continuing to approach baseball earnestly 24 hours a day, 365 days a year. For example, partly because he was selected for the WBC Japan national team this year, he has been undergoing hard training, saying, "Since I was practicing all day long this off-season, it might be an exaggeration to say I didn't relax at all, but I think I spent almost all of January on baseball." In the process of his return, one worries whether he might be practicing so intensely that someone has to tell him to stop.

Both weight training and running were being pushed too hard, so the goal was to find a good balance. The intensity has been dialed back a bit, but partly because of that, progress is moving along relatively quickly.

Rehabilitation is going perfectly. 'I'm injured, so it's what it is, but I don't want to just level up and return to where I was; I want to be a pitcher who people think has become nasty.' To show The Marines fans a powered-up version of himself, exciting fastballs, and overwhelming pitches, he continues to evolve through trial and error to become even better.

Interview and text by Yuta Iwashita