"I think there won't be any problems if I can show my long-range hitting ability and utilize my strengths, so I would like to show off my long-range hitting ability."

Lotte's Daito Yamamoto, who won Eastern League double crown of Home Run and RBI last season, was enthusiastic about the external matches during the spring training camp in Ishigaki Island, and has so far made his presence felt with his long-range hitting, which is his forte.

Since August of last year, Yamamoto Dai has focused on "how to use his left foot" and "how to get the timing right," and has posted a batting average of .377 since August in the farm team. "I continued on from that and focused on not missing any easy pitches," he said, and in Australia he participated in the Australian winter league after the season ended, appearing in 20 games with a batting average of .301, Home Run, and seven RBI.

After the winter league ended, he said, "I took a little rest and quickly lost body fat, so my body is in good shape, so I think I'm going well," and added, "I finished the second half of last year feeling good, so I'm just working hard to keep it up and improve even more." He continued to work on what he had been working on during his own training in January.

He won the double crown in the farm team last season, but when asked if it had given him confidence heading into this season, he replied, "Not in particular. I had the most at-bats in the minor leagues, and that's one of my strengths, so I'd say that's something."

◆ Ishigaki Island Spring Camp

At the spring training camp in Ishigaki Island, he took batting practice in the same group as fellow right-handed long-distance hitting outfielder Koki Yamaguchi and first-round draft pick Misho Nishikawa (Aoyama Gakuin University).

In an interview on February 8, Yamamoto said, "I think we're paired with three players of the same type, but they both hit the ball well, so I don't want to lose to them. I'll keep in mind the things I need to focus on, and hopefully I can show something better than them, but at the moment I'm not able to. When I'm batting with these two, I just put in the effort."

When asked again on February 13th, towards the end of the spring training camp in Ishigaki Island, he revealed, "It hasn't changed since then, and we always put in our best. There are three of us with the same type of personality lined up, so I guess it's a bit of a competition, and we talk about how we're in the same group again. Everyone said they put in their best."

◆ Show off your long-range hitting ability in external matches

On the first day of camp, after the team practice, he had one-on-one practice with batting coach Kenta Kurihara. Yamamoto Dai revealed, "I asked him to take a look at how I use my feet and if he noticed anything, I wanted him to tell me. It's been a while since I've had a coach look at me, so I thought I'd have him take a look."

Coach Kurihara, who coached Yamamoto at the farm team last season, said of Yamamoto, "He's been working on the advice of Manager Saburo since around the summer, and I think he's pretty used to his movements now."

Dai Yamamoto said, "I'm continuing what I've been doing since about August, so I'm looking forward to seeing how well it will work in the first team's practice games." In an open game that began on February 16, in an outing against Chunichi on February 22, Tatsuya Shimizu, batting first with two outs bases loaded in the 1-1 9th inning, hit the first pitch from 2 balls 1 strike He hit his first grand slam pitch, the fourth fastball he threw, into the front row of the light stand, and then hit a powerful shot into the back screen in a practice game against Hanhwa of South Korea on the following day, February 23.

He also came on as a substitute in the game against Korea's Lotte Marines on March 1st and hit Home Run into the left field stands, making him three home runs in external games so far.

"I don't know how much I can do," he prefaced his statement, saying, "I want to hit 20 home runs this season, but first I want to do what I can in the first team." The most Home Run by a Japanese player in Lotte last season was 7 by Hiromi Oka, and since the team moved to their home stadium, Zozo Marine Stadium, no Japanese player has hit 30 Home Run in a season. The key going forward will be whether or not they can hit long balls like they are now in the second half of the exhibition games, when the main pitcher of each team are preparing for the opening game. This season, he wants to hit a huge arch on the first team stage.

Interview and text by Yuta Iwashita