Professional baseball pitcher Aki Sasaki of Lotte started in a practice game against a South Korean team, making his first pitch in an actual game, and pitched straight, with a fastest pitch of 154km/h, allowing only one hit and no runs in the first inning. He showed his adjustment.

On the 25th, Lotte held a practice match against South Korea's Lotte Giants in Itoman City, Okinawa Prefecture, where they are camping, and despite the chilly weather with cold winds blowing, the stadium was packed with approximately 3,300 spectators.



This season, Lotte's fifth-year pitcher Sasaki, who is expected to play an active role as the center of the starting rotation throughout the year, started, and this was his first actual pitching.



Pitcher Sasaki's first fastball to the first batter measured 154 km, then he attacked with three straight pitches in the 150 km range, and finally struck out with a fork ball of 138 km.



▽The No. 2 batter was caught with a 151 km fastball and was hit with a two-base hit to left field.


▽The 3rd batter was hit with a 153 km fast fast and


fouled to third. ▽The 4th batter hit his first pitch with a 154 km fast ball. He grounded out to shortstop, pitched 13 pitches in one inning, allowed one hit, no runs, and struck out one, showing that he was making good adjustments in his first pitch.



Also, 10 of the 13 pitches were straight, and the fastest pitch of the day was 154km/h.



Lotte won the game 8-1, with catcher Torao Matsukawa, a third-year high school graduate, who teamed up with pitcher Sasaki, hitting a home run into the back screen.

Aki Sasaki “Straight is still getting better”

Pitcher Sasaki said after the game, ``I didn't have a particular theme today and pitched naturally. I'm glad I was able to pitch one inning without getting injured.''



Also, since he only threw fastballs and forkballs on the 25th, he said, ``I think I was able to throw the breaking balls better than I expected. "I want to go," he said, talking about his future challenges.



Looking ahead to the season, he said, ``From now on, I think I'll be pitching more innings and facing more batters, so I want to make sure I know what I want to do as I go along.''