The Japan National Baseball Team of the Tokyo Olympics adjusted at the stadium in Tokyo for the semi-final with South Korea on the 4th, and starting pitcher Yoshinobu Yamamoto said, "I want to throw with confidence and with all my strength."
Japan played against the United States in the quarterfinals on the 2nd, and after a tiebreaker in the 10th inning, won a goodbye 7-6 and advanced to the semifinals with South Korea from 7pm on the 4th.
The players practiced for about 2 hours at the stadium in Ota-ku, Tokyo from 6 pm on the 3rd.
Coach Atsunori Inaba revealed that pitcher Yamamoto, who pitched well in the first match of the qualifying league on the 28th of last month with no runs in the 6th inning, will be the starting pitcher again on the 4th.
Pitcher Yamamoto said that he practiced pitching in a private bullpen, saying, "Since the 6th of the middle is the same as the season, I was able to make good adjustments. However, I want to throw with confidence and with all my strength. I want to keep the number of goals to a minimum so that I can reach the final. "
In addition, Director Inaba said that the 3rd was his 49th birthday, and before the practice, all the players and team staff gathered in the dormitory, pitcher Koyo Aoyagi sang a birthday song with a microphone, and everyone clapping their hands to celebrate. is.
Director Inaba said with a smile, "I cried a little at the surprise. Pitcher Aoyagi sang something for the team even though he wasn't feeling well, and there was something that came to me."
Then, in preparation for the match against South Korea, who lost in the semi-finals at the Beijing tournament 13 years ago when he participated as a player, he decided, "As a rival country, we have mutual pride. Shown.