Coach Hideki Kuriyama, who will lead the Japanese national team at next year's WBC = World Baseball Classic, said of Angels Shohei Otani, who has announced his participation in the tournament, "It's a base to be able to do both." I made it clear that I have in mind the appointment in dual wielding.
On the 6th, in San Diego, USA, Kuriyama attended a press conference with the coaches of each of the teams participating in the WBC next March, including the USA and the Dominican Republic.
In this, Manager Kuriyama said about how to use Ohtani, "I've been talking with him and thinking about various forms, but basically it's based on whether I can do both." He made it clear that he was considering participating.
After that, he said, "I'm thinking about the possibilities, including starting and stopping. I'd like to look at the condition in February and find the best form." showed.
Regarding Padres pitcher Yu Darvish, who announced his participation in the WBC on the 5th, he said, "Of course, winning or losing is very important, but I think young Japanese players want to learn his training methods and conditioning." Japan as much as possible. I was impressed when he said, "I will cooperate with you."
On the other hand, Cubs' Seiya Suzuki was eager to participate, saying, "I'm sure he's the number one outfielder, so I'm just waiting. I want to wait until the last minute, until February." .
The WBC will be held in March next year, and Japan will face Australia, South Korea, China and the Czech Republic in Group B of the first round at the Tokyo Dome.