Professional baseball player Munetaka Murakami of Yakult celebrated his 24th birthday on the 2nd and expressed his determination, ``It's a new start, so I want to work hard with a fresh mindset.''
Yakult's camp started on the 1st in Urasoe City, Okinawa Prefecture, and it was the 2nd day. Murakami, whose 24th birthday was on the 2nd, used his lunch break to practice batting.
Last season, Murakami's performance has declined compared to his previous year, when he had great success, hitting 31 home runs, batting average of .256, and 84 RBIs, making him the youngest player in history to win the Triple Crown at the age of 22. .
During the second day's practice, where he focused on the coordination between his upper body and lower body, he showed sharp swings against a batting pitcher, with 10 of his 52 swings going over the outfield fence.
Also, regarding his defense, which was an issue last season with 22 errors, he used a smaller-sized glove than usual to receive knocks in order to make him conscious of catching the ball in the center of his glove.
Murakami was interviewed after practice and said, ``I'm having a great time.When it comes to defense, it's important to get outs, so I want to continue practicing repeatedly.''
Murakami then smiled in front of the cake prepared to celebrate his birthday and expressed his determination, ``This is the start of a new 24-year-old, so I want to do my best with a fresh mindset.''