Professional baseball team DeNA's camp in Ginowan City, Okinawa Prefecture began its second season on the 6th. Hidego Maki, who was appointed captain this season, showed his presence by hitting powerful balls during actual batting practice.
Last season, Maki, a fourth-year player, played in all games as No. 4 and achieved a batting average of .293, both career highs, with 29 home runs and 103 RBIs, making him the RBI leader. He won the title for the most hits.
Maki, who was appointed captain this season, participated in his first actual batting practice at this camp, and was conscious of watching the pitcher's pitches carefully.
On the 6th, he took his third at-bat, and in his second at-bat, he did not miss the sweet fastball from left-handed pitcher Tatsuya Ishikawa, who pitched in 28 games as a reliever last season and had an ERA of 1.97, and bounced it back to center field. He hit the ball with great force.
In addition, as a second fielder who recorded nine errors, tied for the most in the league last season, he wants to further improve his accuracy and movement to aim for double plays. As he moved around and practiced his defense, he repeatedly checked the movement of his right foot, which is the key to making sharp turns.
Maki said, ``My batting hasn't reached my ideal point yet, so I want to improve it by the time I actually play.Also, since I'm going to play as a second player on defense, I want to aim for the Golden Glove Award. I want to do everything I can to get better."