At Chunichi's professional baseball camp in Chatan Town, Okinawa Prefecture, fourth-year pitcher Hiroto Takahashi, who is aiming to become the opening pitcher for the first time, threw 150 pitches in his third bullpen game, saying, ``I want to show off with good pitches for the opening game.'' I want to do it," he said enthusiastically.
Pitcher Takahashi had a losing record last season with 7 wins and 11 losses, but his 145 strikeouts were second in the league, and his ERA was 2.53, seventh in the league.
On the 7th, he entered the bullpen for the third time in this camp and practiced pitching, imagining a game in which he had started, taking a break after every 20 pitches he threw.
He threw a total of 150 pitches over 7 sets, mainly fastballs, but also some quick motions assuming there were runners.
Pitcher Takahashi reflected on the fact that his fastest pitch did not reach 150km/h, saying, ``I always want to throw 155km/h, so my speed wasn't good enough, but the balance and pitch quality were pretty good.''
Regarding his aim to be the opening pitcher for the first time in his fourth year, he expressed his enthusiasm, saying, ``I've been adjusting very well so far, so I want to show off by throwing better balls as we head into the opening game.''