Masanao Yoshida of the Major League Baseball Red Sox is entering his second training camp in Florida, and is expected to play primarily as a designated hitter for the new season, saying, ``I will try to hit strong liners to the outfield.'' I want to do it," he said enthusiastically.
Yoshida, who is in his second year with the Red Sox, had his first day of general practice on the 19th at a camp site in Fort Myers, Florida.
Yoshida entered the stadium at 7:30 a.m. Due to rain from the previous day, the number of people who could participate in batting practice outdoors was limited, so he adjusted at the indoor practice field.
Last season, Yoshida was mainly used in the left field position, but regarding this season, Coach Cora said, ``I think he will play more as a designated hitter. He will also play left field defense, but he will not have the opportunity to stand at bat. "It should be more than last year," he says, and has high expectations for his batting, which has a batting average of .289, which ranks fifth in the league.
Yoshida said harshly, ``Some people say that I did well in my first year when it came to numbers, but I still have the image of my numbers in Japan, so I feel like I didn't do well at all.'' I rated it.
On top of that, he said, ``I think I'm the one who knows best if it's a hit without a runner on the second out or if it doesn't contribute to the score.In America, the focus is on the content of the out, so it's all about hitting a strong liner to the outfield.'' "I want to keep this in mind," he said with enthusiasm.
Regarding pitcher Yoshinobu Yamamoto, his teammate from the Orix era in professional baseball, joining the Dodgers, he said, ``He was a pitcher who really represented Japan, so I'm really looking forward to competing in America.Even in Japan, I only played against him once in practice. "I think it was a center fly ball," he said, looking forward to the match.
The Red Sox and Dodgers are scheduled to play three consecutive games in Los Angeles in July.