Rakuten On March 15, manager Hajime Miki paid tribute to Chunichi ・Sho Nakata infielder who announced his retirement at the end of this season. Nippon-Ham The first time I saw him was in 2008, and from 2009 to 2013, we played together as coach and player. I think it’s a decision that only he knows, but I think it’s a decision he’s made in a lot of different ways. If he chose to retire, it’s the right thing to do,” he said. I think it was tough on his body, and I’m sure he had a lot of struggles and battles.
He recalled spending almost every day with Nakata Sho when he was the second-team infield defense base running coach, saying, “He may look like that, but he has a humane and cute side and a tough side. To me, he was the cute Nakata Sho.” During spring training in 2009, he created an opportunity to talk to the players individually at the dormitory, and called Nakata Sho to invite him to his room, but “he hung up before me. I called him back right away and told him that you shouldn’t hang up before someone above you, and he said he understood and hung up before him again,” he recalled with a laugh.
Even though he has been wearing a different uniform since 2014 with Yakult and since 2019 with Rakuten, Nakata would come and say hello whenever they had a chance to meet, such as before a game. He sent his encouragement, saying, “I hope you spend the rest of your time as a player well and meaningfully.”
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AloJapan.com