Nippon-Ham Ham Fighters manager Shinjo takes his hat off… “The ball becomes magical in the strong winds at Zozo Stadium” and “it’s completely different”
Sports Hochi
2025.9.4(木) 06:45
Pacific League Lotte 2-1 Nippon-Ham (3rd, Zozo Marine)
Despite the painful loss, Nippon-Ham-Ham Fighters manager Shinjo gracefully took his hat off. “It’s quite difficult for Taneichi to hit in this wind. The drop of fork is completely different.” In the strong winds typical of Zozo, where the ball sometimes reached 9 meters, Taneichi allowed one run on four hit in the ninth inning. Lotte took advantage of the home field advantage, striking out 11 struck out, and widened the gap with the leader, Softbank, to two games.
Starting pitcher Shibata, the two-way player and first-round draft pick making his third professional appearance, also struggled with the wind. With the score tied at 0-0 in the first inning, leadoff hitter Takabe hit doble down the right field line on his first pitch, and then second batter Nishikawa hit a timely single to right field. He gave up five hit one runs in the third inning, giving up the lead in six pitches. “I didn’t think the difference would be this big at a stadium I’m new to,” he said, his fastest pitch only reaching 150 km/h, and that was the only pitch he gave up. Still, he made some adjustments, such as lowering his release point, and kept the score at no walk. “It’s good to have a variety of pitches to choose from depending on the situation. It was a good experience playing as a visitor.”
The coach also defended the 19-year-old, saying, “It was difficult to control in this wind,” and hinted at him starting in the next match against the Escondido, saying, “He’s more intimidating.” Despite the headwind, they managed to come from behind and win the victory. (Haruki Kawakami)
Related News
・ [Photo] Sushi chef “Kiyomiya Kantaro” appears at Nippon-Ham home stadium, ESCON! ? Sushi power produces a lot of Home Run
・ [Nippon-Ham] Manager Shinjo on starting pitcher Leo Shibata, who gave up one runs in three innings: “ESCON is more intimidating.”
・ [Nippon-Ham] Leo Shibata, making his second professional start, left the game after giving up 5 hit 1 runs in the 3rd inning, putting his first professional win on hold.
・ [Nippon-Ham] Hiromi Ito leads both leagues with 13 wins, thanks to his wife for “coming to watch all the games, which is encouraging”
・ [Nippon-Ham] Hiromi Ito “Somehow did the bare minimum” with only two runs allowed in the seventh inning, leading the league with 13 wins
AloJapan.com