March 6, 2024 11:01am Hanshin Yuasa Kyouki
Their classmates are “considering” a welcome party for Hanshin’s new right-hand helper duo.
Pitcher Anthony Martinez (24), born in January 2000 from the Dominican Republic, and pitcher Jose Betances (24), born in October 1999, who are scheduled to come to Japan in March, will be replaced with those born in Japan between April and March. and was born in 1999. For Hanshin, pitcher Kyomi Yuasa took 6th place in the 2018 draft, pitcher Hayato Suzuki took 2nd place in the 2021 draft, pitcher Takuma Kirishiki took 3rd place, pitcher Hidetaka Okadome took 5th place, pitcher Ryo Ito took 1st place in the development draft, and 23 rookies. Pitcher Kai Matsubara (Nihonkai L, Toyama), who was ranked number one in the 2019 training draft, is a member of the “99 Association.” Including helpers, there are a total of eight players, making the 1999 class the only one of the 12 teams to consist of only pitchers. Suzuki secretly hopes that “I’ll be able to pitch again at the same age.”
Hanshin’s 1999 party began during the 2022 off-season with pitcher Joichiro Maki (joined the team in 2017, left the team in 2022) to celebrate his farewell. Dinner parties are still held regularly.
Yuasa had been interacting with his helpers since his amateur days. When he was in the Toyama/Nihonkai League in 2018, he frequently went out to eat with pitcher Luis Ramirez (31) and pitcher Duante Heath (38), who had played for Hiroshima and Seibu. Will new helpers be invited to the meeting? he asked. “I need an interpreter (for the dinner party), but if I have helpers from the same grade, I’ll call them.Also, it’s amazing that the only one of my classmates is a pitcher.”
I then asked Kirishiki, and he talked about how pitcher Yu Iwasaki (32) invited pitcher Colten Brewer (31) to dinner last season. “It strengthens the bond, and not only does it increase the unity of the students, but they also come to a foreign land.I think they have a lot of interaction with the interpreters, but they need to have the most contact with their peers.During practice, each person prioritizes their own menu. Because I’m so focused, I might not be able to have a conversation unless I’m eating.” She revealed the truth and pledged her support.
Usually, Okadome or Yuasa serve as the secretary. Yuasa said, “I’m looking forward to it!” He named Daichi Mihara, an analyst at the team’s headquarters who is in the same grade behind the scenes and supports the pitching staff at the farm, as the organizer this time. Kirishiki also nodded, saying, “It’s just right.”
The reporter was born in 1999, two days before Tsuyoshi Shinjo of the Hanshin era gave a walk-off to then-Giants Hiroki Makihara. Now, in April, I will be entering my third year of work, and the only time I get together with friends from the same grade is mostly when I’m traveling or in my hometown when I return home. I feel that the caring relationships I have with my classmates who I met as an adult create a different kind of cohesiveness than with my classmates in elementary and junior high school. At our company, we are also encouraged by the presence of people in the same grade as us, such as Kotoha Shimomura, who covers horse racing, and Honoka Takemoto, who covers sports and entertainment.
Professional baseball players are allies when competing in games, but they are rivals competing for individual opportunities to play. Still, I feel a sense of kinship with the 1999 Tora Association, which cares for its friends and cares for them.
March is the month when open games and educational leagues are actively held. As spring approaches, we wait for the season to begin, worrying about the interactions between the new helpers who will join the Class of 1999 this month.[Rei Nakajima]
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2024-03-06 06:36:27
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