Orix Buffaloes, Masataka Yoshida, who will carry the number 7 from this season
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Professional baseball that will start the 2022 season on March 25th. In the Pacific League last season, Orix Buffaloes won the championship for the first time in 25 years and faced Tokyo Yakult Swallows in the Japan Series. Masataka Yoshida, who won the top hitter for the second consecutive year, supported the team. He contributed not only to the league match but also to winning the gold medal at the Tokyo Olympics, saying, “It was a year of various experiences.” While it is expected that ORIX will play an active role as the main axis this year, what kind of activity will he show by carrying a new uniform number 7 on his back?
Why I won the league last year
“Last year, it was very big to win the Pacific League and set it on the stage of the Japan Series. Every player is aiming for that and is longing for it, so fighting on that stage is really great. It was a great experience. “
For Orix, it was the first time in 25 years since Ichiro won the championship in 1996, but in fact 2019 (61 wins 75 losses 7 minutes) and 2020 (45 wins 68 losses 7 minutes) It ended up at the bottom. It will be the 9th team in history to win the championship in one year from the bottom of the previous year. It wasn’t Miracle that won the championship, but there must be a reason, but how did Yoshida see it?
“We started at the bottom for the second year in a row, but we haven’t done anything special. We gained confidence as we won each game, and on the contrary, we reflected on each losing game. I tried to make use of it in the next game, and it was repeated. After the summer, my team strength improved, but I was confident that I won in the close game, and I got a sense of unity and got on the wave. Of course, I think I was lucky, but I think that being able to fight without giving up until the end of every match led to the final victory. “
The atmosphere of the team has been very good since last spring. It was also seen in the hero interview. In April, when Yutaro Sugimoto, also known as Raoh, hit a goodbye hit and won three consecutive victories, he said, “I borrowed Mr. T’s perfume today. Thank you, Mr. T!” T-Okada also thanked Sugimoto’s perfume, saying, “Thank you Raoh!” It wasn’t a stiff stand, but a very nice mood that was bright and made me laugh.
“Seniors create that kind of mood, so young people can play with growth. I think that’s one of the reasons why the team was doing well last year. I’m in my seventh year, so I’d like to create that kind of environment. I have the consciousness that I have to go. I want to win the championship in a row. “
