Ryosuke Hirata, legend of the Junichi Dragons in the Japanese professional baseball league, recalled the painful upset loss that he suffered nine years ago in Korean baseball. It is certainly a painful memory, but the fact that he had the opportunity to play for the national team gave more meaning to him.
Hirata threw the first pitch for the match between Chunichi and Yakult Swallows in Nagoya, Japan, on the 12th. He sprayed the ball with all his might and the electronic display recorded 123km/h.
According to the Japanese sports media Chunichi Sports, Hirata said, “Before the shooting, I was determined to throw 150 kilometers per hour. Still, I am satisfied with the speed of 123 kilometers per hour.”
Hirata started pitching in the Japanese national baseball team uniform on the day. He was a “one-club man” who played for the Chunichi Dragons from 2006 to 2022 when he was an active player, but he visited the stadium as a legend of “Samurai Japan.”
Hirata played for Japan at the 2015 WBSC Premier 12 and 2017 World Baseball Classic. However, Japan failed to win the title in both competitions, as Japan was eliminated in the semifinals.
Hirata is an unforgettable name even for Korean baseball fans. He was one of the main hitters who led the Japanese team’s offense by bullying Korean pitchers in the 2015 Premier 12.
Korean baseball was defeated by Japan 0-5 at the 2015 Premier 12 Group B opening match held at Sapporo Dome in Japan. Starting pitcher Shohei Ohtani blocked the Korean team’s batters from allowing two hits, 10 strikeouts, and no run until the sixth inning. Korea was overwhelmed by Ohtani’s fastball in the mid-to-late 150-km/h range and forkball in the early 140-km/h range.
Japanese batters also targeted South Korean starting pitcher Kim Kwang-hyun. Kim struggled in the second ⅔ innings, allowing five hits, three strikeouts, and two runs. Hirata started the game as the eighth batter and right fielder, and posted two hits and two RBIs in four times at bat. He hit an RBI double in the bottom of the second inning when the score was 0-0, and became the winner of the game. 메이저사이트
Hirata also troubled Korea in the 2015 Premier 12 semifinal held at the Tokyo Dome. He hit a timely RBI single off Korean starting pitcher Lee Dae-eun, who was displaying good performance with one out and runners on first and third bases in the bottom of the fourth inning when the team was tying 0-0.
However, Hirata bowed his head after Japan lost in the 2015 Premier 12 semi-final. When the team was losing 0-3 at the top of the ninth inning, Korea scored four runs in the final attack of the regular inning, turning the game around.
South Korea gathered runners with a left-handed hit by leadoff hitter Oh Jae-won and a heavy hit by Son Ah-seop, creating a spark of hope. With runners on the first and second bases with no outs, Jung Geun-woo hit an RBI double that penetrated the third base, catching up 1-3.
South Korea, which gained momentum, put more pressure on Japan with the ball on base that hit Lee Yong-kyu’s body with no outs and runners on the second and third bases. With the bases loaded with no outs, Kim Hyun-soo added a point to push the ball out, narrowing the gap to 2-3.
Lee Dae-ho, “Joseon’s No. 4 hitter,” came out as the troubleshooter in Korea’s continued chance to reverse the bases with no outs. Lee hit a timely two-run homer off Hiroto Masui, who fell in front of the left field, to make the score 4-3.
Hirata caught Lee’s ball in the left field. At that time, the Japanese bench shifted the position of outfielders toward the fence in consideration of Lee’s slugging capability. Hirata caught the ball quickly and connected it with an accurate throw to the third base, preventing additional bases occupied by first baseman Kim Hyun-soo and batter Lee Dae-ho.
Japan then finished the defense without additional runs in the top of the ninth inning, but failed to cross the Korean mound in the final attack of the regular inning in the bottom of the ninth inning. Underhand Jung Dae-hyun struck out leadoff hitter Tetsuto Yamada with a swing and miss, and hit fourth batter Yoshimoto with a ground ball to the first base, pushing Japan further into a corner.
Japan did not back down easily as Sho Nakata hit Jung Dae-hyun. He then deployed Takuya Nakashima, the king of stolen bases in the Pacific League, as a pinch runner in the 2015 season to try to sway the Korean infield.
The Korean bench also moved quickly. He replaced the pitcher with left-hander Lee Hyun-seung, checking Nakashima, the first baseman, and leaving one out count to him. As Lee grounded out Takeya Nakamura, the 2015 Pacific League home run king, to the third base, the “Tokyo Battle” that will remain a long way off in Korean baseball history has been completed.
On the other hand, Ryosuke Hirata and Japanese baseball players bowed their heads. At the 2017 WBC, which was held two years later, Hirata failed to pass the semifinal match. As a member of the Japanese national team, he failed to taste the joy of winning the title and swallowed the disappointment.
“The hit (Lee Dae-ho’s hit) flew to me,” Hirata recalled Lee Dae-ho’s two-run homer in the top of the ninth inning during the 2015 Premier 12 semi-finals. “It was worth it. Now that I think about it, I’m happy that I was a member of the national team.”
To Hiroto Takahashi and Koya Isakawa, Chunichi’s juniors, he stressed, “I hope that I will be selected as a member of the Japanese national team. Experience that only national team players can gain and shout that they can taste are lifelong assets.”
