Former Japanese national team main shortstop Hayato Sakamoto (35, Yomiuri), who fell endlessly due to sexual scandal and sluggish batting, is showing signs of a revival. There are even critics who are becoming a hot topic for predicting his resurrection.
In April, he struggled with a batting average of 10%, but his monthly batting average in May was 0.361.
Sakamoto was a shortstop representing Japan. He has excellent defensive skills and is also equipped with offensive abilities, so he has been an immovable shortstop for the Japanese national team.
Former Japan national team shortstop Sakamoto is recovering from a long slump. Photo = Yomiuri website capture
His position in the team was also great. Yomiuri is yet to find an alternative shortstop other than Sakamoto.
However, the sluggishness that had been going on since last year hit the season and faced a difficult situation.
Sakamoto only played 83 games last year due to sluggishness and injuries, and posted a batting average of 0.286 with 5 homers and 33 RBIs.
The majesty that once led the team by hitting 40 homers has all collapsed.
This season, the width of sluggishness has become much bigger. His batting average was seldom in the 10% range, and he was often excluded from the starting lineup.
In addition, a scandal broke out that a woman who had sex with her before the season had an abortion, and her reputation was further damaged. It seemed that he was facing the biggest crisis of his baseball life.카지노사이트
However, in May, it is returning to its place like a ghost. His batting average for the month of May was 0.361. It can be said that he has completely returned to Sakamoto’s pace.
Baseball critic Ibata is famous as a baseball player who predicted the revival of Sakamoto.
Around mid-April, Mr. Ibata said, “The batting pace is definitely rising. It must have been difficult for him to maintain a sense of hitting as he played as a pinch hitter in quite a few games, but I can feel his pace gradually picking up. He will be fully back in place around the Golden Week holiday period in May.”
With more accurate predictions than anyone else, the evaluation of Mr. Ibata is also rising.
And Sakamoto has now fully found his own pace.
It remains to be seen whether Sakamoto will be able to overcome all kinds of bad news and regain his reputation through baseball.