[Commentary]What is the “dark horse” Italy to face in the WBC quarterfinals? Possibility of “dream pitcher relay” at Tokyo Dome?

Samurai Japan, the Japanese national team, defeated Australia on the night of the 12th in the WBC (=World Baseball Classic), the world’s best baseball match, and passed the first round with a clean sweep. Aiming to become the world champion for the first time in three tournaments since 2009, they will face Italy in the quarterfinals. ● “Samurai” amazing batting average ● Otani and colleague confrontation ● Dream pitcher relay? I will elaborate on the above points. ■Samurai Japan won all four games in the 1st round, astonishing batting average and on-base percentage. We advanced to the quarterfinals. On the night of the 12th, Shohei Ohtani hit his first home run in the WBC, and Nootvar hit a timely hit for three consecutive games. The reason for Japan’s strength lies in numbers such as batting averages. In this tournament, the batting order for all four games is fixed, with Nootvar No. 1, Kensuke Kondo No. 2, and Otani No. 3. All three have over 40% batting average. For Ohtani, it’s 50%. Normally, a batting average of 30%, that is, one hit in three innings is considered excellent, but it is amazing to have three players with a batting average of over 40%, even if it is a short-term decisive battle. In addition, the “on-base percentage” including four balls and dead balls is nearly 60% for Nootvar, 60% for Kondo, and nearly 70% for Otani.[Nutvar Kensuke Kondo Shohei Ohtani batting average .429 .467 .500 on-base percentage .579 .600 .684]Italy Ohtani’s colleague major leaguer will face Pool A in second place in the quarterfinals. The Italian national team that passed through will face off at the Tokyo Dome on the 16th. How strong is the Italian national team? In the world ranking, which is one index, Italy is 16th and Japan is 1st. However, Italy has been described as a “dark horse” in Pool A. In Pool A, all the teams were tied with 2 wins and 2 losses, which was very rare. When the winning percentages are aligned like this, the ranking is decided in descending order by comparing the “loss percentage” calculated based on the points given to the opposing team. By this criterion, Italy made it past the first round. Let me introduce you to what kind of team we are. Manager Mike Piazza was a member of the Major League Baseball Dodgers when he was active, and he formed a battery with pitcher Hideo Nomo at the time, so he is familiar to Japanese baseball fans. He was also a good hitter. He is one of the most powerful catchers in the majors, with 427 career home runs. The team is made up mainly of Italian-American players, some of whom are active in the major leagues. Of particular note are Angels Ohtani and teammate David Fletcher. Born in 1994, the same year as Ohtani, he is 28 years old and made his major league debut in the same year. In 2020, he has a batting average of .319, which ranks third in the American League. I’m also looking forward to a colleague showdown with Ohtani. In the world rankings, they are somewhat “lower” than Japan. However, there are some players like Fletcher who should not let their guard down. ■Three games to world number one Appointment of player… Possibility of “dream pitcher relay” at Tokyo Dome? If we keep on winning, we will be 3 games away from becoming the best in the world. How will Samurai Japan use their players in the future, and in which pitcher will we see Otani, who has a strong bat, pitching? Looking back on the past four games, Otani pitched against China on the 9th, Darvish pitched against South Korea on the 10th, Aki Sasaki pitched against the Czech Republic on the 11th, and Yoshinobu Yamamoto pitched against Australia on the 12th. was Otani should be the starting lineup for the quarterfinals on the 16th. It’s been 6 days since he pitched on the 9th day of the first game, but Ohtani is also playing as a hitter, so it’s possible that he’s fatigued compared to other pitchers. While it is expected that Otani will be the starting mound on the 16th, pitcher Darvish tweeted. From pitcher Darvish’s Twitter (11th), “There is still a possibility that I will pitch in one more game in Japan, so I would like to spend the next few days clarifying what I want to do in the next game.” ” has only a match at the Tokyo Dome on the 16th, so it makes me think that I will throw it there. Having said that, if Ohtani’s next pitch is in the semi-finals, it will be too far away, so it is expected that he will pitch at the Tokyo Dome. In that case, it is possible that Ohtani Darvish’s dream pitcher relay will be realized at the Tokyo Dome on the 16th. Unlike the first round, this time it’s a tournament. Therefore, it is possible that Otani will start in the finals on the 22nd in Miami, USA. If the fan’s dream and hope of “entrusting the mound of the final to Otani” are realized, it is expected like this. I don’t know what will happen in the future, as there may be matters such as the circumstances of the major league team, but I have high hopes for further success in the WBC. (From “news every.” Broadcast on March 13, 2023) #WBC #Samurai Japan #Japan National Team #Baseball #Otani Player #Italy #Nittele #newsevery #News facebook.com/ntvnews24 Instagram https://www.instagram.com/ntv_news24/?hl=ja TikTok https://www.tiktok.com/@ntv.news Twitter https://twitter.com/news24ntv ◇[Latest News LIVE delivery]NTV NEWS HP https://news.ntv.co.jp