[마이데일리 = 박승환 기자] “Actually, I’ve been devising countermeasures since last night.”
Murakami Munetaka (Yakult Swallows) faced Yu Darvish (San Diego Padres), who earned 188 wins in the United States and Japan, at the World Baseball Classic (WBC) national team camp in Miyazaki Prefecture, Japan on the 21st (Korea time from now on ).
Murakami, who has blossomed with talent since the 2019 season, played in 141 games last year and had a season high with 155 hits, 56 home runs, 134 RBI, 114 runs, 12 steals, a .318 OPS and a 1.168 batting average. Murakami had an unforgettable season winning the Central League MVP title by ‘unanimous decision’ with the ‘youngest Triple Crown’.
In particular, Murakami’s 56th home run in the last at-bat of the final game of the regular season was a masterpiece. Murakami hit his 56th home run, breaking the Japanese record for most home runs in a single season held by Softbank Chairman Sadaharu Oh.
On the 21st, Murakami faced Darvish, who started pitching live for the first time since joining the national team. Darvish has 188 career wins in the United States and Japan, pitched 194⅔ innings in 30 games last year, and had a career-high 16-8 season with a 3.10 ERA. He signed a contract extension worth USD ( about 140.7 billion won).
Murakami misses Darvish’s first pitch and chooses the second ball. And on the third pitch, he let the ball into the strike zone. His at-bat turned energetically on the 4th pitch, and the ball hit the sweet spot leading to a home run that hit the back screen of Sun Marine Stadium. Murakami then finished the live batting practice by recording a ground ball on the 5th pitch and hitting the ball in front of the left fielder on the final 6th pitch.
According to Japanese media, Darvish said in an interview with local reporters after pitching live, “It feels like I’m being executed in public. It’s a little sad. “It’s not easy. I was surprised to hit that ball in one shot,” he said, giving Murakami a thumbs up.
How did Murakami turn “a ball that’s not easy to hit even in the big leagues” into a home run? According to Japan’s ‘TV Tokyo Sports’, Murakami heard the news of live pitching and batting practice with Darvish and prepared from the night before. He said, “I knew Darvish senior’s speed and how to throw. To be honest, I was planning a countermeasure from last night (20th).”
Murakami said, “I thought the measures weren’t wrong. Darvish’s upper ball power was very good. It felt good to be able to hit a home run on a good ball. It became a memory. “It seems his to have gone over the fence,” he smiled.
Murakami said, “I will practice as I am now,” adding, “I don’t know when the next time will be, but since we have a game against the Softbank Hawks (25-26) ahead of us, I will trying to hit well in the real game.”
[샌디에이고 파드리스 다르빗슈 유, 야쿠르트 스왈로스 무라카미 무네타카. 사진 = 게티이미지코리아]
Reporter Park Seung-hwan absolute@mydaily.co.kr
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