Go Woo-seok and Yang Hyeon-jong, Woolin’Korean Killer’ Yamada, WBC Japan national team unofficially selected

Giant infielder Tetsuto Yamada (Yakult Swallows), who has beaten Korea twice on the international stage, will participate in the WBC (World Baseball Classic).

On the 11th, Nikkan Sports, a Japanese media outlet, said, “Yakult captain Yamada has been nominated for the WBC Japan team to be held in March.” Then, he introduced, “I have shown my strength on the international stage by hitting home runs at the WBC in 2017, the Premier 12 in 2019, and the Tokyo Olympics in 2021.”

As a star player representing Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB), Yamada left a strong impression in international competitions, especially in the Korea-Japan match. In the 2019 Premier 12 final, he hit a come-from-behind final three-run home run against starter Yang Hyeon-jong, leading Japan to the championship. 메이저놀이터

In the 2021 Tokyo Olympics baseball winner’s semifinal match against Korea and Japan, Yamada did not miss the chance with two outs and bases loaded at the bottom of the 8th inning against Korea and Japan, and attacked Go Woo-seok’s first pitch and scored a sweeping 3 RBI double. Yamada recorded a batting average of 0.350 (7 hits in 20 at-bats), 1 home run, 7 RBIs, and an OPS of 1.035 in the event, contributing greatly to Japan’s first Olympic gold medal.

Last season, Yamada appeared in 130 regular season games and recorded a career low batting average of 0.243. However, he hit 23 home runs (tied for 7th in the Central League) and his slugging power was still the same. Japan is looking forward to Yamada, who performed impressively at the crucial moment in the international competition.

Meanwhile, the Japanese national team made it official that day that major leaguer Lars Nutba (St. Louis Cardinals) would join. Following the announcement of the first list on the 6th, which included Shohei Otani (LA Angels), Yu Darvish (San Diego Padres), and Seiya Suzuki (Chicago Cubs), prominent players joined one after another, raising expectations for the WBC championship.