The day of fate that came to Shirakawa '4 wins'...Can a pure young man's dream of 'joining the Japanese club' come true?

The day of fate that came to Shirakawa '4 wins'...Can a pure young man's dream of 'joining the Japanese club' come true?

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A day of destiny came for Shirakawa Kisho, who wore SSG Landers and Doosan Bears uniforms.

The Nippon Professional Baseball Organization (NPB) will hold the 2024 Nippon Professional Baseball Rookie Draft at 4:30 p.m. on Tuesday. The player who attracts the attention of Korean baseball fans in this rookie draft is definitely Keisho Shirakawa.

Shirakawa, who has not been selected as a professional in the Japanese rookie draft, has been in touch with the KBO League as SSG "Ace" Roenis Elias has a more than six-week hiatus due to injury while playing for the Tokushima Indigo Sox in the independent league. In the 2023 season, he played 55 ⅔ in 15 games in Tokushima, marking 4 wins, 3 losses and 3.56 ERA, and this year, he had 4 wins, 1 loss and 2.17 ERA in 6 games.

"We focused on the mechanics and pitching tempo that are difficult to deal with," SSG said. "Based on his strong fastball of up to 150 kilometers per hour and stable ball control, including sliders, curves, and change-ups, we decided to recruit him as we believed he had strength in game management." Shirakawa played in five games in his SSG uniform, recording two wins, two losses and an ERA of 5.09. Notably, his performance was not bad except against the Lotte Giants, who lost a lot of points.

Of course, he had some drawbacks. Throwing fast balls over 150 kilometers was his charm, but his jagged control and his inability to display his skills at a stadium filled with spectators were also flaws. Still, as he filled Elias' vacancy well, Shirakawa has contacted the Doosan Bears this time.

With "Ace" Brandon Waddell out due to injury, Doosan agonized over foreign players and chose Shirakawa, who has more sense of play in real games. However, his performance at Doosan was even more disappointing than at SSG.

Except for his best pitching with a dominant start (less than one earned run in eight innings) against KT Wiz on August 16, he was only 2 wins, 2 losses and an ERA of 5.34 in six games, including no quality start (less than three earned runs in six innings). Nevertheless, Doosan offered Shirakawa an extension contract, which was why there was no player in the team to assume the starting role.

However, the contract didn't last long. Shirakawa took the mound against the Hanwha Eagles soon after he extended his contract with Doosan, but was substituted after allowing five runs (five earned runs) in four innings. However, Shirakawa began to complain of pain in his elbow, and an MRI examination revealed that his ligament was not in good condition. As a result, Shirakawa returned to Japan with four wins, five losses and an ERA of 5.65 in 12 games without completing the contract period. 메이저사이트

Shirakawa's decision to go to Korea must come from various backgrounds, including income. Among them, the most important was to be selected by a professional team in the Japanese draft based on his performance in the KBO League. Shirakawa, who had clear disadvantages but also clear strengths. What is certain is that he achieved his primary goal in that he gained attention from the Japanese media by joining the SSG and Doosan Bears and made his name known.