Lotte professional baseball pitcher Aki Sasaki, who has been removed from the first-team roster due to a torn left flank, has announced that he will return as a starter in the match against Orix on the 1th.
Sasaki was removed from the first-team roster on July 7 due to a torn left flank, and it was initially predicted that it would take two months to fully recover, and although there was a view that it would be difficult to return during this season depending on the situation, he has been recovering steadily by resuming pitching practice in the bullpen around the middle of last month.
Coach Yoshii told the press on the 25th, "I will start the match against Orix on the 1th, as a result of the diagnosis at the medical institution, so I will continue to start the match."
According to Coach Yoshii, Sasaki threw about 2 pitches against batters in a hands-on practice session at ZOZO Marine Stadium earlier this month to check his recovery, and also threw about 8 pitches in the bullpen on the 10th.
Coach Yoshii said, "I don't think I'm going to throw a full inning, and I don't think I'll throw five innings, but I'd like to set a limit on the number of pitches and make sure that I make a decision here," and expressed his intention to use the game while assessing his condition without letting him throw long innings.
He added, "He has recovered well, is fully prepared for the match, and I hope he will pitch to give momentum because the team is not feeling well."
Although Lotte is in second place in the league, they are 30 games behind the leader Orix, and are close to SoftBank, who is in third place, by two games.
Sasaki has a 8-20 record and a 5.2 ERA in 10 appearances so far, and it will be interesting to see if the return of a major pillar of the starting lineup can be a catalyst for the team in the final game.