Sho Nakata of Nakanichi: “If next season, the season of victory, is not good enough,” he is rumored to be transferring to a new club.

With the retirement of manager Kazuyoshi Tachinami, the league’s worst scoring record, and the threat of a third consecutive year in the bottom half of the standings,……

Chunichi, which has been away from winning the league championship for 13 years since ’11, is still struggling to get out of the doldrums this season. The man who feels the responsibility most acutely is the man who was assigned the No. 4 spot in the opening game of the season. He is Sho Nakata, 35, who joined Chunichi from the Giants on a large two-year contract worth an estimated 600 million yen. Following Tatsunami’s announcement of his resignation, he responded to the press after the Orix game at the farm on September 20: “Personally, I am really sorry.

I personally feel very sorry. I couldn’t do anything to help. …… It has been a disappointing year.

Batting average of .100

It is only natural that Nakata feels responsible.

Nakata was thoroughly coached by Tatsunami, who was his hitting coach during the WBC in February 2001, and the two have a kind of “master-disciple” relationship. Tatsunami, who recognizes Nakata’s ability, was eager to acquire him. He made a direct appeal to owner Uichiro Oshima and personally called Nakata to persuade him to join the team.

Manager Tatsunami selected Nakata as the No. 4 player from the opening day of the season in order to use him as a catalyst to solve the scoring shortage. Nakata initially lived up to expectations, leading the batting lineup with a .283 batting average, two home runs, and 12 runs batted in during March and April. The team was in first place for the first time in 2,891 days.

Nakata’s good form did not last long, however, as his performance took a nosedive after he was hit in the left leg by his own pitch in a game against Hanshin on May 15. He suffered a .100 batting average, zero home runs, and two runs batted in during the month of June, and in August he was dropped by the second team for the third time this season.

In August, he dropped out of the second team for the third time this season. “It is true that I was expected to be the main gun by manager Tatsunami, but I could not produce any results. For the year, he batted .217 with four home runs and 21 runs batted in. In a sense, he is this season’s “war criminal. I think Nakata will have something to look forward to next season when he loses the backing of manager Tatsunami. This is the final year of his contract, and it will definitely be a critical season for him. Nakata will have to make a decision. If Nakata once again fails to live up to expectations, we may give up on him as a competitive force.

If he doesn’t make it next season, his career is in jeopardy. If he were to leave Chunichi, would there be a team that would extend a hand to him? There are rumors of a possible destination.

If there is a possibility, it would be to his old team, Nippon Ham. He left the team after a violent incident in August 2009, but in a sense, his purification period is over. Atsunori Inaba, the second team manager, and Hideki Kuriyama, who is in charge of team management and team organization, also appreciate Nakata’s human qualities, including his concern for young players. I don’t think there is any possibility that Nichi-Ham will prepare a stage for Nakata to shine again.

Nakata will be in his late 30s next season. Nakata will be in his late 30s next season, and he will face a critical point in his career as a main gunner to see if he can make another bloom as a player.