WBC Special Report! Yasuhiro Mitsui, a great scorer, and Munetaka Shida, a master strategist who knows the world, talk it all out!

Yasuhiro Mitsui participated in the second tournament in 2009, and Munehiro Shida participated in the fourth tournament in 2005 as a scorer for Samurai Japan. The role of a scorer in international tournaments is to gather and analyze the information necessary to win, and to share that information with the leaders and players.

Part 1: Yasuhiro Mitsui and Munehiro Shida talk about what they need to do to beat the U.S. in the WBC!

Strategy for the Cy Young duo

–I think that the biggest opponent this time is the U.S. with the judges. Okamoto also laughed bitterly when interviewed by FRIDAY, saying, “I don’t know how to hit Paul Skeens and Tariq Skubal. It is unlikely that Skubal will pitch against Japan, but in the unlikely event that he does face both pitchers, do you have any strategies? ……

Shida: Let’s start with Skeens. His pitches are a four-seam, sinker, cut, sweeper, curveball, split, and changeup with a shot spinning at over 160 km/h. Against left-handed hitters, he has a split and a changeup. Against left-handed batters, I collect my splits and changeups on the outside corner and stick them straight on the inside corner. Against right-handed hitters, I throw my sweeper about. That sweeper is a difficult opponent, and it is very hard for right-handed hitters to break down Skeens pitchers.

Mitsui At first glance, the pitches appear to be varied, but from the batter’s point of view, the sweeper and the cut ball look almost the same. Straight and sinkers are not much different either. Considering this, I think it would be easier to focus on three types of pitches: straight pitches, curveballs, and dropped pitches. On top of that, I think that right-handed hitters should be able to spot the ball halfway inside the base. That way, they don’t have to chase a pitch that bends outward from the outside, say, a sweeper. On the other hand, they can deal with pitches that come inside due to control errors.
Okamoto, Seiya, and Shugo Maki are all top-notch hitters, so as long as they keep their eyes on the ball, they can react to pitches that come inside. For them, the inside corner is something that they can’t just say, “Don’t hit it! but their hands are always stuck. But if you keep your eyes on the ball, they will throw straight pitches inside all the time. So, if it were me, I would say, “Aim for the third base line and try to foul off a good hit with a straight ball on the inside corner.

Shida: Yes, a good hit for a foul is not good for the pitcher. That is where the clue to the strategy lies.

Mitsui: With left-handed hitters, the pitches are basically concentrated on the out course, so it is good to think of hitting the ball at the pitcher’s feet with the bat inside. If you try to chase a pitcher at this level, you will lose the bat, so you should be conscious of “hitting hard to center.

Many key players besides Otani.

–How do you feel about the left-handed pitcher, Skubal?

Shida: I think he is a pitcher who throws the most changeups, straight pitches, and sinkers. I also have a curveball and a cutter, but I don’t throw these pitches very often. He throws his fastball to both sides of the plate and throws his changeup to the outside corner of right-handed batters with great accuracy. On film, the change-up doesn’t look like a hard pitch to hit.

Mitsui: Yes, it is hard to tell from the video alone. But this pitcher has a very good feel for the pitch. So, if a right-handed hitter hits a change-up thinking, “It’s a straight ball! and he is forced to swim forward, resulting in a mediocre outing. I think it is important to be conscious of calling the ball in early and hitting it in front of the batter. Contrary to Skeens, if you are a right-handed hitter, you may want to throw away an inside fastball and aim at a loose outside pitch and hit it toward the right center field. If it were me, I would tell him to aim inside only for the first strike, and if it doesn’t come, to keep his eyes on the outside and use his whole body to hit it.

Shida His change-up sinks inside the left-handed batter, so it might actually be easier to hit to the left. I can imagine Kondo hitting it back the other way.

-There are clues to attacking both American aces, who are said to be impregnable, aren’t there? Who do you two think will be the key players in pitching and hitting in this tournament?

Mitsui: Of course, Otani has to play well, but I am concerned about Shota Morishita. It would be interesting to bring him out as a defensive outfielder, and his competitive hitting is also appealing. He is very bold, so if he can function as a substitute hitter or on the bottom of the lineup, it will be quite interesting.

Shida: As for pitchers, I would say Daiya Miyagi. Generally, many people think that pitchers who are tall and have a fastball thrown down from above and a forked drop pitch are more successful at international tournaments, but pitchers Yamamoto and Shota Imanaga, who are both active in the majors, are not tall. Rather, their strength is that they have a low release position and can throw with a trajectory that major league hitters have never seen before. I think Miyagi’s straight and braking change-up, which he can throw from that height (171 cm), are effective against American hitters.

Mitsui: The rest depends on the pitching of Zen Murata (laughs). The pitching coaches this time (Atsushi Nomi and Kazuki Yoshimi) are inexperienced, so I think Zen will probably give advice on how to use pitchers. He is the key man behind the scenes.

Shida: The U.S., Dominican Republic, Venezuela, and Mexico all have distinguished players, but if you look at the data properly, you will see that they have some weaknesses and a surprisingly high strikeout rate. As long as they don’t lose their names, they have a good chance to win the tournament.

Yasuhiro Mitsui (’09 Chief Scorer)
Born in Shiga Prefecture in 1961. He has been a scorer for the Giants for about 22 years and was the chief scorer for the ’09 WBC. Currently coaches the Ariake Boys, which he runs.

Munehiro Shida (’17 Scorer)
Born in Iwate Prefecture in 1979. He was a scorer in the ’17 WBC. Currently he is engaged in data analysis, commentary, amateur baseball support, seminars, etc. at LIVELITZ Co.

From the March 13-20, 2026 issue of FRIDAY