Okoye in high school. He was a big hit at the Koshien Stadium with his quick feet and good defense (Image: Afro). Okoye’s main outfielders at Rakuten include Hiroaki Shimauchi, Ryosuke Tatsumi, and Haruki Nishikawa, who moved from Nippon Ham, so it will not be easy for Okoye to fulfill his position. Even so, Okoye does not seem to feel a sense of difficulty. “He reflects on his mistakes immediately after they are made, but he is somewhat lenient. Even though he trains hard during the allotted practice time, he rarely stays over and leaves the field. I guess he thinks too dryly. I don’t think he has that much time to spare.”   This is his sixth year with the team. Okoye, who has been inactive, is also rumored to be transferring to an unexpected team. “One of the themes of manager Miura is ‘running’ baseball. Last season, DeNA had 31 stolen bases, the worst among the 12 teams. The current DeNA outfield is better equipped than Rakuten’s, but there are few players who can run. For Miura, Okoye’s outstanding leg strength must be attractive. It would not be surprising if he moves to acquire him for his leg strength.” On the other hand, there are those who say, “At least there will be no trade during this season. He will be safe for a while.” “Okoye is a favorite of Rakuten founder and CEO Hiroshi Mikitani. Mr. Mikitani likes unconventional players like Okoye. He wants to make him a star of Rakuten because he is well known for his success at Koshien. Manager Ishii is no different in that he wants to do something to develop Okoye into a core player for the future. He is often harsh, but it is not that he hates him. I think his harsh words are a whip of love and a sign of his high expectations.” Okoye is batting in the high .300 range for the second team this season. There is a strong possibility that he will return to the first team before the summer starts in earnest. Whether or not he can live up to the expectations of the leaders this time around will be a true test of his value.