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The story
Shintaro Fujinami, reportedly set to be cut from DeNA’s plans for next season, started against the Giants on September 27 in what was the farm team’s final game of the season, and was pulled after allowing 5 runs (4 earned) in 3 innings. Despite going the whole season without a single first-team appearance amid reports that he’s being left out of next year’s plans, Fujinami commented that “toward the end, I got my own pitching style back,” signaling his desire to continue his NPB career. Fujinami joined Hanshin as the team’s first-round pick in the 2012 draft, and is known as a pitcher who pairs a blazing fastball with chronic control problems; he also has MLB experience after moving to the United States. On a 5channel thread, users traded predictions about which team might sign him next season and debated his current velocity, with opinions split over how to take his upbeat comments.
DeNA’s Fujinami Shintaro, left out of next season’s plans, allows 5 runs in 3 innings in farm-team game — wants to keep playing in NPB. Winless in the majors this season, but says “toward the end, I got my own pitching style back”
◇Sept. 27, Farm League: DeNA 5–12 Giants (Giants Town)
Shintaro Fujinami, who looks set to be cut from DeNA’s plans next season, started against the Giants in the farm team’s final game of the season, going 3 innings and allowing 5 runs (4 earned).
Source: news.yahoo.co.jp / Original article here
What people said
Yeah, you can feel that raging Tiger Spirit (Hanshin's fighting-spirit slogan) burning in him
Keeping him locked up on your own roster at least caps the injury risk, huh
He could be a bad influence on the young guys too, and he definitely wouldn't mesh with guys like Chikamoto, Otake, or Morishita
That's likely why they had him pitch against the Giants as a demonstration
Even with this bad an image, some team's still willing to take a chance on him
Honestly though, I'm thinking — just stop already
Being this weirdly upbeat about it… I honestly can't tell if his mentality is weak or strong.
They seem like the type to collect well-known names
Carp maybe, but only if they end up short on pitchers?
Yeah, Tokota and Morishita look like they might leave via free agency anyway
He's always been overrated, and people keep saying 'if he could just fix it, he'd have one shot' — but even back when he WAS fixed, he was never actually dominant
Guy's been living off potential and romance alone
No idea when he's finally gonna retire though
He's at a level where he'd get hit normally by guys who've been stuck rotting in the Giants' farm system for years
But he can't even hack it in the majors anymore, so nobody's gonna take him
Might honestly be better off switching to an underhand delivery at this point
There are that many jobs in the world, after all
Naan or pizza maker — he could probably fling the dough at a wall and stretch it to just the right size
How about the Ground Self-Defense Force
A grenade weighs about that much I think
Guess his only hope is getting rebuilt by Coach Kuroda over at the Carp…
There he goes blaming someone else again
He's only 'him' because of that high-octane inside-high heat
Tops out at 154 km/h, so he's still got plenty in the tank
It flies up or to the right, meaning straight at right-handed batters' heads
In his own mind he probably thinks he's got it under control, but there's nothing he can do
Kind of like Mima's retirement game, huh (Mima Manabu, a pitcher remembered for late-career control issues)
Background and talking points
Since joining Hanshin as the team’s first-round pick in the 2012 draft, Fujinami has been a pitcher who wielded a blazing fastball as his weapon while continually battling control problems, and he also has MLB experience dating back to 2023. This “left out of plans” report suggests he may not be kept on next season’s registered roster, and whether he actually remains in NPB now depends on other teams’ decisions. Several predictions about his next destination came up in the thread, but it’s worth noting that none of them are backed by solid information — they remain speculation. According to posts in the thread, his fastball tops out at around 154 km/h, and the fact that the focus is on his control rather than velocity itself lines up with points raised in previous coverage. The thread showed a split in tone between those willing to take his upbeat comments at face value and those taking a harsher view that his results don’t back it up.
*This article is compiled as an excerpt and summary of the 5ch (Geisoku+) thread “[Baseball] DeNA’s Fujinami Shintaro, left out of next season’s plans, wants to continue in NPB: “Toward the end I got my own pitching style back” — confident in his comeback.”
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