‘WBC Undefeated’ Nuba Still Popular in Japan…Asked to Come to SoftBank, “I Might Go One Day”
After helping Team Japan win the World Baseball Classic (WBC), St. Louis Cardinals outfielder Lars Nutba, 26, returned to Japan.
“Nuba, who helped Team Japan win the WBC in March, coached young fans at a baseball class organized by the Major League Baseball Office at the PayPay Dome in Fukuoka,” Japanese media outlet Sportichi Annex reported on Nov. 21. He spent time with about 150 young fans aged 4 to 6 with smiling faces.”
In 283 career major league games, Nuba is an outfielder who has batted 24-for-66 (203-for-825) with 33 home runs, 101 RBIs and a .780 OPS. In his third year in the big leagues this year, he batted 20-for-61 (111-for-426) with 14 home runs, 46 RBIs and a .784 OPS in 117 games.
Born in El Segundo, California, Nuba is an American citizen who does not have Japanese nationality, but was able to represent Japan in the WBC because his mother, 카지노사이트가이드 Kumiko Enokida, is Japanese. Teammate Tommy Edman, a Korean-American whose grandmother was born in South Korea, competed in the WBC for South Korea, making both Edman and Nuba the talk of the town. Nuba is the first foreigner to make the Japanese national team, and Edman is the first foreigner to make the Korean national team.
Nuba had a somewhat disappointing performance in the WBC, batting 2-for-6 with seven runs (7-for-26), four RBIs, seven runs scored, two doubles, and a .693 OPS in seven games. However, he was hot at the plate in the group stage and played well on defense and the basepaths, helping Japan to a sweep of the tournament. In Japan, Nuba’s peppercorn gesture became popular.
He told his young fans, “Dream big. I hope I can motivate you even a little bit,” Nuba said to the young fans, “I’m happy that my dream of playing for the Japanese national team has come true,” and reflected on the WBC victory.
Fukuoka is home to the SoftBank Hawks of Nippon Professional Baseball. The Hawks finished third in the Pacific League this season with 71 wins, three ties, and 69 losses, but lost to the Chiba Lotte Marines in the first stage of the Climax Series to end their fall baseball campaign.
When asked, “Do you think I’ll ever come to SoftBank?” Nuba, who had a great time doing the pepper ceremony with the young fans, said, “No one knows the future. Maybe one day I’ll be at SoftBank,” he laughed.
