It was just a sixth-inning at-bat in a 3-0 loss to the Chicago Cubs last month, but Shogo Akiyama thinks it may have been a turning point in his season.
Facing fellow countryman Yu Darvish, one of the contenders for the National League Cy Young, Akiyama lined a 96-mph fastball into right-center for a single. It was an 0-2 pitch at the top of the strike zone, an area that pitchers exploited against him at the beginning of the season.
“Especially with success that (Darvish) had in the U.S. and since he also is a fellow countryman, there were more feelings into it,” Akiyama said through translator Luke Shinoda.