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WORLD BASEBALL CLASSIC: ROUND TWO

March 15, 2006

POOL 1: ANAHEIM, CALIFORNIA

THE MODERATOR: We'll start with questions for team Manager Sadaharu Oh and Shunsuke Watanabe.
Q. Manager Sadaharu Oh, you've had a very well-played type game today. What are your feelings after six WBC games. Your comments on your team, and also comments on South Korea?
MANAGER SADAHARU OH: We fought six games, and all of those games were really good, hard-fought games. We believe that we gave everything out that we had. But it was also shown that our lineup had trouble scoring runs against real tough pitchers.
We fought many and close games, one-run games like tonight. But every time, of course, we had a lot of desire to win the game, but seems like the opponents desire was much higher.
We learned that we should bring that part of the game up a little more from now on.
Q. This is for -- this question is for the manager. Now, depending on tomorrow's game, Japan still could meet Korea in the semi-finals. How do you feel about that chance?
MANAGER SADAHARU OH: Of course I'd very much love to have that opportunity if that's possible since we lost twice to Korea in this World Baseball Classic tournament. And tonight -- well, both games were one-run games. And in both games we gave up two runs in the 8th inning. So we have a saying in Japanese that third time truth would come.
So we would love to have that third opportunity to fight against Korea one more time, and this time we would like to have a good win.
Q. This is a question to Mr. Sadaharu Oh. Like you said, it was another one-run game tonight that you lost, but where do you think was the turning point of the game tonight?
MANAGER SADAHARU OH: Well, like tonight's game, we had an opportunity to score when Satozaki had a hit to right field. But the runner at second was thrown out at home by a great throw by right fielder. And the same right fielder that had made a real great catch in the game that we faced Korea in Tokyo Dome as well.
I believe there some -- short of momentum, and that kind of momentum is going on in this tournament. On our side, we had a walk in the 9th inning against left-handed pitcher, but we couldn't cash in that opportunity.
On the other hand, the Korean team had a walk in the 8th inning and they scored out of it. So in this kind of pitching duo, it's always said that if you give up a runner -- if you allow a runner, which you shouldn't, would lead to the crucial score. And that happened tonight.
Q. This is for Sadaharu. When you get the tying run on base in the 9th inning, how close did you come to trying to steal the base or try a hit and run?
MANAGER SADAHARU OH: Well, in that situation, that much situation, the pitcher on the mound has such a quick delivery, and I thought it would be very difficult to steal on that pitcher.
We timed him, and he had a real fast time. Also, for hit and run against an unfamiliar pitcher would be very difficult as well. If we were ahead in the game in this situation, we might have thrown a hit and run. But since we were behind, I did not really try to.
THE MODERATOR: Last question.
Q. Mr. Oh, I have a question regarding -- since you guys Japan team only lost to Korea by two point for two games, but do you still believe Japan team played fast baseball in Asia, and Japan team can beat Korean team against five-game or six-game series? Thank you.
MANAGER SADAHARU OH: Well, since both teams had the best players possible on their squads, as you see, the games didn't come out as lopsided games. It showed how close both of the teams are. And in those -- if we fought a five-game series, I would never know what the outcome would be.
But I believe all those games will be very close games as well. And once again, we knew that the Korean teams would be a very good team, but this time it showed once again that they are really playing at high level.
THE MODERATOR: Thank you.
Q. This is a question to Mr. Sadaharu Oh. Since you lost a very close game once again against Korean team, how do you think you would make up the thing that was short in these two games against Koreans? Would that be scheme that you employ, or would it be the makeup of the team because the Korean team has so many Major League players as opposed to just two on your team.
MANAGER SADAHARU OH: We believe we had the best team available. We had the best members out of the available players. But still, we could only score three runs in those two games against Korea, and they scored five on us.
So we definitely know that we need to lower the scores we've given up, so we're going to have to work that out. We have to bring the level of our baseball up somehow. And also, the core of our lineup didn't really hit a homerun.
No homerun was hit by number three, number four, number five hitters, even though number one and number two and number eight hitters hit homeruns.
That means that we must have faceed real good pitchers, but still we didn't show the possible power that we had. So this will be a challenge for us, not only for the game -- not only for the possible game that we might play on the 18th, but for the future. So take a long time and make it for the future games.
MANAGER SADAHARU OH: Are there any questions to our pitcher Shunsuke Watanabe.
THE MODERATOR: We'll take one question.
Q. You did very well tonight against Seung Yeop Lee after the first at-bat. What was your feeling, and what were you trying to accomplish in those at-bats?
SHUNSUKE WATANABE: Since we knew that Lee is such -- Lee has been really hot these days, and if we allow him to hit any homerun that would give great momentum to his club.
So even though we've been thinking about the plan to get him out with my catcher Satozaki -- who is also a teammate back in Japan -- and even though we walked him, we might have thought too much at his first at-bat. But we were sure that we had a good plant to get him out, so it really worked out very well.
THE MODERATOR: Thank you team Japan.

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