A day after being named both the best pitcher and the best designated hitter in the Pacific League, Shohei Otani said Saturday he'd also like to throw the world's fastest pitch.
In an event inHokkaido, the Hokkaido Nippon Ham Fighters star said throwing 169 kph in a game is within his reach. Otani entered the season having thrown a 163 kph fastball, but rewrote that record twice this year, culminating in three 165-kph deliveries on Oct. 16.
"The fastest pitch thrown by a human being is just 4 kph faster," Otani said. "I want to see if I can be the man who throws the fastest pitch in the world."
On July 18, New York Yankees reliever Aroldis Chapman hit 105 mph. Although normally a starter, Otani set his latest Japan record while working one inning of relief in the final game of the PL playoffs on Oct. 16 at Sapporo Dome, the Fighters' home park.
"That time was just chance," Otani said. "My mechanics were not good. It had to do with being the last game of the Climax Series, and with the atmosphere at the ballpark."