March 27, 2013, is two days away from the rekindling of the new season fire in Nippon Professional Baseball.
But for Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks manager Akiyama Koji, a significant issue is now laid before him:
According to the regulations of professional baseball, he needs to submit the starting lineup before 3 PM tomorrow for the opening game. He has already decided on most of the starting players' positions, but there is still one crucial position he's uncertain about.
Judging from the preseason performance, the foreign player Pena, whom the club signed with a salary of 140 million yen, has major issues with his physical condition during the off-season, and his overall state is extremely poor.
Moreover, his position in the batting order happens to be the critical fourth designated hitter—truth be told, with Pena's current state, Akiyama Koji is not keen on making him a starter.
