2024-03-20 01:00:00
Click to see a larger image. Keito Takeuchi pitching on the mound on the 15th, his professional debut, and struggling (left), and completing the medical exam last month (right photo). Takeuchi Keito
It became a hot topic when it became known that a Japanese professional baseball player who had been both a medical student and a baseball player passed the national medical examination during his debut game. This is the first time in Japan that a professional baseball player has passed the national medical examination.
According to Japanese local media such as the Chunichi Shimbun on the 15th, Keito Takeuchi (24), a right-handed pitcher for the ‘Kufuhayate Ventures Shizuoka’ of the Japanese professional baseball Western League (second division), passed the Japanese national medical examination on this day.
The 15th was also the pitcher debut of Takeuchi, who newly joined the team. On this day, Takeuchi took the mound in the 5th inning when the team was behind 0-7, pitched 3 innings, and gave up 2 runs. The time Takeuchi took the mound that day was 1:59 p.m., and the list of those who passed the medical exam was released a minute later at 2 p.m. It is said that he learned of the news of his acceptance when he saw his mother send him a message in the locker room saying, ‘You got it’ following coming off the mound.
On the same day, Takeuchi said to his He continued by saying, “I have homework left in today’s pitching, but I will do my best to show growth every day,” and added, “Thank you to everyone who supported me.” After taking the exam last month, he previously said, “I completed the exam successfully,” and “I think I have fully demonstrated the results of my studies.”
Takeuchi, born in Shizuoka Prefecture in 1999, started playing baseball in the first grade of elementary school, and in 2014, he was selected for the Japan under-15 national team and participated in the Baseball World Cup held in Mexico. During his high school days, he also participated in the Koshien tournament, known as the ‘flower of Japanese high school baseball’. He said he dreamed of becoming an orthopedic surgeon since his school days because he wanted to help people suffering from injuries. Accordingly, following finishing his baseball team activities during his high school days, he studied every night with his exhausted body. It is said that on days off from exercise, he devoted himself to studying for over twelve hours a day.
In 2017, Takeuchi reportedly turned down offers from college baseball scouts to recruit him. To go to medical school. Takeuchi was later accepted into the Department of Medicine at Gunma University and is scheduled to graduate on the 22nd. After being accepted to medical school, he devoted himself to training in his spare time even though he was busy with hospital training. It has been six years since he combined his medical studies with his athletic career. However, Takeuchi has put his career as a doctor on hold for a while, with his goal of being selected in the NPB rookie draft held this fall.
Reporter Park Sang-hoon
1710901836
#true #dual #sword #style #Japanese #pitcher #passed #medical #examination #day #professional #debut #Munhwa #Ilbo #munhwa