Ed Odeven 
Baltimore Orioles pitcher Tomoyuki Sugano plays catch at the team's spring training complex in Sarasota, Florida, on February 17, 2025. (©KYODO)
Read the full story on SportsLook - Tomoyuki Sugano Begins Preparations for the 2025 MLB Season
Baltimore Orioles newcomer Tomoyuki Sugano is getting ready for his first season in a Major League Baseball uniform.
The veteran pitcher arrived at the team's spring training complex in Sarasota, Florida, on Saturday, February 15. His arrival was two days behind schedule due to visa issues, according to media reports.
Sugano, who signed a one-year contract in December 2024, wants to help lead the Orioles to a World Series title in 2025. The team finished second in the American League East last year with a 91-71 record, three games behind the pennant-winning New York Yankees.
"When I first met with the Baltimore Orioles before I signed, they had strongly expressed their desire to win the world championship," Sugano, 35, said shortly after his arrival in Sarasota, MLB.com reported. "So that has been my goal throughout."
Sugano's first bullpen session of spring training was pushed back from Monday, February 17 to the next day.
A 136-game winner for the Yomiuri Giants (2013-24), Sugano addressed the reason for the postponement: jet lag.
"If I was at 50 percent yesterday, I'm now up to about 70 percent," Sugano was quoted as saying by Kyodo News.
Dedicated to the Team
That said, Sugano is fully committed to working hard this spring.
"I want to work out with the team as much as possible and try to become a real member of the team as soon as possible," he said, according to NHK on Sunday.
Orioles manager Brandon Hyde said he supported Sugano's decision to delay his bullpen work in the early days of spring training.
"Any player, we want our guys to communicate with how they are feeling all the time, and we'll definitely work with all these guys in putting themselves in the best position," Hyde told reporters on Monday before a morning workout. "And if someone doesn't feel ready, then we are going to fall through with that."
Continue reading the full story on SportsLook.
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Author: Ed Odeven
Find Ed on JAPAN Forward's dedicated website, SportsLook. Follow his [Japan Sports Notebook] on Sundays, [Odds and Evens] during the week, and X (formerly Twitter) ＠ed_odeven.
