Junichi Tazawa threw about 40 pitches in the bullpen on the 9th.  His next outing will be against the New York Mets on the 11th.

That new change Hideki Okajima has been working on since the tail end of last year is apparently a split-change (tops out in the 130km/h range).

Daisuke Matsuzaka kept his workouts light on the 9th.  Matsuzaka also told reporters that he wished he could show Seibu Lion Yusei Kikuchi how to pitch from the set position.

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Kazuo Matsui started at second and batted second against the New York Mets on the 9th.  He went 2-for-2 with two walks in the game: solo home run (off Johan Santana in the first), walk, walk, and infield single.

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Hideki Matsui was the starting DH against the San Diego Padres on the 9th and batted fourth.  He went 1-for-2 in the game: strike out swinging and single.  Matsui was lifted for a pinch-runner after his single in the 4th.

On the 8th, Matsui spent time working on his hitting.  In addition to outdoor BP, he also spent about 40 minutes on indoor BP.

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Hiroki Kuroda started against the Colorado Rockies on the 9th and gave up 2 runs (1 earned) on 2 hits and a walk.  He also struck out three.

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Ichiro Suzuki did not play on the 9th against the Cleveland Indians.  He instead work on his fielding and hitting for about 2 hours.  Ichiro will be playing in every game from the 10th until the 13th (Sponichi mentions games on the 10th, 12th, and 13th).  He will not accompany the team for the road games on the 14th and 15th (because it's a road game that require a 2 hour bus ride).

Don Wakamatsu told reporters that beginning on the 16th, he'd like to start using Ichiro on a daily basis, assuming he's up for it.

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Kosuke Fukudome started in right and batted second against the Milwaukee Brewers on the 9th.  He went 0-for-2 with a walk: fly out to left, ground out to short, walk.  He was lifted in the 6th on defense.

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Hisanori Takahashi threw 30 pitches (mostly curves) in the bullpen on the 9th.  Afterward, he worked on his pick-off moves on the field with a coach.  Takahashi's next start could come on the 11th against the Red Sox.

Ryota Igarashi got some tips on how throw a slider from John Franco on the 9th.  Seems his slider has gone from having a big break to having a much smaller break.

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Koji Uehara will likely pitch against the Minnesota Twins on the 11th.

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Kenshin Kawakami started and tossed 3 innings against the Philadelphia Phillies on the 9th and gave up 2 runs on 4 hits and a walk.  The two runs he gave up came on a 2-run homer he surrendered to Jayson Werth in the second.

Ryota Igarashi tossed an inning in relief against the Florida Marlins on the 8th.  He gave up a run on 2 hits and struck out 1.  Seems he also had a hard time getting on the same page with the catcher: with a runner on first and two out, Igarashi wanted to throw a fork to the batter but decided not to shake the catcher off fearing that it would tip the batter off; end result: a fastball on the outside portion of the plate that was hit for a triple.

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Koji Uehara pitch an inning in relief against the Minnesota Twins on the 8th.  He also gave up a hit, struck out one, and needed only 11 pitches to get through the inning.

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Hideki Okajima retired the side in order during his one inning of work against the St. Louis Cardinals on the 8th.  He also struck out two of the batters he faced.  Okajima's new change also appears to be working well.  According to him, it looks like it's coming straight in, but drops outside.

Depending on how he's feeling after throwing two BPs, Daisuke Matsuzaka's first game could either be on the 18th in the minors or on the 19th against the Pittsburgh Pirates.

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Akinori Iwamura started at second and batted second against the New York Yankees on the 8th.  He went 0-for-2 (fly out to right, ground out to short) before being taken out in the 6th on defense.  Iwamura also made his second error of the Spring.

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Kosuke Fukudome started in right and batted second against the Oakland Athletics on the 8th.  He went 1-for-2 (fly out to short, double to right, walk) with a walk and was removed in the 5th on defense.  In three exhibition games, Fukudome is now 4-for-8 with 2 RBIs.

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Ichiro Suzuki started in right and batted lead-off against the Chicago White Sox on the 8th.  He went 0-for-3 (strike out, ground out to first, walk, fly out to left) with a walk.  He was removed in the 7th on defense.

Ichiro was also one of the judges for the American Idol competition that was held in the clubhouse.  He told reporters he was glad he was only a judge because otherwise, he would have spent more time working on a routine instead of practicing.

He's also sporting new cleats from ASICS.

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Hideki Matsui stayed back after practice on the 8th in order to work on his hitting.

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Hiroki Kuroda told reporters he plans on trying out a couple of things during his next start, like where he positions his glove when he pitches from the stretch and trying out his new change.

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Tomokazu Ohka appears to have agreed on a contract with the Mexican League Quintana Roo Tigers.  Ohka should be signing with them officially within the next few days.

The Girls Professional Baseball League (GPBL) joint camp began on Monday.  The first day of practice lasted about 3 hours and  included batting practice in the cages and light fielding practice.

The players have actually been working out since February in preparation for joint camp.

Camp will run through to the 20th, after which a series of exhibition games are apparently scheduled.

Akinori Iwamura started at second and batted lead-off against the Minnesota Twins on the 7th.  He went 1-for-2 with a walk and a run: fly out, walk, infield single.  He was taken out of the game in the 5th when the Pirates took the field.

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Kazuo Matsui started at second and batted lead-off against the Atlanta Braves on the 7th.  He went 0-for-3 with a run scored: line out to short (?), ground out error, ground out.  He was lifted in the 5th when the Astros took the field.

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Takahashi Hisanori tossed three shutout innings in relief against the Washington Nationals on the 7th.  He faced 11 batters, gave up a hit and struck out 6 (he also struck out 3 in a row).  Of the 42 pitches he threw, 34 were strikes.

A day after throwing two innings in relief, Ryota Igarashi kept his workouts light on the 6th.  Ryota has been keeping his body loose by doing stretches at home and using a portable massager he brought in from Japan (the Mets trainer isn't scheduled to join the team until May).  He told reporters that he felt a little tightness in his shoulder and elbow, but could still probably pitch if asked (read: I can pitch on consecutive days if needed).  Igarashi will likely pitch against the Florida Marlins on the 8th.

On  the 7th, Igarashi took some cuts during BP.

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Kei Igawa faced 8 Minnesota Twins and allowed 5 runs on 4 hits, including a grand slam, in an outing on the 7th.  He also suffered a broken fingernail on his throwing hand (left) during his outing.

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Daisuke Matsuzaka threw 68 pitches (mixing in all his pitches) to a squatting catcher in a bullpen session on the 7th.  He told reporters that while he felt good about his fastball, his off-speed pitches were still lacking.  If everything continues to move along smoothly (he'll likely throw a bullpen at a pace of once every other day), he could toss some BP as early as the 12th.

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Hideki Matsui's Angel debut on the 7th was rained out.  He'll likely be in the line-up against the San Diego Padres on the 9th.

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Kenshin Kawakami threw 60 pitches in the bullpen on the 7th in preparation for his start on the 9th.

Takashi Saito went over signals with the catcher before general practice on the 7th after mentioning he had a hard time seeing them during his outing on the 5th.  Instead of using fingers, the catcher will give Saito signals by touching various parts of his body.  Saito also got a new set of contact lens.

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Ichiro Suzuki took 32 swings during BP on the 6th and hit 7 over the fence.

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Koji Uehara's next appearance will likely come against the Minnesota Twins on the 8th.

...Kazuo Matsui started at second and batted second against the Atlanta Braves on the 6th.  He went 0-for-4 : ground out, strike out, ground out, ground out.

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...Junichi Tazawa picked up his first save on the 6th against the Minnesota Twins.  He tossed two shutout innings while giving up just 1 hit.

...Daisuke Matsuzaka gave his shoulder a rest on the 6th and instead did other things like fielding drills.  Matsuzaka could start the season on the DL and get a start or two in the minors before making his way to the Majors.  Matsuzaka told reporters that he only has himself to blame for his current condition.

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...Hideki Matsui's first game will be against the Oakland Athletics on the 7th (assuming the weather holds up).

Five pages will apparently be devoted to Matsui in the All-Star program.  It seems there will also be an article about him in the April edition of the Angels' program as well.

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...Kosuke Fukudome went 1-for-3 with 2 RBIs and a strike out against the Chicago White Sox on the 6th: GIDP, 2-run single, strike out.

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...Hiroki Kuroda threw 36 pitches in the bullpen on the 6th.  He told reporters that he's feeling better this year, in comparison to last year.

Waseda University was also on hand to watch the Dodgers practice.

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...Ryota Igarashi threw two innings on the 5th.  He told reporters on the 6th that he wasn't that tired considering the fact that the last time he tossed two innings was 4-5 years ago (although it seems he did pitch 2 innings in an outing some time in 8/2008).

...Hisanori Takahashi told reporters on the 6th that he wants to make sure he does a better job against left-handed hitters during his outing against the Washington Nationals on the 7th (he apparently didn't do a very good job during his intra-squad appearance).

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...Koji Uehara threw about 30 pitches in a bullpen session on the 6th.  He only tossed 8 pitches (all fastballs) during his appearance on the 4th and wanted to work on throwing his other pitches.

Masumi Kuwata's thesis on amateur baseball in Japan was given an award for excellence (修士１年生優秀論文).  On Saturday, he presented his thesis at Waseda University.

Based on what I could piece together, Kuwata surveyed around 300 active pro-baseball players in 2009 on their junior high school and high school baseball years.  The questions were broken down into five main categories: practice length, practice methods, coaches, punishments, and injuries.

After sifting through all the responses, Kuwata found that many players questioned the methods that were used on them: excessive practice schedules that led to overwork and injuries; problems with the coaches; finding the right balance between studying and baseball; and whether harsh punishments were necessary.  More than half of the players also apparently said that they wouldn't want to coach players using the same methods that were employed on them.

For those wondering, the thesis is 96 pages long.

I'd actually love to get my hands on a copy of his thesis.  Sounds like a lot of interesting information.  Although I think it would have been even more interesting if Kuwata included questions on current practice methods used by pro baseball teams.

On a side note...  I have seen his thesis is labeled as 「『野球道』の再定義による日本野球界のさらなる発展策に関する研究」 but in the program notes, it's listed as 「アマチュア野球の抱える課題に関する研究－現役プロ野球選手に対するアンケートをもとにー」.  I'm not really sure which title is correct.  They're actually somewhat similar, but the second is more targeted.

Ryota Igarashi made his second appearance and gave up a run over two innings of work on the 5th.  The run he gave up came on a game-tying solo home run in his second inning of work.  Igarashi also struck out one batter.  Igarashi told reporters he was satisfied with his outing, more so than his last outing, because it felt more like he was pitching.

Hisanori Takahashi's first appearance will likely against the Washington Nationals on the 7th.

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Takashi Saito gave up 2 runs on 3 hits over 1 inning of work against the Washington Nationals on the 5th.  He had some troubles with his contact lens -- he couldn't see the catcher's signs and therefore couldn't keep his focus on the mound.  Saito apparently had corrective eye surgery back when he played for the Yokohama Bay Stars but it seems they have been reverting back over the last couple of years.

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Kei Igawa tossed 1.2 shutout innings against the Tampa Bay Rays on the 5th.  He did not allow any hits and struck out two.

Igawa told reporters that he didn't know he would be pitching.  He also said that he hasn't been informed of any future appearances either.

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Hideki Matsui is swinging the bat at about 80%.  There's still no definitive word on when he'll get his first exhibition game start.  As such, Matsui told reporters on the 5th that the only thing he can do at this point, is just make sure he's ready for it.

His base running drills on the 4th including running from home to first, running from first and third, and running from first to home.  At this point, Matsui told reporters that he was running at about 60%.  He also tested his arm and made throws to second and home from left field.  His arm is apparently at 70-80%.

Matsui was also apparently warned about scorpions and snakes along the sides of the secondary field.

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Ichiro Suzuki went 1-for-4 with an RBI against the San Diego Padres on the 5th: fly out, triple down the left field line, ground out to the pitcher, ground out to second.  His next game will likely be on the 7th against the San Diego Padres.

On the 4th, Ichiro took 26 swings during soft toss BP.  He looked a little tired during practice and when asked why he was, he said that it was because he's hooked on the Nintendo Wii game Punchout!!

And of course, this USA Today article has been making the rounds: Griffey challenges Ichiro to 300 hits.

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Daisuke Matsuzaka's first start during the regular season could be pushed back until mid-April (on or after 4/16, which is against the Tampa Bay Rays).  Matsuzaka threw a total 58 pitches in the bullpen on the 5th -- 25 to a standing catcher, 21 to a catcher on his knees, and 12 to a squatting catcher.

While there still is not set schedule for Matsuzaka, he is expected to throw a couple of bullpen and BP sessions before getting a chance to start an exhibition game.  That would likely put his first exhibition game start sometime in the middle of March.  Just like the other pitchers on the staff, the Red Sox would like Matsuzaka to pitch about 25 innings.

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Hiroki Kuroda gave his shoulder a rest on the 5th and kept his workouts to things like running dashes and fielding bunts.  Kuroda will likely throw another bullpen on the 6th and is scheduled to pitch on the 9th against the Colorado Rockies.

On the 4th, Kuroda threw 40 pitches against minor league hitters during BP.

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Kenshin Kawakami's next appearance will likely be against the Philadelphia Phillies on the 9th.

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Akinori Iwamura went 1-for-3 with an RBI against the Baltimore Orioles on the 5th: ground out, RBI single to center, strike out swinging.

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Toshihisa Nishi apparently got an offer from a team out of the Atlantic League (independent) on the 4th.  Before leaving Japan, Nishi said that he had no interest in playing for any independent league teams.  He currently has plans on trying out for the Los Angeles Dodgers.

The Girls Pro Baseball League (GPBL) held a press conference on Friday to announce that their league will start with a night game at Wakasa Stadium Kyoto on 4/23.  The Kyoto Astro Dreams and the Hyogo Swing Smileys will play a total 40 games with the last game scheduled for October 27th.  A pdf version of the schedule can be found at the official GPBL site.

The following information was also released:

Kyoto Astro Dreams
First Home Game: 4/23 @ 6:00pm (gates open at 4:00pm)
Wakasa Stadium Kyoto

Hyogo Swing Smileys
First Home Game: 4/29 @ 1:00pm (gates open at 11:00am)
Skymark Stadium

Tickets
1,500yen for adults
Elementary children, women under 18 and under, and adults 65 and older get in for free

Uniforms for the two teams were also unveiled.

Kosuke Fukudome (started in right and batted second) went 2-for-3 against the Oakland Athletics on Thursday: ground out, double, infield hit.  He was lifted for a pinch runner in the 5th.

Fukudome is wearing a new set of cleats that are colored using the Cubs blue, white, and red.  They also apparently provide better support in the heal area.

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Kazuo Matsui (started at second and batted second) went 1-for-3 with an RBI against the Washington Nationals on Thursday: ground out, ground out, RBI single to left.  He was replaced in the 5th on defense.

On Wednesday, Matsui did infield drills for about 30 minutes under the supervision of Brad Mills.

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Kenshin Kawakami started and tossed two shutout innings against the Pittsburgh Pirateson the 4th.  He also  allowed one hit, struck out one, and walked none.  Kawakami is hoping to use hit two-seamer to help rack up the strike outs this year.

Takashi Saito threw 25 pitches in the bullpen in preparation for his outing on Friday.  He will likely focus on throwing his fastball and curve and hold off on throwing his slider for the time being.

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Koji Uehara tossed one perfect inning against the Tampa Bay Rays on the 4th.  He only needed 8 pitches to get through the inning.

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Junichi Tazawa threw a fork twice during his outing and both ended up high in the zone, opposite of where it should be.  Tazawa's next appearance will likely come against the Minnesota Twins on the 6th.

It appears Terry Francona has given Daisuke Matsuzaka the green light to start pitching again, beginning on the 5th.

Hideki Okajima tossed a shutout inning on Thursday against the Minnesota Twins.  He faced 5 batters and gave up 1 hit and 1 walk.

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Hideki Matsui feels that part of the reason why he struggled with his knees last season was because he pushed himself too hard during Spring Training.  To that end, he's being a lot more careful this year, making sure to check the way his knees feel as he works out.

Matsui did some base-running for the first time on Thursday.  He told reporters that he was able to run at about 60% and that his knees were feeling fine.

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Ryota Igarashi told reporters that despite not feeling completely loose, he was able to hit 153km/h (95 mph) during his first appearance.  Based on that, he feels he could probably work his way up and hit 158km/h (97-98mph) during the regular season.

Hisanori Takahashi rejoined the Mets on the 4th with his visa.  Assuming he's ready, he'll start Friday's game against the St. Louis Cardinals.

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Ichiro Suzuki's color theme this Spring Training appears to be gray.  As such, Sponichi has checked around with a number of people to see what that might mean.  A color analyst says that the color gray is calming and intellectual; that it also gives an impression of being an adult and has an image of being classy and urban.  It also allows for easy movement into other colors.

A fashion analyst says that gray (monotone colors in general) was the "in" color this past fall / winter.  The analyst also feels that Ichiro picked gray because he went through a lot of tough times last year and that by keeping things simple, he might be trying to emphasize his passion.

I guess it can't just be because he likes the color gray right now.

U-can conducted a survey to see which sports figure people wanted to learn something from.  500 men and women, between the ages 20 and 60, participated in the survey.

The results for baseball players:

Ichiro came in first with 118 votes and was the top pick amongst all age groups.

Katsuya Nomura came in second with 31 votes and was second for people in their 60s.

Sadaharu Oh came in fourth and was third for people in their 60s.

Shigeo Nagashima came in fifth and was third for people in their 60s.

Other sports figures that showed up in the results:

Former tennis player Shuzo Matsuoka came in third place.

Pro golfer Ryo Ishikawa was tied with Nagashima for fifth place.