Hirokazu Sawamura faced some hitters Tuesday morning in a simulated game on the main field at JetBlue Park.
"Getting out there on the mound, it got me fired up,'' said Sawamura. "I think I did a pretty good job today.''
Among those watching from the stands was former Sox closer Koji Uehara, now working in the media in his native Japan. Uehara is something of a role model for Sawamura and helped convince him to sign with Boston.
"I have a lot of respect for him,'' said Sawamura of Uehara. "We hang out on and off the field all the time. But even if he was watching me in the dugout, it wasn't something that I was really paying attention to. I was just focused on my pitching today.''
Said Alex Cora: "Really good, for a sim game. You can see the fastball. It has good spin on it, good velocity. The split should be good, it should play. It was only a simulated game, but he went through it. You can get nervous in those situations. It's his first one with hitters, and it's in the big stadium. But he was OK with it. It was a good start.''
Sawamura chose No. 19 as his uniform number, the same number worn by Uehara while in Boston. Later, the number transferred to Jackie Bradley Jr. Sawamura said he wouldn't have requested No. 19 had Bradley returned to the Sox.
"It's definitely an honor,'' said Sawamura. "It meant something to me to wear Koji's number.''
Next up for Sawamura is a game appearance, which could come Thursday or Friday. Sawamura said he thought he could feel ready for the start of the season after "three or four'' Grapefruit League appearances.
_______________
________________________