Baseball: Japan finalizes WBC roster, wraps up camp+

MIYAZAKI, Japan, Feb. 22 Kyodo - Seattle Mariners outfielder Ichiro Suzuki and Boston Red Sox pitcher Daisuke Matsuzaka are among the five major leaguers who were named to Japan's final 28-man roster Sunday for the upcoming World Baseball Classic.

Mariners catcher Kenji Jojima, Tampa Bay Rays second baseman Akinori Iwamura
and Chicago Cubs outfielder Kosuke Fukudome are also on the roster that
features a wealth of young players, led by 22-year-old Nippon Ham Fighters
right-hander Yu Darvish.
Seibu Lions right-hander Takayuki Kishi, Softbank Hawks left-hander Tsuyoshi
Wada, Softbank first baseman Nobuhiko Matsunaka, Seibu catcher Toru Hosokawa
and Hiroshima Carp first baseman Kenta Kurihara did not make the roster out of
33 players who attended a training camp in Miyazaki.
''We finalized the roster. From here, we will try to establish a strong,
winning team,'' said Japan manager Tatsunori Hara, who is also manager of the
Yomiuri Giants.
''There are various opinions from the manager, coaches and players on how we
play games. I will select the best options for the team.''
On the final day of the weeklong camp, Fukudome hit a grand slam and Iwamura
added a three-run home run as Japan routed Yomiuri 13-1 in an exhibition game
called after seven innings due to rain.
Suzuki, batting third in the lineup, went hitless in two at-bats.
The two-time American League batting champion expressed gratitude to fans who
packed Sun Marine Stadium to create a game-like atmosphere each day.
''The most important thing was that we trained in front of a huge crowd. I feel
right about what each of us is trying to do,'' Suzuki said.
The team, nicknamed ''Samurai Japan,'' moves to Osaka for two exhibition games
against Australia on Tuesday and Wednesday.
It then plays two more warm-up games in Tokyo against Seibu on Saturday and
Yomiuri the following day before taking on China in the tournament's opener on
March 5 at Tokyo Dome.
Pool A also features Olympic champion South Korea and Taiwan. The top two teams
in each pool advance to the second round in the United States.
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The final 28-man roster
Pitchers -- Takahiro Mahara (Softbank Hawks), Toshiya Sugiuchi (Softbank
Hawks), Yu Darvish (Nippon Ham Fighters), Satoshi Komatsu (Orix Buffaloes),
Masahiro Tanaka (Rakuten Eagles), Hisashi Iwakuma (Rakuten Eagles), Hideaki
Wakui (Seibu Lions), Shunsuke Watanabe (Lotte Marines), Minoru Iwata (Hanshin
Tigers), Kyuji Fujikawa (Hanshin Tigers), Tetsuya Utsumi (Yomiuri Giants),
Tetsuya Yamaguchi (Yomiuri Giants), Daisuke Matsuzaka (Boston Red Sox)
Catchers -- Shinnosuke Abe (Yomiuri Giants), Yoshiyuki Ishihara (Hiroshima
Carp), Kenji Jojima (Seattle Mariners)
Infielders -- Hiroyuki Nakajima (Seibu Lions), Munenori Kawasaki (Softbank
Hawks), Yasuyuki Kataoka (Seibu Lions), Michihiro Ogasawara (Yomiuri Giants),
Shuichi Murata (Yokohama BayStars), Akinori Iwamura (Tampa Bay Rays)
Outfielders -- Atsunori Inaba (Nippon Ham Fighters), Norichika Aoki (Yakult
Swallows), Seiichi Uchikawa (Yokohama BayStars), Yoshiyuki Kamei (Yomiuri
Giants), Kosuke Fukudome (Chicago Cubs), Ichiro Suzuki (Seattle Mariners)
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==Kyodo