A Japanese businessman is up to bat against Japanese professional baseball team Yomiuri Giants' fast..,...

A Japanese businessman is up to bat against Japanese professional baseball team Yomiuri Giants' fastball pitcher Koji Uehara on a "virtual baseball" pitching machine at Jingu batting center in Tokyo, August 13. The computer-controlled machine, developed by Marubeni Corporation, Hitachi Inc Ltd and Kinki Cresco, shows Japanese professional pitchers on a life-size screen and simultaneously "pitches" at 80 to 130kph from a hole set up where the pitcher releases the ball. Set up at batting centers for baseball enthusiasts, the machine is also being used by professional baseball players for batting practice, Marubeni said.