Gary
Garland /
the
japanese insider
July 15,
2002
No games scheduled.
Reds Number One Draft Choice
to Tryout for Orix
According to Sports Nippon, Cincinnati Reds supplemental first round draft
choice Mark Schramek will be in Japan Wednesday working out for the
Orix Blue Wave. "There are player's such as Ichiro who were brought up in
Japan who are now playing ijn the major leagues, so I asked [Orix] if they
would try me out." His agent, Bobby Ballard, was apparently able to arrange
this since he was an old aquaintance of an Orix official. This is the first
time a U.S. number one choice has sought a job in NPB. Moreover, the Texas
native will have to go to Japan at his own expense.
An Orix official is quoted as saying that since Schramek was drafted twice
by the Reds, he has some ability. He also notes, though, "if we think he
has a real future, then we'll think about putting him on the roster." So
they aren't exactly jumping all over an opportunity to get this guy just
yet. It seems to be more of a "well, this is intriguing, let's see what happens"
kind of thing. Nobody affiliated with the Kobe based ballclub has ever seen
Schramek play.
The move by Schramek drew some skepticism from Sankei Sports, who ran a headline
about this that said, "are you serious?" The deadline for foreign player
aquisitions has passed, so if Schramek does indeed sign an Orix contract,
he would join them in the spring of 2003.
Could this be the opening shot of a new strategy by players and their agents?
That is, instead of going to the independent leagues ala J.D. Drew or the
increasingl.y pathetic Matt Harrington either in hope of being selected down
the line by another team or wringing more money out of an MLB organization,
they will make themselves available to a Japanese club and then hope, that
like Rafael Soriano, that with the experience they gain in Japan they can
leverage that into a fat MLB contract?
In any event, if he does get a job with Orix, he will be joining an ex-Red,
Ed Yarnell, on the staff. You can see a pic of Schramek at:
http://www.sanspo.com/baseball/top/bt200207/image/071607shumeMS164715.jpg
Bashing Selig Now the National
Pastime
I've sung this guy's praises before here, but for those of you who've never
read him, Joe Posnanski of thye Kansas City Star is, as one of his
fellow sportswriters once put it, "the best sportswriter you've never heard
of." This time out, he takes on Bud Selig's, er, relationship with the fans
and it ain't pretty:
http://www.kansascity.com/mld/kansascity/sports/columnists/joe_posnanski/3652970.htm
And While We're at
It....
Here is a link to Posnanski's piece on the death of Ted Williams. This thing
is written like a symphony:
http://www.kansascity.com/mld/kansascity/sports/columnists/joe_posnanski/3608680.htm
Ichiro vs. Mike
Sweeney
Another fine Posnanski product:
http://www.kansascity.com/mld/kansascity/sports/columnists/joe_posnanski/3577308.htm
Irabu Hospitalized with
Blood Clots
See CBS Sportsline story at:
http://www.cbs.sportsline.com/u/ce/multi/0,1329,5521447_52,00.html
Giants Outfielder Takahashi's
Mercedes Stolen
See Japan Today story at:
http://www.japantoday.com/e/?content=news&cat=2&id=222993
Today in Japanese Baseball
History
This report is for July 15th and on that date in Japanese baseball history
in 1971, the first half of the schdule concluded with
Central League attendance down 570,000 and the Pacific League experienced
a 300,000 shortfall as compared with 1970, most likely due to the so-called
"black mist scandal," which involved attempts to fix baseball games. Several
players were banned for life as a result of the scandal.
July 14, 2002
No games scheduled.
Hanshin Reported to Go After
Three Big Free
Agents
According to Sankei Sports, the Hanshin Tigers may go on a free agent shopping
spree this coming winter, the focus being on Yomiuri Giants centerfielder
Godzill Matsui, Kintetsu Buffaloes third baseman Norihiro Nakamura and Yokohama
Bay Stars ace Daisuke Miura. Morever, Hanshin owner Shunji Kuman has been
said to have given the okay for what will be the biggest cash outlay for
players in Japanese history if they can pull off the trifecta.
At current exchange rates, Matsui is already receiving about $5 million a
season while Nakamura turned down a multi-year offer during the offseason
of in excess of $4 million per. Miura will be much cheaper, but will still
command something in the $1-2 million range plus the clubs the Tigers get
these players from will have to be paid 1.5 times whatever Hanshin pays them
as compensation, which means that the total bill just for next season, when
you figure both the payout to the clubs losing those stars as well as their
salaries, could be in the $30 million range, or more than what the Giants
pay for their entire roster this year.
However, if Matsui is sincere about testing the
MLB waters, Hanshin will easily be outbid. Their best chance is to land Nakamura,
who is an Osaka native, and Miura, though the Stars righthander hasn't indicated
either way what his intentions are after he became free agent eligible earlier
this season. If they do obtain Nakamura, that leaves another free agent
aquisition, the disappointing Atsushi Kataoka, out in limbo. Nakamura and
Kataoka are about analogous defensively, but the 5'11" 202 pound Buffs star
is a far bigger offensive force. Moreover, while Nakamura will be facing
better pitching in the CL, he will also be working in smaller ballparks and
the two factors could cancel each other out.
By getting Miura, that would allow Hanshin to move Trey Moore to the bullpen,
which would strengthen their weak relief staff immeasureably. Of course,
they could also stay with Moore and you would have a starting rotation of
Kei Igawa, Miura, Moore, Keiichi Yabu and either Tetsuro Kawajiri or Shinobu
Fukuhara, which would be a far more balanced starting staff than what they
have now. Something has to be done about that middle relief, though and it
isn't going to be bolstered much by putting in disappointing number one draft
choice Yuya Ando in it. So it could be that maybe some trades will be worked
out, though the Takehiro Hashimoto for Tom Evans deal has so far proven to
be a big loser for Hanshin, as the previously dependable Hashimoto has gotten
lit up like a Christmas tree and Evans has gone on to a nice season with
Seibu.
Ichiro Enjoyed Forced Cross
Dressing Experience
See Seattle Times story at:
http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/sports/134493275_seam14.html
Linares Makes Splash in
Nagoya
See Yomiuri Shimbun article in english at:
http://www.yomiuri.co.jp/newse/20020716wo52.htm
Shim, Paul, Park Go Back
to Back to Back in Hyundai Doubleheader
Sweep
See Korea Times story at:
http://www.hankooki.com/kt_sports/200207/t2002071518100947110.htm
Seung-yeop Lee Ties for
Homer Lead in 9-4 Samsung
Victory
See Korea tumes story at:
http://www.hankooki.com/kt_sports/200207/t2002071417053447110.htm
Brother Elephants Drop Game
to Lions 6-3 in Taiwanese Pro
Action
See Taipei Times story in english at:
http://www.taipeitimes.com/news/2002/07/15/story/0000148406
How Taiwanese MLB Prospects
are Faring at Halfway
Point
See Taipei Times article at:
http://www.taipeitimes.com/news/2002/07/15/story/0000148405
Today in Japanese Baseball
History
This report is for July 14th and on that date in Japanese baseball history
in 1972, Hankyu Braves centerfielder Yutaka Fukumoto, who went on to become
Japan's all time leading base thief and a Hall of Fame inductee, had his
legs insured for 100,000,00 yen.
Also on the same date as the above, Waseda University second baseman Akira
Higashikado (and I hope that I have the name correct) was hit in the head
by a thrown ball during a game between Japanese and American college all
star teams and was rendered unconscious. Sadly, he never regained consciousness
before passing away.
Also on that date in 1978, eight of the ten positions in the Pacific League
all star team were voted to Nippon Ham players by fans, no doubt due to an
organized campaign by someone or some entity.
Hodges Pounded for Four Runs in 4-2 Pacific
League Victory
Yakult Swallows
righthander Kevin Hodges started for the Central League Saturday at Botchan
Stadium in Matsuyama, Ehime Prefecture on Shikoku, the first all star game
ever played on that island, and wasn't up to form, as he was knocked around
for four runs in two innings on the hill to be tagged with a 4-2 loss to
the Pacific League. Kintetsu Buffaloes catcher Tetsuya Matoyama was named
the MVP after going 2-3 with an RBI, the first time a catcher taken the top
award in the mid-summer classic since Atsuya Furuta did it for the Central
League in 1991.
By having Jeremy
Powell start for the PL, this marked the only time in Japanese baseball history
that two foreigners have begun a game for each side in all star competition
and it was Powell who was awarded the victory with two scoreless innings
of work. The pitchers were so on in this one that it only took two hours
and 19 minutes to play.
Hodges commenced
the contest by nailing shortstop Kazuo Matsui in the left thigh and he hobbled
off to first, where he went to second on a wild pitch. First baseman Michihiro
Ogasawara singled. Leftfielder Tuffy Rhodes singled to get Matsui in and
Ogasawara sped over to third. Third baseman Norihiro Nakamura flew out to
plate Ogasawara and it was 2-0 PL.
In the second, PL
centerfielder Yoshitomo Tani singled and shortstop Makoto Kaneko, who replaced
Matsui, also cracked a knock. Matoyama, with wife Kazuko and 19 other relatives
in the stands, chased Tani in with a single and the speedy Kaneko hotfooted
it for third. Tadahito Iguchi grounded out and Kankeo crossed with the fourth
run and it was 4-0 Pacific League.
The Central League
had a quick burst of a rally in the fourth, as rightfielder Kosuke Fukudome
scorched a double and centerfielder Godzilla Matsui mashed a shot through
the teeth of the 37mph wind blowing straight in from centerfield and carromed
it off the top of the rightfield wall off of an 88mph fastball from Kenichi
Wakatabe for an RBI double to make it 4-1.
The CL forces put
up their final tally in the bottom of the seventh when first baseman Takahiro
Arai got a 92mph fastball from Hayato Nakamura and unloaded a steaming line
drive deep to left. Arai thought it was gone as soon as he hit it, so as
he started toward first, he raised his arms, but then saw the wind deadening
the ball's flight and quickly brought his hands down until it cleared the
fence.
Godzilla lost a home
run due to the wind again in the late innings, when he rammed a shot off
the top of the rightcenterfield fence for his second double. Thus, his five
all star series homer streak ended thanks to mother nature.
Koji Uehara had one
of the highlights of the day when he struck out the side in the fifth, all
on fastballs, and then fanned Hiroki Kokubo, who was, for God only knows
what reason, put in the outfield in this one despite the treacherous wind
conditions (see linked articles) on a splitter with one down in the sixth
for a total of four strikeouts in two perfect innings. The last time Uehara
struckout the side in an all star game was in 1999, when he blew down both
Kazuo Matsui and Makoto Kosaka and then got taken on a tour of the bleachers
by Ichiro Suzuki before striking out the last hitter.
Matoyama, who became
a first time father when he welcomed his daughter into the world in January,
was the first catcher to be named MVP for the PL since Masataka Nashida,
who is now his manager, did it in 1983. Moreover, he is only the second
replacement player (he was selected to replace the injured Kenji Johjima)
to be bestowed with an MVP. The other one was Roberto Petagine, who did it
two years ago.
Godzilla was tardy
to pre-game practice when the person who was supposed to drive him to the
airport was late and he missed his flight as a result. So when he was up
on the podium after being named a superior player, his Giants teammate, Kazuhiro
Kiyohara, was shouting, "fine him! Fine him!" behind him as Matsui cracked
an embarrassed smile.
Dan Latham also did
an excellent write up on the game for the Japan Times, which is at:
http://www.japantimes.co.jp/cgi-bin/getsp.pl5?sb20020714a2.htm
Jim Allen at the
Yomaiuri Shimbun also put up a fine piece on the game in english at:
http://www.yomiuri.co.jp/newse/20020714wo53.htm
Pitching Lines:
Pacific League:
Powell (W, 1-0) IP 2.0 PC
18 H 1 HR 0 K 0 BB 1 R 0 ER 0 ERA 0.00
Wakatabe
IP 2.0 PC 30 H 3 HR 0 K 0 BB 0 R 1 ER 1 ERA 4.50
Kaneda
IP 2.0 PC 25 H 2 HR 0 K 3 BB 0 R 0 ER 0 ERA 0.00
H. Nakamura IP 2.0 PC 22 H 1 HR
1 K 1 BB 0 R 1 ER 1 ERA 4.50
Toyoda (S, 1) IP 1.0 PC 9
H 0 HR 0 K 2 BB 0 R 0 ER 0 ERA 0.00
Central League:
Hodges (L, 0-1) IP 2.0 PC
35 H 5 HR 0 K 1 BB 1 R 4 ER 4 ERA 18.00
Kawakami
IP 2.0 PC 29 H 2 HR 0 K 2 BB 0 R 0 ER 0 ERA 0.00
Uehara
IP 2.0 PC 27 H 0 HR 0 K 4 BB 0 R 0 ER 0 ERA 0.00
Oyamada
IP 1.0 PC 8 H 0 HR 0 K 0 BB 0 R 0 ER 0 ERA 0.00
Okajima
IP 1.0 PC 13 H 0 HR 0 K 0 BB 1 R 0 ER 0 ERA 0.00
H.
Ishii
IP 1.0 PC 7 H 0 HR 0 K 1 BB 0 R 0 ER 0 ERA 0.00
E: Tani
2B: H. Matsui 2, Fukudome
HR: Arai (1)
RBI: Arai, H. Matsui, Iguchi, Rhodes, N. Nakamura, Matoyama
SF: N. Nakamura
WP: Hodges
HBP: H. Matsui (Hodges), T. Shimizu (Powell)
LOB: Pacific League 4, Central League 6
All Star Series: Pacific League 71 Central
League 60 7 Ties
Game Time: 2:19
Attendance: 27,063
Umpires: Yanagida (HP), Watamari (1B), Yamamoto (2B), Suginaga (3B)
Powell: Japan a Great Place to Play
Ball
See Japan Times story
at: http://www.japantimes.co.jp/cgi-bin/getsp.pl5?sb20020714a1.htm
Female Manager Makes Koshien
Bid
For the first time
in the history of the Chiba Prefectural High School Baseball Tournament,
a woman is managing one of the teams and her side grabbed an 8-1 victory
in their inital contest, which was shortened to seven innings due to rain.
Mariko Ohara, 51, the manager of the Tako High School baseball team, once
a world class university softball player herself, is hoping to take her charges
to the Koshien Summer High School Baseball Tournament.
Tako High took a
1-0 lead with one away in the first and a man on second, as number three
hitter and pitcher Koshikawa tripled to center to make it 1-0. Two more then
crossed on a single by Onuki on the way to racking up 14 hits and eight runs.
Koshikawa went all the way to claim the shiroboshi by limiting the opposition
to five hits and a run. "I'm so happy, I can't find words to express it,"
said Koshikawa, since it's been 11 years between prefectural tournament wins
for his school.
Ohara was born in
Tochigi city, Tochi Prefecture and started playing softball as a fifth grader
at Kokubu Southern Elementary as a pitcher before moving on to Kokubu Junior
High and eventually to Utsunomiya Junior College and Nittai University. At
Nittai, she was converted to the outfield and was selected as a senior to
play centerfield and bat leadoff for a Japanese all star university club
that played in an overseas tournament, where the Japanese contingent made
it to the semifinals.
She's been teaching
since 1973 and was hired on at Tako High in 1998. She has been the school's
baseball coach since 2000 and says that she thinks of the players on the
team as her own children. And the players say that they think of her as a
second mother. She is married to husband Kazumasa (56) and has two sons,
27 and 23 years old respectively. You can see a pic of her with Onuki at:
http://www.sponichi.co.jp/baseball/ama/2002summer/kentaikai/chiku/image/0713-chiba.jpg
Cromartie Back in Japan and Loving
It
Former Montreal Expos
outfielder Warren Cromartie won a batting title and an MVP while he played
with the Yomiuri Giants from 1984 to 1990 and has been doing game commentary
on radio and some personal appearances. Saturday, he stopped in at his old
stomping grounds in Suidobashi, Tokyo and spent 90 minutes working with Felipe
Crespo on his hitting. "It was nice to be instructed by someone who speaks
your language," the utility man offered. They went through each phase of
Crespo's stroke and Cromartie helped Crespo with what he termed "a minor
change" in his swing.
Ichiro First Two Homer Game in
MLB
Mariners outfielder
Ichiro Suzuki collected his third multi-hit game out of three post all star
tries Saturday, as he homered in his first two at bats against the Tanyon
Sturtze to put a little more distance between him and Kansas City Royals
first baseman Mark Sweeney in the AL batting race. The first dinger came
on a high fastball while the second came on one down around the knees for
his first career multi-homer game in MLB. Unfortunately, the M's dropped
it in extra innings 4-3. You can see a pic of the swing on the first inning
jack at: http://www.sanspo.com/sokuho/image/020714KT005714_b.jpg
Banks Trying to Bolster Debt Ridden Parent
Company of Daiei Hawks
See Yomiuri Shimbun
story in english at: http://www.yomiuri.co.jp/newse/20020711wo11.htm
Off Topic Article of the
Day
Some female judo
artists disqualified---for shaving their eyebrows to thin. Geez, picky picky....
http://www.japantoday.com/e/?content=news&cat=6&id=222839
Linares Arrives in
Japan
Cuban baseball star
Omar Linares arrived in Japan Saturday after a 20 hour trip from his homeland
to Mexico to Narita Airport and then on to Nagoya Airport, where he was greeted
by 200 fans and well wishers as well as about 80 media members and a big
police presence.
Linares, a mainstay
of the Cuban juggernaut that dominated olympic and amateur baseball for the
last decade, said in a prthat this is just the first time he will be coming
to Japan. Moreover, according to Sports Nippon, a Communist Party newspaper
in Cuba has apparently stated that it is likely that Linares will indeed
be back in Japan next season, too.
"I don't care
where I bat in the order," Linares averred. I want to play as hard as I
physically can so that the Dragons win and win a lot." As for when he'll
be ready to appear in a Chunichi uniform, where he's already been assigned
number 44, he offered, "it's been a long trip, so first, I want to get over
the jet lag. I should be back to normal in about four days."
Linares will make
some minor league starts and then be called up to the big club on the 23rd,
when a series with the Hiroshima Carp begins.He will meet his new teammates
at a Nagoya Dome workout Monday.
Today in Japanese Baseball
History
This report is for
July 13th and on that date in Japanese baseball history in 1970, Kintetsu
Buffaloes rookie pitcher Koji Ota finished first in all star fan balloting,
one of the biggest jokes in the annals of the sport there, since he finished
1-4 3.86 on the season and he was 58-85 4.08 for his career.
Ota had pitched for
Misawa High School, who got into the Koshien High School Baseball Tournament
three seasons running, and in his senior year, went all the way in an 18
inning tie game against Matsuyama Commerical High School in the tournament
final, throwing 262 pitches in the process. It was called according to
regulations and it was replayed the following day, where Matsuyama
Commerical won it 4-2 with Ota back on the mound (ouch!). His persistence
impressed baseball fans all over the country as well as pro scouts. He was
hoping that he would be picked by Hanshin, but the Kintetsu Buffaloes managed
to be high enough to selct him. Ota wasn't all that enthusiastic about the
Osaka equivalent of what the Angels are to the Dodgers, but he signed with
Kintetsu anyway.
When Ota first started
working out with the Buffaloes, he admitted that he was in over his head.
He had intended to go to college, but thinking of what a financial burden
that would be for his parents, he turned pro. The Buffaloes, rather than
send a kid who obviously wasn't ready down to the farm for some seasoning,
thought of him mainly as a fan draw and thus he began the season with the
top club. He got a win in his first start, a relief appearance against
the Lotte Orions where he gave up the tying run at Fujiidera Stadium, but
his side got a sayonara two run homer and Ota walked away with a shiroboshi.
His third year in,
upo advice of coaches, he changed his delivery to a three quarter style and
obtained more run on his slider, which helped him progress and he eventually
was slotted into the rotation in 1973, where he was mediocre, as was the
remainer of his stint in the pros. In 1979, he hurt his shoulder and that
all she wrote, as he had three more awful seasons with Kintetsu and then
was traded to the Yomiuri Giants. Minor league tours with both Yomiuri and
Hanshin failed to get him back to the bigtime and he retired after the 1984
season at the age of 32. He now works as a baseball commentator for the Mainichi
media group. You can see a pic of him in an all star game at:
http://www.toonippo.co.jp/l-rensai/gunzo/imags/107b.jpg
Source:
http://www.toonippo.co.jp/l-rensai/gunzo/gunzo107.html
Also on that day
in 1979, due to an expressway tunnel fire, the equipment for the Hankyu Braves
never arrived for a game against Nippon Ham at Korakuen Stadium and it was
cancelled.
KBO Standings and Leaders
Team
Record
GB
Kia
Tigers
47-25-3
---
Doosan
Bears
44-29-2
3.5
Samsung
Lions
42-33-1
6.5
Hyundai
Unicorns
34-34-4
11.0
LG
Twins
35-36-3
11.5
SK
Wyvers
33-37-3
13.0
Hanhwa
Eagles
31-39-3
15.0
Lotte
Giants
20-53-1
27.5
Hitting
AVG.
Lee Yeong-wu
(Hanhwa)
.370
Chang Seong-ho
(Kia)
.370
Kim Chae-hyun
(LG)
.342
Kim Dong-joo
(LG)
.340
Lee Seung-yeop
(Samsung) .329
Shim Jeong-soo
(Hyundai)
.323
Lee Soong-yong
(Hyundai) .318
Lee Jong-beom
(Kia)
.316
Ma Hae-yeong
(Samsung)
.314
Jeon Joon-ho
(Hyundai)
.306 .
Homers
HR
Lee Seung-yeop
(Samsung)
28
Song Ji-man
(Hanhwa)
28
Ma Hae-yeong
(Samsung)
27
Shim Jeong-soo
(Hyundai)
25
Lee Yeong-wu
(Hanhwa)
19
Kim Dong-joo
(Doosan)
19
Jose Fernandez
(SK)
18
Tyrone Woods
(Doosan)
17
Lee Soong-yong
(Hyundai) 15
Chang Seong-ho
(Kia)
14
Runs Batted
In
RBIs
Lee Seung-yeop
(Samsung) 78
Ma Hae-yeong
(Samsung)
73
Chang Seong-ho
(Kia)
70
Song Ji-man
(Hanhwa)
67
Jin Gap-yong
(Samsung)
54
Shim Jeong-soo
(Hyundai) 54
Jose Fernandez
(SK)
49
Tyrone Woods
(Doosan)
49
Lee Do-hyeong
(Hanhwa) 48
Kim Dong-joo
(Doosan)
46
Pitching
ERA
Song Jin-wu
(Hanhwa)
2.77
Park Myeong-hwan (Doosan) 2.90
Lee Seung-ho
(SK)
3.15
Gary Rath
(Doosan)
3.31
Victor Cole
(Doosan)
3.45
Wins
W
Gary Rath
(Hanhwa)
12
Song Jin-wu
(Hanhwa)
10
Mark Kiefer
(Kia)
10
Im Chang-yong
(Samsung)
9
Victor Cole
(Doosan)
8
Strikeouts
K
Park Myeong-hwan
(Doosan) 99
Kim Jin-wu
(Kia)
98
Gary Rath
(Doosan)
96
Lee Seung-ho
(SK)
93
Kim Soo-kyung
(Hyundai)
92
July 12,
2002
Late Homers by Arias, Kataoka Wins it for
Central League All Stars
Ex-Angel George Arias
went back to the hotel Friday night with some hardware and some extra cash,
as he rocketed a 482 foot homer to
leftcenter at Tokyo Dome in the seventh inning for the go ahead run in what
had been a 1-1 deadlock between a Pacific League all star squad and its Central
League counterparts to get the MVP in what became a 4-1 CL triumph. Arias'
Hanshin Tigers teammate, Trey Moore, who it was thought might miss playing
in this year's series due to a burst blister on his lefthand, was credited
with the win, which was a big thrill for him,
as this Japan Times story shows: http://www.yomiuri.co.jp/newse/20020713wo53.htm
The Pacific League
took a 1-0 lead in the bottom of the third, as second baseman Tadahito Iguchi
singled. Two outs later, shortstop Kazuo Matsui also singled and that brought
up first baseman Michihiro Ogasawara, who , with his wife Miyoko in the stands,
got an 88mph fastball down and away from CL starter Kei Igawa and laced it
for an RBI single, the first time he's plated someone in nine all star
appearances.
All star games have
been particularly frustrating for the great Nippon Ham hitting leader, as
he set a record last season when he struckout five at bats in a row. And
in his first time up in this year's classic, he fanned on a slider.
The CL contingent
responded in the top of the fourth, when rightfielder Yoshinobu Takahashi
tripled and then centerfielder Hideki Matsui flew out deep enough to allow
his Giants teammate to run in with the equalizer at 1-1.
Moore went two scoreless
innings while allowing no hits and walking two. He said that he was really
pumped for this game and it was hard settling down, but he got through his
stint unscathed.
In the top of the
seventh, Arias stepped in against his old Orix pal Kazuo Yamaguchi, who ran
a 94mph heater up to the plate and Arias sent
it into the upper deck for the 2-1 lead. Arias hadn't homered in 81 at bats
over his last 19 games for Hanshin before this battle. In workouts leading
up to it, he consulted with the other sluggers in both leagues and found
that Matsui's was the most effective. Godzilla was asked what he thinks about
when he goes up to the plate and the Ishikawa native answered, "keeping my
weight back." You can see the swing that counted at:
http://www.sanspo.com/baseball/tigers/tigers0207/image/071301ariasuOS184712_b.jpg
CL boss Tsutomu Wakamatsu
then summoned a fireballer of his own, Ryota Igarashi, who struckout the
side with a steady diet of 95mph fastballs. The first two men to dig in against
the Swallows middle reliever, Kazuo Matsui and Ogasawara, whiffed on three
pitches apiece. He had leftfielder Tuffy Rhodes 0-2, but Rhodes timed one
and pounded it off the leftfield wall, where it was expertly played by Alex
Ramirez to hold the former Cub to a long single. Third baseman Norihiro
Nakamura's turn came and Igarashi blew him away to complete his assignment.
In the eighth, CL
catcher Motonobu Tanishige doubled with one out off of Daiei Hawks closer
Rodney Pedraza and Kataoka then blasted his first homer ever in all star
action (this is his sixth series) off of an 85mph fastball for two insurance
runs and that's how it ended, as Giants closer
Junichi Kawahara worked a perfect ninth to close out a briskly played game.
Kataoka's mom Harumi was watching the game on tv and was reportedly thrilled
out of her mind at her son's heroics.
For his tremendous
shot, Arias was named MVP and pocketed two million yen (about $17,000). Moore
was named a superior player and added one million yen to his bank account
(about $8,000). He was like a little kid, the Japan Times says, in this
piece: http://www.japantimes.co.jp/cgi-bin/getsp.pl5?sb20020713a1.htm
Godzilla just missed
hitting the ball out on that sacrifice fly, as it was caught against the
centerfield wall. He had homered in his last five all star series, including
the last four games in a row. He said that he got it just off the end of
the bat.
Pics: Moore, Kataoka
and Arias accept their awards at:
http://www.sanspo.com/baseball/tigers/tigers0207/image/071301hanshinOS200712_b.jpg
Igawa, who was clocked
at a high of 91mph, delivers to the plate at:
http://www.sanspo.com/baseball/tigers/tigers0207/image/071302igawaOS136712_b.jpg
Yomiuri Shimbun's
Jim Allen's account of the game: http://www.yomiuri.co.jp/newse/20020713wo52.htm
Pitching Lines:
Central League:
Igawa
IP 3.0 PC 40 H 4 HR 0 K 3 BB 0 R 1 ER 1 ERA 3.00
Miura
IP 2.0 PC 27 H 1 HR 0 K 2 BB 0 R 0 ER 0 ERA 0.00
Moore (W, 1-0) IP 2.0 PC 30 H 0 HR 0 K 0 BB 2 R 0
ER 0 ERA 0.00
R.
Igarashi
IP 1.0 PC 14 H 1 HR 0 K 3 BB 0 R 0 ER 0 ERA 0.00
J. Kawahara (S, 1) IP 1.0 PC 12 H 0 HR 0 K 1 BB 0 R 0 ER 0 ERA 0.00
Pacific League:
Mitsui
IP 3.0 PC 37 H 2 HR 0 K 1 BB 0 R 0 ER 0 ERA 0.00
H. Kobayashi IP 2.0 PC 28 H 1 HR 0 K
1 BB 0 R 1 ER 1 ERA 4.50
A. Okamoto IP 0.2 PC
10 H 0 HR 0 K 2 BB 0 R 0 ER 0 ERA 0.00
S.
Yoshida
IP 0.2 PC 6 H 0 HR 0 K 0 BB 0 R 0 ER 0 ERA 0.00
Yamaguchi (0-1) IP 0.2 PC 15 H 1 HR 1 K 0 BB 0 R 1 ER 1 ERA 13.50
Pedraza
IP 1.0 PC 15 H 2 HR 1 K 1 BB 0 R 2 ER 2 ERA 18.00
Mori
IP 1.0 PC 14 H 2 HR 0 K 1 BB 0 R 0 ER 0 ERA 0.00
2B: Ibata, Cabrera, Tanishige, Arias
3B: Y. Takahashi
HR: Arias (1), Kataoka (1)
RBI: Kataoka 2, H. Matsui, Arias
SF: H. Matsui
GIDP: Cabrera
All Star Series: Central League 60, Pacific
League 70, 7 ties
Game Time: 2:42
Attendance: 40,346
Umpires: Arisumi (HP), Maeda (1B), Suginaga (2B), Yamamoto (3B)
Corey Paul Slugs Walkoff Homer in KBO
Action
See Korea Times story
at: http://www.hankooki.com/kt_sports/200207/t2002071217472247110.htm
Today in Japanese Baseball
History
This report is for
July 12th and on that day in Japanese baseball history in 1962, Kokutetsu
Swallows righthander Genichi Murata was working on a perfect game with two
out in the ninth in the second game of a doubleheader against Hanshin. Tigers
rightfielder Kazuyoshi Nishiyama hit a hard ground ball off the end of the
bat on the first pitch he saw. First baseman Yoshinori Hoshiyama got caught
kind of in between and the ball deflected off his mit and over his head.
It was called a hit, engendering moans from the crowd in the stands as a
chance to witness history vanished before their eyes.
July 11, 2002
No games scheduled today.
Overwork Killing Japanese Pitchers
See Yomiuri Shimbun story (in english) at:
http://www.yomiuri.co.jp/newse/20020711wo54.htm
Ibata Stands Out Among All Stars
See Yomiuri Shimbun story in english at:
http://www.yomiuri.co.jp/newse/20020712wo53.htm
Today in Japanese Baseball History
This report would have been for July 11th and on
that date in Japanese baseball history in 1979, the Japanese diet took up
the controversy
surrounding the Yomiuri Giants aquisition of pitcher Suguru Egawa, who was
originally drafted by the Hanshin Tigers. Commissioner Shimoda, Pacific League
chairman Kudoh and Central League chairman Suzuki were in attendance, watching
the hot air flow back and forth. Nothing
came of the hearing.
July 10, 2002
Uehara Tosses Three Hitter as Giants Blast
Carp 9-2
Yomiuri Giants number one starter Koji Uehara is
setting himself up for another run at winning 20 games, as he seized his
tenth shiroboshi of 2002 with a 9-2 thrashing of the Hiroshima Carp at Hiroshima
Municipal Stadium Wednesday. He was perfect for 5.2 innings until Luis Lopez
singled on an 86mph fastball.
If history holds, and as a Swallows fan myself,
I hate to say this, Yomiuri is in a good position to win the pennant. They
now have a 4.5 game edge over Yakult and on the 24 occasions in which a club
has lead by that much or more at the break, only twice has that team not
celebrated a league title in October. The exceptions were the 1964 Taiyo
Whales and the 1996 Hiroshima Carp. Moreover, the Giants in 20 instances
have been ahead by 3.5 games or more at the midway point and have gone to
the Japan Series every time. Yikes!
Yomiuri broke out on top to stay in the top of the
second off of Carp ace Shinji Sasaoka, as centerfielder Hideki Matsui leadoff
with single to right and first baseman Kazuhiro Kiyohara singled to left.
One out later, Toshihisa Nishi singled to center to usher in Matsui. Catcher
Yoshinori Murata singled to left to pack the sacks. Uehara grounded to second
and Eddie Diaz booted it to score Kiyohara.Leftfielder Takayuki Shimizu
struckout, but shortstop Tomohiro Nioka singled to left to push in both Nishi
and Murata and it was 4-0 Giants.
In the third, Matsui singled to center and Kiyohara
legged out a bleeder toward short. They were sacrificed up 90 feet and Nishi
flew out to right to recall Matsui to make it 5-0 Giants.
Hiroshima put up their only runs in the seventh,
as shortstop Akihiro Higashide singled to center and centerfielder Koichi
Ogata forced him at second. Leftfielder Tomoaki Kanemoto then got an 84mph
cutter that was up and over the heart of the plate and he pounded it into
the rightfield seats to make it competitive at 5-2.
The Giants, however, responded in kind in the top
of the ninth. Rightfielder Yoshinobu Takahashi jerked an offering from Ken
Takahashi over the rightfield wall to kick it off. Matsui doubled down the
rightfield line. Akira Etoh, who replaced Kiyohara at first in the fifth
when the ex-Lions' hammy began to bother him, then ended an 0-18 slide by
hammering one into the leftfield stands and the Giants were in the driver's
seat at 8-2. Masato Kawano was summoned from the bullpen by Carp manager
Koji Yamamoto. Third baseman Daisuke Motoki singled to center. One out later,
pinch hitter Felipe Crespo, just back from the minors, singled to right and
Motoki motored to third. Pinch hitter Takayuki Saito grounded to Takahashi
and Motoki hustled in and it was 9-2 Yomiuri.
Closer Jinichi Kawahara was touched for a hit and
a walk, but that was as far as it went and see you later.
There's an interesting piece of news about the Carp:
they are apparently going to get a new ballpark, which will be on the site
of an old Japan Rail freight yard. It will be accompanied by a shopping and
entertainment complex and an American firm, Simon Property Group, is involved
along with city planners and club officials. At this point, it appears that
it is likely to be an open air ballpark, but a dome stadium (no! no!) isn't
out of the question. Everything is reportedly in the talking stages at present,
so what form this will ultimately take hasn't been set in concrete (groan)
yet.
Getting back to Uehara, though, pitching coach Katori
remarked that his charge is more consistent this season in keeping his body
closed when he delivers the ball so that his pitches don't drift back over
the plate as much.
For Hiroshima, Diaz was 0-4 and is at .315. Lopez
was 1-1 and is at .246.
For Yomiuri, Crespo was 1-1 and is at .122.
Pitching Lines:
Yomiuri:
Uehara (W, 10-3) IP 8.0 PC 102 H 3 HR 1 K 9 BB 0 R 2 ER 2 ERA
2.75
J. Kawahara IP
1.0 PC 20 H 1 HR 0 K 1 BB 1 R 0 ER 0 ERA 1.93
Hiroshima:
Sasaoka (L, 4-5) IP 3.0 PC 62 H 8 HR 0 K 3 BB 0 R 5 ER
3 ERA 3.83
Hiroike
IP 1.0 PC 20 H 1 HR 0 K 2 BB 1 R 0 ER 0 ERA 3.44
K. Kobayashi IP 2.0 PC 34 H 2 HR 0 K
1 BB 1 R 0 ER 0 ERA 2.12
Tamaki
IP 2.0 PC 27 H 0 HR 0 K 2 BB 0 R 0 ER 0 ERA 3.25
K. Takahashi IP 0.0 PC 10 H 3 HR
2 K 0 BB 0 R 3 ER 3 ERA 3.75
Kawano
IP 1.0 PC 18 H 2 HR 0 K 0 BB 0 R 1 ER 1 ERA 18.00
E: Diaz, Higashide
2B: H. Matsui
HR: Y. Takahashi (12), Etoh (9), Kanemoto (13)
RBI: Kanemoto 2, Nioka 2, Y. Takahashi, Etoh 2, Nishi 2, Uehara, Takayuki
Saito
SF: Nishi
WP: Hiroika
PB: Nishiyama
GIDP: Y. Takahashi
LOB: Yomiuri 10, Hiroshima 3
Season Series: Yomiuri 9, Hiroshima 7
Game Time: 3:09
Attendance: 18,000
Umpires: Ino (HP), Suginaga (1B), Kamimoto (2B), Mori (3B)
Itoh Slam Paces Seibu Over Daiei 7-2
Seibu Lions catcher Tsutomu Itoh will be 40 in about
ten days and, in this last game before the all star break, he beat the daylights
out of a 2-0 fastball on the inner half of the plate from Daiei Hawks starter
Akichika Yamada with the bases loaded in the first inning and hurtled it
into the leftfield seats for his seventh career grand slam in a 7-2 victory
Wednesday at Fukuoka Dome. Reliever Hayato Aoki was credited with his fourth
win while Hawks starter Yamada dropped his sixth.
This game was pretty much over after the first
inning, as Seibu initiated a six run fusillade. Shortstop Kazuo Matsui opened
the game with a double to rightcenter and was sacrificed to third. Hiroyuki
Shibata tripled into the leftcenter alley to cash in Matsui. First baseman
Alex Cabrera fouled out, but then Kazuhiro Wada doubled down the rightfield
line to send Shibata across. Yamada walked both Susumu Otomo and third baseman
Tom Evans to juice the bags. That brought up Itoh, who ditched Yamada's heater
and it was 6-0 Lions.
Daiei leftfielder Pedro Valdez homered to right
with one out off of Seibu starter Fumiya Nishiguchi to make it 6-1.
The Hawks scored again in the third when centerfielder
Hiroshi Shibahara singled to center with two down and Valdez doubled to
leftcenter to drive Shibahara in and get within four at 6-2.
In the fifth and with the top of the Hawks order
coming up again with one out and a man on, Lions manager Haruki Ihara decided
to give Nishiguchi the hook in favor of Yoshihiro Doi for two hitters and
then Aoki from there.
In the sixth, Seibu completed the night's offensive
output when Matsui singled to right and stole second with two away and Tatusya
Ozeki singled to left to drive in Matsui and make it 7-2. Neither side mustered
much afterward and it concluded as a 7-2 Lions triumph. The Hawks are now
8.5 games behind Seibu, which is 20 games over .500 at the break for the
first time since 1993.
For Daiei, Valdez was 3-4 with two RBIs and is at
.293.
For Seibu, Cabrera was 1-4 with a walk and is at
.290. Evans was 0-3 with a walk and is at .286.
Pitching Lines:
Seibu:
Nishiguchi IP 4.1 PC
64 H 4 HR 1 K 4 BB 1 R 2 ER 2 ERA 3.39
Doi
IP 0.1 PC 11 H 0 HR 0 K 1 BB 0 R 0 ER 0 ERA 1.66
Aoki (W, 4-1) IP 1.1 PC 14 H 0 HR 0 K 0 BB 0 R 0
ER 0 ERA 3.13
T. Shiozaki IP 1.0
PC 14 H 0 HR 0 K 1 BB 0 R 0 ER 0 ERA 3.51
Mori
IP 1.0 PC 12 H 1 HR 0 K 2 BB 0 R 0 ER 0 ERA 1.54
Toyoda
IP 1.0 PC 7 H 0 HR 0 K 1 BB 0 R 0 ER 0 ERA 1.24
Daiei:
A. Yamada (L, 5-6) IP 0.2 PC 37 H 4 HR 1 K
0 BB 2 R 6 ER 6 ERA 4.91
Nagai
IP 5.1 PC 78 H 6 HR 0 K 2 BB 1 R 1 ER 1 ERA 4.15
Sugiuchi
IP 2.0 PC 26 H 2 HR 0 K 1 BB 1 R 0 ER 0 ERA 6.11
Pedraza
IP 1.0 PC 13 H 0 HR 0 K 0 BB 0 R 0 ER 0 ERA 3.00
E: Takagi
SB: K. Matsui
2B: K. Matsui, Wada, Ozeki, Hirao, P. Valdez
3B: Shibata
HR: T. Itoh (6), P. Valdez (12)
RBI: Ozeki, Shibata, Wada, T. Itoh (4), P. Valdez 2
IBB: Cabrera, K. Matsui
GIDP: Wada
LOB: Seibu 7, Daiei 5
Season Series: Seibu 9, Daiei 6
Game Time: 3:12
Attendance: 47,000
Umpires: Shirai (HP), Hayashi (1B), Higashi (2B), Nagami (3B)
Powell Loses Second in a Row 2-1
A one out homer to straightaway centerfield in the
bottom of the ninth at Tokyo Dome by leftfielder Sherman Obando gave the
Nippon Ham Fighters a sweep of the second place Kintetsu Buffaloes 2-1 Wednesday.
Reliever Hiroshi Shibakusa was credited with his second win following in
the wake of eight strong innings from starter Itsuki Shoda. Buffs starter
Jeremy Powell lost his fifth.
Shoda got off on a bad footing when he threw a hanging
slider to Kintetsu centerfielder Naoyuki Omura to begin the game and the
all star outfielder bashed it into the rightfield seats for an immediate
1-0 Buffs lead. Shoda walked leftfielder Tuffy Rhodes with one out and first
baseman Yuji Yoshioka doubled down the leftfield line, but DH Kenshi Kawaguchi
struckout to impede anymore offensive progress by the Osaka contingent. From
that point forward, though, Shoda scattered five hits to give his side a
chance to prevail.
In the fifth, Powell left a pitch where he shouldn't
have and rightfielder Seigo Fujishima guided it out of the field of play
to right to even it at 1-1.
In the top of the ninth, a missed sign cost the
Buffs the game. Kawaguchi walked and was pinch run for by Tadatoki Maeda.
Pinch hitter Daisuke Masuda singled to left. Shortstop Masahiro Abe grounded
out to second to move Maeda over to third. With the count 2-2 on catcher
Tetsuya Matoyama, Kintetsu manager Masataka Nishida called for the squeeze.
Matoyama dutifully laid it down, but Maeda hadn't paid attention to the sign
and he stayed put while Matoyama was thrown out at first. Omura grounded
out to end the inning.
DH D.T. Cromer commenced the home half by
lining one right at Yoshioka. Obando, with his parents and other family members
in the stands, got a first pitch fastball and he pummeled it, the ball landing
with a thud in the centerfield seats for the 2-1 victory.
Sports Nippon came up with an interesting stat on
Obando. As a DH, he is hitting a wan .231. But when he has started in the
outfield, he has posted a robust .389 mark.
The Fighters will be without starter Carlos Mirabal
for a while, as he sustained a fracture in the middle finger of his pitching
hand. Mirabal hurt it about two months ago, but when the pai didn't subside,
he finally decided to have it checked and a doctor discovered the break.
For Kintetsu, Rhodes was 0-3 with a walk and is
at .253.
For Nippon Ham, Cromer was 0-4 with three strikeouts
and is at .271. Obando was 1-4 with an RBI and is at .254.
Pitching Lines:
Kintetsu:
Powell (L, 9-5) IP 8.1 PC 128 H 7 HR 2 K 9
BB 0 R 2 ER 2 ERA 3.32
Nippon Ham:
Shoda
IP 8.0 PC 130 H 7 HR 1 K 4 BB 2 R 1 ER 1 ERA 2.89
N. Takahashi IP 0.0
PC 4 H 0 HR 0 K 0 BB 1 R 0 ER 0 ERA 4.50
Shibakusa (W, 2-1) IP 1.0 PC 14 H 1 HR 0 K 0 BB 0 R 0 ER
0 ERA 3.71
2B: Yoshioka, M. Abe
HR: N. Omura (10), Fujishima (5), Obando (17)
RBI: N. Omura, Fujishima, Obando
GIDP: N. Nakamura
LOB: Kintetsu 9, Nippon Ham 5
Season Series: Kintetsu 6, Nippon Ham 9
Game Time: 2:52
Attendance: 9,000
Umpires: Akimura (HP), Nakamura (1B), Sakaemura (2B), Hirabayashi (3B)
Bases Loaded Sakai Double Gets Lotte Over
Orix 5-2
For the first time in ten years, the Orix Blue Wave
will be in last place at the all star break, as a bases loaded double in
the third by second baseman Tadaharu Sakai provided the margin of victory
in a 5-2 win by the Chiba Lotte Marines. Naoyuki Shimizu, back to pitching
like he has normally been this season, went six innings of six hit, two run
ball to claim his sixth shiroboshi. Masahiko Kaneda lasted less than three
innings and was saddled with his sixth loss.
Lotte conducted a two out rally in the second to
throw a pair on the board. Centerfielder Saburo Omura singled to center,
Sakai singled to left and catcher Toshiya Tsuji singled in Omura while Sakai
went into third. Leftfielder Kenji Morozumi beat out a tapper toward first
and Sakai chugged in to make it 2-0 Lotte.
In the third, Lotte first baseman Kazuya Fukuura
legged out a roller and rightfielder Takashi Tachikawa singled to left. DH
Derrick May hit a tailor made double play ball to Makoto Shiozaki at short,
who booted it to juice the bags. Two groundouts later, Sakai walked up and
laced a shot up the rightcenter alley to alleviate the overcrowding on the
basepaths and it was 5-0 Lotte.
In the sixth, Orix nabbed their only tallies of
the battle. Leftfielder Kota Soejima walked to lead it off and then third
baseman Scott Sheldon jacked one out to center and it was 5-2 Lotte. Orix
did nothing the rest of the game and Masahide Kobayashi had a nine pitch
ninth to save it, his 15th of the season.
For Lotte, May was 1-3 with a walk and is at .234.
For Orix, Sheldon was 2-4 with two RBIs and is at
.242. Fernando Seguignol was 0-1 in a pinch hitting appearance and is at
.209.
Pitching Lines:
Lotte:
N. Shimizu (W, 6-5) IP 6.0 PC 93 H 6 HR 1 K
2 BB 2 R 2 ER 2 ERA 3.61
Sikorsky
IP 2.0 PC 22 H 2 HR 0 K 2 BB 0 R 0 ER 0 ERA 4.26
M. Kobayashi (S, 15) IP 1.0 PC 9 H 0 HR 0 K 1 BB 0 R 0
ER 0 ERA 1.37
Orix:
Kaneda (W, 3-6) IP 2.2 PC 68 H 7 HR 0 K 3 BB 0 R 5 ER 2
ERA 2.62
J.
Hagiwara
IP 2.1 PC 37 H 1 HR 0 K 4 BB 0 R 0 ER 0 ERA 4.50
Kobayashi
IP 2.0 PC 20 H 0 HR 0 K 2 BB 0 R 0 ER 0 ERA 0.00
Iwashita
IP 0.0 PC 6 H 0 HR 0 K 0 BB 1 R 0 ER 0 ERA 6.75
Kawagoe
IP 1.0 PC 4 H 0 HR 0 K 0 BB 0 R 0 ER 0 ERA 4.59
Okubo
IP 1.0 PC 18 H 1 HR 0 K 0 BB 1 R 0 ER 0 ERA 3.18
E: Morozumi, K. Oshima
SB: Tani
2B: T. Sakai, Shiotani
HR: Sheldon (9)
RBI: Morozumi, T. Tsuji, T. Sakai 3, Sheldon 2
HBP: Fukuura (Kaneda)
GIDP: T. Sakai
LOB: Lotte 8, Orix 7
Season Series: Lotte 6, Orix 8
Game Time: 3:04
Attendance: 8,000
Umpires: Sato (HP), Kakigizono (1B), Yoshikawa (2B), Maeda (3B)
Tied All Star Games in Japan
Tied All Star Games in Japan
For those interested, they have had tie games in
Japanese all star games, the longest being a 21 inning tie game on July 3rd,
1952 in the first game of that year's all star series at Nishinomiya Stadium.
Amazingly, it only lasted four hours and 30 minutes before it was called
with the final score being 2-2. It was the first ever tie in an all star
series in Japan sinced the series began in 1951. Since 1992, All star exhibitions
in Japan have been restricted to nine innings only, so there haven't been
any such extra inning contests since then.
Other ties:
1965, Heiwadai Stadium 1-1 (game three)
1991, Hiroshima Municipal Stadium 3-3 (game two)
1995, Yokohama Stadium 4-4 (game one)
1998, Chiba Marine Stadium 3-3 (game two)
Yes, MVPs were named in each of those games.
Ichiro Fueling Boom in Japanese Cards,
Memorabilia
http://www.tuscaloosanews.com/sports/columns/stories/18177sportscolumntwostories.html
Samsung Lions Break Losing Streak
See Korea Times article at:
http://www.hankooki.com/kt_sports/200207/t2002071117151847110.htm
Hiroshima Carp Owner Dies
See Japan Times story at:
http://www.japantimes.co.jp/cgi-bin/getsp.pl5?sb20020712a2.htm
Today in Japanese Baseball History
This report is for July 10th and on that date in
Japanese baseball history in 1964, Taiyo Whales outfielder Yukio Osada was
hit in the head
by a beer bottle and went into the stands after the fan that threw it. The
umpire immediately ejected him. Osada didn't have much power even if his
nickname was "popeye" (5'9" 195), but he did post a career high .297 average
that season. His lifetime mark was .266 with an OPS of .721. He did
manage homers in five consecutive games in 1968, though, when he slugged
14 homers on the year.
Also on that date in 1978, Clyde Wright of the Yomiuri
Giants got hammered and was sent to an early shower. Then, it says, the ex-Angel
perpetrated some violence on a reporter in the locker room.
Known as "Crazy Wright" in Japan, Clyde played for
the Giants for three seasons from 1976-78, going 22-18 with a 3.97 ERA overall.
He
once objected so strongly to manager Shigeo Nagashima taking him out of a
game, that he took off part of his uniform in front of the dugout before
stalking off. Now you have to understand that the intense Wright, who I
personally liked when he was an Angel, was playing for one of the worst handlers
of pitchers in baseball history. Nevertheless, Wright was mercilessly hammered
in the press for daring to argue with "Mr. Giants" Nagashima. You can see
a pic of Clyde in a Giants uniform at:
http://www.nagoyanet.ne.jp/dra/gaikoku/G-right.jpg
July 9, 2002
Hodges Keeps on Rolling With 11th Win for
Yakult
See Japan Times article at:
http://www.japantimes.co.jp/cgi-bin/getsp.pl5?sb20020711a2.htm
For Yakult, first baseman Roberto Petagine was 3-3
with a walk and is at .306. Leftfielder Alex Ramirez was 1-4 with two strikeouts
and is at .331. Catcher Atsuya Furuta, who was 3-4 with three RBIs, including
a 406 foot homer, celebrated his 37th birthday. Amazing he has gotten this
far this season with gimpy knees. Hodges singled and sacrificed in his two
plate appearances and is at .158. He left after five due to the 75% humidity
and low 80's heat. You can see a pic of Hodges delivery at this game
at:http://www.sponichi.co.jp/baseball/kiji/2002/07/10/20020710010104.jpg
For Yokohama, rightfielder Boi Rodrigues was 0-3
with a walk and is at .264.
Pitching Lines:
Yakult:
Hodges (W, 11-2) IP 5.0 PC 90 H 2 HR 0 K 4 BB 4 R
1 ER 0 ERA 2.54
Newman
IP 1.0 PC 15 H 0 HR 0 K 1 BB 1 R 0 ER 0 ERA 3.20
H.
Ishii
IP 0.2 PC 19 H 1 HR 0 K 1 BB 1 R 0 ER 0 ERA 2.39
R.
Igarashi
IP 1.1 PC 23 H 1 HR 0 K 2 BB 0 R 0 ER 0 ERA 2.09
Yamamoto
IP 1.0 PC 6 H 1 HR 0 K 0 BB 0 R 0 ER 0 ERA 2.08
Yokohama
Holt (L, 3-3) IP 5.0 PC 70 H 7 HR 1 K
5 BB 0 R 4 ER 4 ERA 3.47
Sugimoto IP 1.2
PC 36 H 1 HR 0 K 3 BB 2 R 0 ER 0 ERA 2.70
R. Kawahara IP 0.1 PC 4 H 0 HR 0 K 0
BB 0 R 0 ER 0 ERA 2.61
Inamine
IP 0.0 PC 1 H 1 HR 0 K 0 BB 0 R 0 ER 0 ERA 7.04
Azuma
IP 1.0 PC 12 H 3 HR 0 K 0 BB 0 R 2 ER 2 ERA 3.50
Morinaka IP 1.0 PC
11 H 0 HR 0 K 0 BB 0 R 0 ER 0 ERA 5.74
E: Hodges
SB: T. Ishii, K. Tanaka 2
2B: Petagine, Furuta, S. Miyamoto, Iwamura
HR: Furuta (3)
RBI: Furuta 3, S. Miyamoto, Dobashi 2,
PB: Furuta
GIDP: Manaka, Tamura
LOB: Yakult 5, Yokohama 9
Season Series: Yakult 8, Yokohama 5
Game Time: 3:04
Attendance: 15,000
Umpires: Nishimoto (HP), T. Kobayashi (1B), Kasahara (2B), Sasaki (3B)
Morino Error, Good Yabu Outing Powers Hanshin
Over Dragons
A costly error from Chunichi Dragons second baseman
Masahiko Morino and homers from Akihiro Yano and Osamu Hamanaka paved the
way for the Hanshin Tigers to ensure that they will hit the all star break
with a better than .500 record for the first time in ten seasons, as Osaka's
favorite sons scooped up a 5-1 victory at Koshien Stadium on a humid, rainy
Tuesday night. Tigers starter Keiichi Yabu won his seventh, the most he's
taken in four years and, for the first time in five years, he fanned ten
opposition batters.
Hanshin went ahead and never looked back in the
second, as rightfielder Shinjiro Hiyama walked, went to second on a groundout
and crossed on a single to left. Yano then put a charge into a fastball that
was down in the zone from Dragons starter Kenshin Kawakami and sent it into
the leftcenterfield seats to make it 3-0.
In the top of the fourth, the Dragons loaded the
bases on two singles and a walk with two outs, but leftfielder Kazuki Inoue
struckout on a forkball to extinguish the threat.
In the home portion, Morino then gave the Tigers
a break. With one out, Hirashita doubled down the rightfield line and Yano
beat out a tapper. One out later, second baseman Makoto Imaoka grounded to
Morino,. who let it get through him and Hirashita wheeled on in to expand
the Hanshin advantage to 4-0.
Yabu had his greatest difficulty in the sixth, as
shortstop Hirokazu Ibata doubled down the rightfield line. Morino struckout,
but rightfielder Kosuke Fukudome singled to left and third baseman Kazuyoshi
Tatsunami also went safely to the lefthand side to claim the RBI. First baseman
Takeshi Yamasaki, who has the sock to tie it up, struckout. Inoue was next
and he also came up empty and that was the last time the Dragons were heard
from again.
In the eighth, Hamanaka, celebrating his 24th birthday,
matched his 2001 total with his 13th homer, a drive that got up in the wind,
which blew it toward the rightfield line and it hit the top of the wall next
to the foul pole and went over for and that's how it ended, 5-1 Hanshin.
He has circuit clouts in five of his last ten games.
Sports Nippon came up with one bit of statistical
trivia that demonstrates why Hanshin has had trouble sustaining a consistent
offensive production: in the last five games, the trio of third baseman Atsushi
Kataoka, first baseman George Arias and rightfielder Hiyama is a combined
6-54, a .111 clip, with no RBIs. In fact, Tigers boss Senichi Hoshino sent
up Katsunori Nomura, who arguably has no business being in a pro yakyu uniform,
to pinch hit for the disappointing Kataoka. Now THAT is being dissed by your
own manager!
For Hanshin, Arias was 0-4 and is at .257.
Pitching Lines:
Chunichi:
Kawakami (L, 5-1) IP 6.0 PC 106 H 5 HR 1 K 3 BB 2 R 4 ER
2 ERA 2.52
Asakura
IP 0.2 PC 15 H 1 HR 0 K 0 BB 1 R 0 ER 0 ERA 2.93
Iwase
IP 0.1 PC 3 H 0 HR 0 K 1 BB 0 R 0 ER 0 ERA 1.43
Kito
IP 1.0 PC 11 H 1 HR 1 K 1 BB 0 R 1 ER 1 ERA 2.89
Hanshin:
Yabu (W, 7-4) IP 7.0 PC 11 H 5 HR 0 K 10 BB
3 R 1 ER 1 ERA 2.75
Kanazawa
IP 1.0 PC 13 H 0 HR 0 K 2 BB 0 R 0 ER 0 ERA 3.31
M.
Valdez
IP 1.0 PC 13 H 0 HR 0 K 1 BB 0 R 0 ER 0 ERA 1.05
E: Morino, Tanishige
SB: Hiyama
2B: Ibata, Hirashita, K. Tanaka
HR: Yano (3), Hamanaka (13)
RBI: Tatsunami, Hamanaka, Hirashita, Yano 2,
WP: Yabu
GIDP: Morino, Imaoka
LOB: Chunichi 5, Hanshin 5
Season Series: Chunichi 7, Hanshin 6
Game Time: 3:02
Attendance: 32,000
Umpires: Watamari (HP), Manabe (1B), Tomyori (2B), Kittaka (3B)
Ogasawara, Obando Back Fine Nakamura Performance
for Fighters
Nippon Ham starter Hayato Nakamura has been mostly
outstanding this season and he flashed that ability again Tuesday at Sapporo
Dome, throwing eight innings of four hit, one run ball while his teammates
in the batting order slapped three Kintetsu Buffaloes hurlers around for
seven runs (six earned) on 14 hits in a 7-1 Fighters victory, one that also
returned them to .500.
The Fighters blew a bases loaded, one out opportunity
in the first against Buffs starter Hiroshi Takamura, but rallied for a run
in the third. Centerfielder Tatsuya Ide beat out a roller and went to second
on a sac bunt. One out later, leftfielder D.T. Cromer torched a low liner
that carromed off the centerfield wall for an RBI double and a 1-0 lead.
Kintetsu wasted a man on third, one out situation
in the fourth and Nippon Ham took their at bats in that frame and showed
the how to produce a run. Third baseman Yukio Tanaka legged out a bouncer
toward third and went to second on a groundout. Rightfielder Seigo Fujishima
then pulled out his first baseknock with runners in scoring position since
May 1st with a single to center and it was 2-0 Fighters.
Again, Kintetsu had a man in scoring position with
less than two outs and couldn't get him across in the fifth and once more
Nippon Ham put something on the board in their half of that inning, as first
baseman Michihiro Ogasawara went midieval on a first pitch forkball on the
outer half of the plate and parked it in the leftfield bleachers to go up
by three at 3-0.
Nippon Ham continued to chip away at Takamura in
the sixth, as Tanaka singled to center and pinch hitter Hiroshi Narahara
singled to left and Tanaka made for third. Fujishima grounded to short and
went to the plate, but Tanaka slid in safely and it was 4-0 Fighters.
DH Sherman Obando then joined in the fun by destroying
a pitch from reliever Shogo Yamamoto and depositing it in the leftfield stands
for a 5-0 advantage.
Kintetsu finally put a dent in Nakamura in the eighth,
when shortstop Masahiro Abe walked with one out and one out later galloped
home on a whizzer into the leftfield corner from centerfielder Naoyuki Omura
to draw within 5-1.
Nippon Ham responded, however, in the bottom segment
with a leadoff double from Fujishima, a sac bunt, a shot off the centerfield
fence from Ide that plated Fujishima, and a single to center from shortstop
Makoto Kaneko that redeemed Ide and it was 7-1. Closer Tomokazu Iba then
struckout the side in Kintetsu's final ups and it was "game setto."
For Kintetsu, leftfielder Tuffy Rhodes was 0-4 and
is at .256. The 2001 home run champ is two for July and hasn't homered
in 42 at bats for an .077 average. Talk about being shutdown!
For Nippon Ham, Cromer was 2-4 with an RBI and two
strikeouts and is at .276. Obando was 1-3 with a walk and an RBI and is at
.254.
Pitching Lines:
Kintetsu:
Takamura (L, 5-3) IP 6.0 PC 100 H 9 HR 1 K 4 BB 2 R 4 ER 3 ERA 3.02
S. Yamamoto IP 1.0
PC 23 H 2 HR 1 K 2 BB 0 R 1 ER 1 ERA 2.34
Johnson
IP 1.0 PC 22 H 3 HR 0 K 0 BB 0 R 2 ER 2 ERA 9.00
Nippon Ham:
H. Nakamura (W, 5-3) IP 8.0 PC 114 H 4 HR 0 K 3 BB 2 R 1 ER 1
ERA 2.88
Iba
IP 1.0 PC 14 H 0 HR 0 K 3 BB 0 R 0 ER 0 ERA 4.50
E: N. Nakamura
2B: N. Omura 2, Kawaguchi, Cromer, Y. Tanaka, Fujishima, Ide
HR: M. Ogasawara (23), Obando (16)
RBI: M. Ogasawara, Obando, Ide, Kaneko, Cromer, Fujishima 2, N. Omura
GIDP: Kawaguchi, Sanematsu
LOB: Kintetsu 4, Nippon Ham 9
Season Series: Kintetsu 6, Nippon Ham 8
Game Time: 3:02
Attendance: 11,000
Umpires: Yamazaki (HP), Yanagida (1B), Kawaguchi (2B), Yamamoto (3B)
Wakatabe Spins Sixth Straight Victory Against
Seibu 8-1
Daiei Hawks starter Kenichi Wakatabe has been around
for over a decade and right now is throwing the best ball of his career,
as he just barely missed his second straight complete game shutout to give
manager Sadaharu Oh his 500th victory at the helm of the Fukuoka nine 8-1
Tuesday at Fukuoka Dome over the Seibu Lions. This was Wakatabe's third
consecutive complete game triumph. Hsu Ming-chieh started for Seibu and absorbed
his fifth loss against two wins after being shaken down for five runs, two
earned, on six hits over 5.2 innings.
Wakatabe had men on in every inning, but was bailed
out by three double plays and mixed up his fastball, slow curve ball,
cutter and forkball to keep the first place Lions from doing any hard damage.
The Hawks snatched a lead in the fourth, as third
baseman Hiroki Kokubo doubled down the leftfield line and DH Noriyoshi Omichi
singled him in to make it 1-0 Daiei.
In the fifth, Daiei shortstop Yusuke Torigoe leadoff
with a single to left and one out later leftfielder Pedro Valdez singled
to center. Second baseman Tadahito Iguchi grounded into a 6-4 force play.
A passed ball by catcher Tsutomu Itoh allowed Iguchi to get to second. Kokubo
singled to center and both Torigoe and Iguchi toed the dish and it was 3-0
Hawks.
An error by Hiroyuki Takagi and a bad fielding decision
by Hsu in the sixth resulted in two unearned runs for Daiei. Rightfielder
Koji Akiyama leadoff with a groundball to Takagi, who booted it. First baseman
Honma laid down a sac bunt and Hsu tried to nail him at second, but it was
tardy. Catcher Masanori Taguchi grounded into a force at third, but Torigoe
then sacrificed the runners over. Centerfielder Hiroshi Shibahara singled
to center and for the two RBIs and make it 5-0 Hawks.
Daiei then tacked another three on the board in
the ninth, with backup rightfielder Arihito Muramatsu singling to center
to initiate the attack. Honma beat out a dribbler and Taguchi singled in
Muramatsu. Two strikeouts later, substitute leftfielder Yudai Deguchi zipped
one up the rightcenter gap and to the wall for a two run triple and now it
was a laugher at 8-0.
Seibu first baseman Alex Cabrera busted one over
the leftfield fence to start the bottom of the ninth and to foil the shutout,
but then the Lions couldn't even hit the ball out of the infield and it was
game over, the final 8-1.
For Daiei, Valdez was 1-4 with three strikeouts
and is at .286.
For Seibu, Cabrera was 3-4 with an RBI and is at
.290. Third baseman Tom Evans was 1-3 with a walk and is at .295. The ex-Rangers
is sporting an OBP of right around .400 as he continues to get the job done.
Pitching Lines:
Seibu:
Hsu (L, 2-5) IP 5.2 PC 98 H 6 HR 0 K 2 BB 1 R 5 ER 2 ERA
4.57
Mizuo
IP 1.1 PC 21 H 1 HR 0 K 2 BB 0 R 0 ER 0 ERA 2.61
Uchizono IP 1.0 PC 22 H 4 HR 0 K 2 BB
0 R 3 ER 3 ERA 6.00
Daiei:
Wakatabe (W, 6-0) IP 9.0 PC 129 H 8 HR 1 K 6 BB 3 R 1 ER 1 ERA 1.94
E: Evans
SB: Shibahara, Kokubo
2B: Kokubo
3B: Deguchi
HR: Cabrera (25)
RBI: Cabrera, Shibahara 2, Deguchi 2, Kokubo 2, Omichi, Taguchi
HBP: Honma (Hsu)
PB: T. Itoh
GIDP: Miyaji, Wada, H. Takagi
LOB: Seibu 6, Daiei 7
Season Series: Seibu 8, Daiei 6
Game Time: 3:02
Attendance: 46,000
Umpires: Yamamura (HP), Higashi (1B), Nagami (2B), Shirai (3B)
Four Carp Homers Cream Kudaoh; Matsui Drills
Career 300th
Yomiuri Giants southpaw Kimiyasu Kudoh has pitched
all season like the great veteran that he is, even if he wasn't rewarded
for it by the kyojin offense. Tuesday at Hiroshima Municipal Stadium, Kudoh
had his worst outing of the season, being victimized by four Hiroshima Carp
homers in taking a 7-4 loss. Hiroki Kuroda went all the way for the fish.
Hiroshima took a 1-0 lead in the second, when second
baseman Eddie Diaz clocked a Kudoh offering over the centerfield wall.
The Giants overturned that, though, in the fourth,
when rightfielder Yoshinobu Takahashi singled to left, centerfielder Hideki
Matsui singled to center and first baseman Kazuhiro Kiyohara did the long
distance runaround to the oppositie field for a three run dinger and a 3-1
Yomiuri advantage.
Kudoh, however, saw that bit of prosperity evaporate
in the bottom of the frame when shortstop Akihiro Higashide singled to left,
centerfielder Koichi Ogata walked and leftfielder Tomoaki Kanemoto, whose
numbers have improved markedly as of late, massacred a Kudoh delivery and
buried it in the rightfield seats to make it 4-3 Carp.
In the sixth, the Carp splurged for three
more when Ogata singled to center and Diaz homered to left with one out and
the next man up, rightfielder Tomonori Maeda, went yard to right for back
to back jacks and a 7-3 edge.
Matsui was the first hitter of the ninth for the
Giants and he got an 88mph fastball just below the knees and he sliced it,
diced it and cooked it into the rightcenterfield seats, the ball leaving
in no time, to slip his club within three at 7-4 and ring up his 300th career
longball. Kuroda, though, settled back in and retired three of the next four
men to turn out the lights.
In games in which both Matsui and Kiyohara had both
homered, Yomiuri was 17-0 dating back to September of 1998. Matsui is the
second youngest to 300 at 28 years old and no months while, as Baseball Guru
readers already know, Sadaharu Oh was the youngest at 27 years and three
months.
Giants third baseman Akira Etoh is in one heck of
a slump, most recently going zip for his last 17 at bats after his 0-4 tonight
to sink his average to .217.
For Hiroshima, who have now ensured that they will
finish the first half of the season above .500 for the first time in five
years, Diaz was 4-4 with three RBIs and is at .321.
Pitching Lines:
Yomiuri:
Kudoh (L, 4-6) IP 5.1 PC 100 H 8 HR 4 K 3 BB 1 R
7 ER 7 ERA 3.01
Jobe
IP 0.2 PC 6 H 0 HR 0 K 0 BB 1 R 0 ER 0 ERA 2.55
Kawamoto IP 1.2
PC 29 H 2 HR 0 K 1 BB 0 R 0 ER 0 ERA 7.71
Almonte
IP 0.1 PC 14 H 0 HR 0 K 1 BB 0 R 0 ER 0 ERA 1.80
Hiroshima:
Kuroda (W, 5-4) IP 9.0 PC 127 H 9 HR 2 K 9 BB 0 R 4 ER
4 ERA 3.99
2B: Kanemoto
HR: Kiyohara (9), Matsui (18), Diaz 2 (16), Kanemoto (12), T. Maeda (9)
RBI: Matsui, Kiyohara 3, Kanemoto 3, Diaz 3, T. Maeda
GIDP: Nioka, K. Kimura
LOB: Yomiuri 4, Hiroshima 3
Season Series: Yomiuri 8, Hiroshima 7
Game Time: 3:08
Attendance: 15,000
Umpires: Arisumi (HP), Kamimoto (1B), Mori (2B), Ino (3B)
Samsung Lions Drop Seventh in a Row in KBO
Action
See Korea Times article at:
http://www.hankooki.com/kt_sports/200207/t2002071018033347110.htm
MLB-KBO All Star Series in the Offing?
See Korea Times article at:
http://www.hankooki.com/kt_sports/200207/t2002071018085247110.htm
Today in Japanese Baseball History
This report is for July 9th and on that date
in Japanese baseball history in 1974, in a game between the Taiyo Whales
and the Yomiuri Giants at Kawasaki Stadium, a dispute over a hit by pitch
call with Giants shortstop Kazumasa Kono up at the plate resulted in Yomiuri
manager Tetsuharu Kawakami getting ejected for the only time in his career
after he bumped the umpire with his chest.
July 8, 2002
Cabrera Roundtripper Wins it for Seibu in
11th
Alex Cabrera's roof scraping first ever extra inning
homer in Japan was the game winner for the Seibu Lions Monday in an 11 inning
6-4 victory over the Daiei Hawks at Fukuoka Dome. Moreover, the victory also
ensured that the Lions would reach the all star break without losing three
in a row at some point, the only time in their long history they have
accomplished that. Hayato Aoki earned credit for the triumph while Nobuyasu
Matsu accepted blame for the defeat.
Hawks DH Noriyoshi Omichi homered to left with one
away off of Lions starter Chang Chih-chiah in the second to go in front 1-0,
the first of two rockets he collected on the night.
In the top of the fourth, the Lions equalized it,
as shortstop Kazuo Matsui singled to center and was sacrificed to second.
Centerfielder Kazuhiko Miyaji the singled to center and Matsui crossed to
make it 1-1.
Seibu then pulled ahead in the fifth, when leftfielder
Susumu Otomo singled to right, stole second, went to third on a single to
left by Tom Evans and hustled in on a groundout by catcher Tsutomu Itoh for
a 2-1 edge.
The added to that advantage in the sixth, as Matsui
singled to right and rightfielder Tatsuya Ozeki singled to left. Both were
then sacrificed along. One out later, DH Kazuhiro Wada singled to left to
recall Ozeki and Matsui and it was 4-1 Lions.
Things changed quickly, however, on another swing
from Omichi. Leftfielder Pedro Valdez singled to right and Chang plunked
second baseman Tadahito Iguchi. One out later, Omichi dialed Ibaraki 6-5000
on a Chang delivery and the charges were accepted in the leftcenterfield
bleachers to knot it at 4-4.
After both sides blew scoring opportunities in the
tenth, Cabrera waited on a 3-1 slow curve ball to leadoff the 11th and launched
a towering drive that appeared as if it would strike the roof. Matsu didn't
think it would make it to the seats, but it nestled in the first row and
the Lions now had the upper hand at 5-4. Wada singled to left and was sacrificed
to second. Evans walked. One out later, Hiroshi Hirao singled to right to
drive in Wada to go up by two at 6-4. Shinji Mori then came on in the home
half and struckout three of the four hitters he faced and this long faceoff
was over.
The last time in the Pacific League that a club
has gone the entire first half without dropping three consecutively was in
1971, when the Lotte Orions did it. It hasn't been done in the Central League
since Hiroshima did it in the mid-1980's.
Seibu manager Haruki Ihara announced that ace Daisuke
Matsuzaka will not be permitted to throw in the all star game, as Matsuzaka
himself had hoped.
For Daiei, Valdez was 1-4 with a walk and a steal
and is at .286.
For Seibu, Cabrera was 1-4 with a walk and an RBI
and is at .282. He has six homers in six games and Seibu is 18-3 when the
ex-Diamondback goes deep. Evans was 1-4 with two strikeouts and a walk and
is at .294.
Pitching Lines:
Seibu:
Chang
IP 6.0 PC 94 H 5 HR 2 K 8 BB 0 R 4 ER 4 ERA 2.31
T. Shiozaki IP 3.0 PC 30
H 0 HR 0 K 1 BB 0 R 0 ER 0 ERA 3.59
Doi
IP 0.2 PC 10 H 1 HR 0 K 0 BB 1 R 0 ER 0 ERA 1.69
Aoki (W, 3-1) IP 0.1 PC 7 H 0 HR 0 K 1 BB 0
R 0 ER 0 ERA 3.26
Mori (S, 1) IP 1.0 PC 16
H 1 HR 0 K 3 BB 0 R 0 ER 0 ERA 1.58
Daiei:
Tanoue
IP 5.0 PC 71 H 7 HR 0 K 0 BB 0 R 4 ER 4 ERA 4.15
Nagai
IP 2.0 PC 26 H 2 HR 0 K 1 BB 0 R 0 ER 0 ERA 5.87
S.
Yoshida
IP 0.1 PC 10 H 1 HR 0 K 0 BB 0 R 0 ER 0 ERA 3.41
A. Okamoto IP 2.2 PC
42 H 2 HR 0 K 6 BB 1 R 0 ER 0 ERA 1.17
Matsu (L, 0-1) IP 0.1 PC 9 H 2
HR 1 K 0 BB 0 R 2 ER 2 ERA 3.48
H.K. Watanabe IP 0.2 PC 21 H 1 HR 0 K 1 BB 2 R 0 ER 0 ERA
1.69
E: Cabrera
SB: Otomo, P. Valdez
2B: Ozeki
HR: Cabrera (24), Omichi 2 (5)
RBI: Omichi 4, Cabrera, Miyaji, Wada 2, T. Itoh, Hirao
IBB: Cabrera, K. Matsui
HBP: Taguchi (Chang), Iguchi (Chang)
GIDP: Cabrera
LOB: Seibu 8, Daiei 6
Season Series: Seibu 8, Daiei 5
Game Time: 4:42
Attendance: 47,000
Umpires: Hayashi (HP), Nagami (1B), Shirai (2B), Yamamura (3B)
Cromer, Obando Shell Bergman in 7-3 Fighters
Victory
Nippon Ham DH Sherman Obando amassed four RBIs and
leftfielder D.T. Cromer plated three while starter Satoru Kanemura tossed
his first complete game since April 30, 2000 to nudge the Kintetsu Buffaloes
five games off the pace with league leading Seibu in a 7-3 Fighters victory
Monday at Tokyo Dome. Sean Bergman got his block knocked off for all seven
Nippon Ham tallies in his three inning stint.
The Tokyo squad jumped all over Bergman from the
get go, as centerfielder Tetsuya Ide doubled off the rightfield wall to open
the bottom of the first and first baseman Michihiro Ogasawara was nailed
with a pitch with one out. Cromer lined a triple up the rightcenter gap and
all the way to the wall for a 2-0 lead. Obando then grounded to short to
drive in Cromer and it was 3-0.
In the third, Buffaloes centerfielder Naoyuki Omura
took the long way home via rightfield and it was 3-1 Fighters.
Nippon Ham then crushed Bergman in their half. Shortstop
Makoto Kaneko ignited it with a single to center. Ogasawara singled to right.
Cromer torched one down the rightfield line to welcome in Kaneko. Obando
the folded, spindled and mutilated a Bergman delivery and left the mess in
the rightfield stands, too for a three run homer and it was 7-1 Fighters.
Kintetsu got homers to rightcenter and leftcenter
respectively from first baseman Yuji Yoshioka in the seventh and ninth, but
it was too little too late and Nippon Ham pocketed the W 7-3.
For Kintetsu, leftfielder Tuffy Rhodes was 0-4 and
is at .260.
For Nippon Ham, Cromer was 2-4 with three RBIs and
is at .272. Obando was 2-4 with four RBIs and is at .253. Ogasawara, with
his 1-2., walk and HBP showing, is now at .367 and is boasting a bodacious
1.150 OPS.
Pitching Lines:
Kintetsu:
Bergman (L, 4-3) IP 3.0 PC 60 H 6 HR 1 K 1 BB 0 R 7 ER 7 ERA
4.18
D. Miyamoto IP 3.0 PC 35 H 1 HR
0 K 2 BB 0 R 0 ER 0 ERA 4.26
Takagi
IP 2.0 PC 25 H 1 HR 0 K 1 BB 1 R 0 ER 0 ERA 2.38
Nippon Ham:
Kanemura (W, 4-1) IP 9.0 PC 130 H 6 HR 3 K 10 BB 1 R 3 ER 3 ERA 2.67
E. Mizuguchi
2B: Kawaguchi, Cromer, Ide, Kaneko
3B: Cromer
HR: N. Omura (9), Yoshioka 2 (12), Obando (15)
RBI: N. Omura, Yoshioka 2, Cromer 3, Obando 4
HBP: M. Ogasawara 2 (Bergman and Takagi), Kimoto (Bergman)
PB: Sanematsu
GIDP: Shimada
LOB: Kintetsu 4, Nippon Ham 4
Season Series: Kintetsu 6, Nippon Ham 7
Game Time: 2:45
Attendance: 13,000
Umpires: Hirabayashi (HP), Kawaguchi (1B), Yamamoto (2B), Tsugawa (3B)
Four Run Fourth Enough for Orix in 4-1 Victory
Over Lotte
A couple of defensive breakdowns in the fourth inning
helped the Orix Blue Wave score four runs and that was all that starter Hisashi
Ogura needed to best Nathan Minchey and the Chiba Lotte Marines 4-1 Monday
at Kobe Green Stadium. By losing, Lotte resumes sole possession of last place
in the PL.
Ogura won ten games last season for Orix, but elbow
problems sidelined him until recently. He went six innings and allowed six
hits and a run while Minchey went eight innings and surrendered four runs,
three earned, on ten hits to become the first man this season in either league
to ten losses.
Both pitchers seemed to be firmly in control until
the fourth. Lotte first baseman Kazuya Fukuura leadoff the top of the inning
with a single to right. Takashi Tachikawa singled to left. DH Derrick May
singled to right to pack the sacks. Centerfielder Saburo Omura flied out
to right to bring in Fukuura with the game's first run and it was 1-0 Lotte.
Orix retaliated in their portion when Kota Soejima
beat out a roller toward third and Kazuhiko Shiotani did likewise. Scott
Sheldon hit a groundball right at Koichi Hori at second base, a tailor made
groundball, and he let it scoot under his glove to convert Soejima. Incredibly,
that was called a hit. Fernando Seguignol grounded out to short to cash in
Shiotani. Makoto Shiozaki beat out a tapper toward short. One out later,
Tachikawa played what was a catchable fly ball off the bat of second baseman
Koichi Oshima into a two run double and it was 4-1 Orix.
Each side a couple of minor scoring opportunities
but didn't make anything of them and the game drew to a close as a 4-1 Orix
victory.
For Lotte, May was 104 and is at .233.
For Orix, Sheldon was 3-4 with an RBI and is at
.237. Seguignol was 0-3 with a walk and an RBI and is at .210.
Pitching Lines:
Lotte:
Minchey (L, 5-10) IP 8.0 PC 127 H 10 HR 0 K 3 BB 0 R 4 ER 3 ERA
3.67
Orix:
Ogura (W, 1-1) IP 6.0
PC 82 H 6 HR 0 K 3 BB 0 R 1 ER 1 ERA 4.08
Kawagoe
IP 2.0 PC 26 H 2 HR 0 K 0 BB 0 R 0 ER 0 ERA 4.66
K. Yamaguchi (S, 1) IP 1.0 PC 8 H 0 HR 0 K 1 BB 0 R 0 ER
0 ERA 1.50
2B: Fukuura, K. Oshima, Tani, Shiotani
RBI: S. Omura, Sheldon, Seguignol, K. Oshima 2
SF: S. Omura
HBP: Seguignol (Minchey)
PB: Tsuji
LOB: Lotte 6, Orix 7
Season Series: Lotte 5, Orix 8
Game Time: 2:35
Attendance: 10,000
Umpires: Kakigizono (HP), Maeda (1B), Sato (2B), Kodera (3B)
From the "Hey, is it Just Me or...."
Department
Having just watched home run derby Monday, don't
you all think that Bud Selig is looking more and more like one of the cartoon
characters out of Pink Floyd's "The Wall" music video? His manner is also
like a combination of Ed Sullivan and Richard Nixon. And when you see him,
do you feel as nauseous as I do?
July 7, 2002
Tigers Take a 10-2 Bite Out of Giants
The Hanshin Tigers managed to tread water Sunday,
as they briefly halted their sinking fortunes in the Central League pennant
race by taking rookie Hiroki Sanada, ironically an Osaka native out of Himeji
Industrial High School making his first pro start, for three runs, two earned,
on six hits in five innings to hang him with the loss. Sanada is the first
high school draftee to start for Yomiuri in his first year since Tsuneo Horiuchi
did it in 1966.
Kei Igawa started for Hanshin and dominated, going
eight innings of five hit, one run ball, striking out seven and walking one
to grab his tenth victory and reduce his ERA to 1.74, which leads all of
Japanese baseball. The southpaw had just nine wins last season due to his
team's horrendous offense despite an ERA under 3.00.
Hanshin actually blew an easy scoring chance in
the first inning, when second baseman Makoto Imaoka seared a shot down the
leftfield line for a standup double and then went to third on a sac bunt.
But third baseman Atsushi Kataoka grounded out to second and first baseman
George Arias struckout and that was that.
Igawa said after the game that, physically, he didn't
feel all that great and it showed in the bottom of the same frame, as leftfielder
Takayuki Shimizu singled to right and shortstop Tomohiro Nioka singled to
left to send Shimizu to third. But rightfielder Yoshinobu Takahashi grounded
to second, centerfielder Hideki Matsui flew to center and after Igawa plunked
first baseman Kazuhiro Kiyohara to load the bases, Kenji Fukui grounded out
to first to left Igawa off the hook.
In the second, leftfielder Koji Hirashita singled
to left with two outs and then catcher Akihiro Yano got good wood on a shuuto
(a running fastball) on the inner half of the plate and deposited it in the
rightcenterfield seats fror a 2-0 Tigers lead.
They then squandered another facile scoring chance
in the third, when Imaoka doubled to rightcenter and went to third on a
sacrifice. But Kataoka popped out to second and Arias flied to center to
keep it at 2-0.
Hanshin were handed a gift run in the fourth, as,
with two gone, Sanada nailed Hirashita and walked Yano. Igawa grounded to
second and Toshihisa Nishi made a bad throw pas Kiyohara and Hirashita sprinted
in to make it 3-0 Tigers.
Hanshin then had men on ifrst and second with one
out in each of the fifth and sixth innings, but didn't drive anyone in. Finally,
in the seventh, they opened up on three Giants relievers to put it away.
With one out, shortstop Shuta Tanaka doubled down the rightfield line. He
then lit out for third and Giants catcher Ota's throw sailed into leftfield
and it was 4-0 Hanshin. Kataoka walked. Arias doubled into the leftfield
corner. Rightfielder Shinjiro Hiyama walked to load the bases. Centerfielder
Osamu Hamanaka walked and Kataoaka and Arias crossed. Pinch hitter Hiroshi
Yagi singled to left for another and Fumikazu Takanami was dispatched to
pinch run for him. Yano lashed a pitch from Hector Almonte off the centerfield
wall for a double to convert Hamanaka. One out later, Imaoka singled to left
to recal both Yano and Takanami and it was 10-0 Tigers.
In the bottom of the eighth, the Giants obtained
their initial run when Nioka homered to left. They then combined singles
to center from Mototsugu Kawanaka, Koji Goto and Takayuki Saito off of Mark
Valdez and that's how it ended, 10-2 Tigers.
Sanada's parents, Takashi and Mayumi, were in the
stands watching their son in action. The 18 year old freshman hurler was
5-2 with a 2.49 ERA in the minors before being called up to make the start.
Yomiuri boss Tatsunori Hara was impressed enough with his effort that he
will probably be given another start soon. A Hiroshima advance scout remarked
that while Sanada, who can run it up there around 91mph, doesn't have a great
fastball, he does handle himself well on the mound and says that once he
can get better command of his slider then the Giants will really have something.
A Dragons observer concurred, saying that Sanada's
shuuto (basically a changeup with some run on it) gets in well to righthanded
hitters and that he has the talent to register double figures in wins one
day.
Kiyohara liked the tempo that Sanada maintains,
saying it is easy to play behind him since he doesn't waste anytime out there.
For a teenager, Sanada seems to be rather poised for his age.
For Hanshin, Arias was 2-5 with two strikeouts and
is at .261.
For another report on this game, go to:
http://www.asahi.com/english/sports/K2002070800253.html
Pitching Lines:
Hanshin:
Igawa (W, 10-4) IP 8.0 PC 123 H 5 HR 1 K 7 BB 1 R 1 ER 1 ERA
1.74
M.
Valdez
IP 1.0 PC 25 H 3 HR 0 K 1 BB 1 R 1 ER 1 ERA 1.09
Yomiuri:
Sanada (L, 0-1) IP 5.0 PC 88 H 6 HR 1 K 3 BB 1 R 3 ER 3 ERA 3.60
Jobe
IP 1.1 PC 27 H 1 HR 0 K 1 BB 2 R 1 ER 0 ERA 2.63
Kawamoto IP 0.0 PC
22 H 3 HR 0 K 0 BB 2 R 5 ER 5 ERA 10.13
Almonte
IP 0.2 PC 11 H 2 HR 0 K 1 BB 0 R 1 ER 1 ERA 1.84
Y.
Maeda IP
2.0 PC 20 H 0 HR 0 K 2 BB 0 R 0 ER 0 ERA 1.88
E: Nishi, Ota
SB: S. Tanaka
2B: Imaoka 2, S. Tanaka, Arias, Yano
HR: Yano (4), Nioka (8)
RBI: Imaoka 2, Hamanaka 2, Yagi, Yano 3, Nioka, Takayuki Saito
HBP: Hirashita (Sanada), Kiyohara (Igawa), Ota (Igawa)
GIDP: Hiyama
LOB: Hanshin 7, Yomiuri 9
Season Series: Hanshin 6, Yomiuri 9
Game Time: 3:15
Attendance: 55,000
Umpires: Tani (HP), Watada (1B), Sasaki (2B), Shikida (3B)
Pair of Two Run Carp Homers Sink Sakamoto,
Swallows 4-1
Hopefully, he isn't becoming discouraged by the
lack of victories he's had so far this season, but rookie hurler Yataro Sakamoto
made two big mistakes Sunday at Hiroshima Municipal Stadium and they both
left the field of play with a man on for all of the home team's runs in a
4-1 loss. Despite his 1-5 record, though, Sakamoto is sporting an excellent
2.91 ERA and make no mistake about it, he's a good one and he will, barring
injury or a loss of confidence, be a mainstay of this Swallows rotation for
years to come.
Masayuki Hasegawa started for Hiroshima and
was superb, going all the way and permitting eight hits, only one of those
past the fifth, while striking out nine and walking none for his team leading
seventh victory.
Hiroshima got on the board in the first, when Itsuki
Asai cracked a one out single to center and centerfielder Koichi Ogata sailed
one well beyond the leftcenterfield fence for his 12th homer and a 2-0 lead.
In the third, Ogata rammed a two out double down
the leftfield line and leftfielder Tomoaki Kanemoto mortared one over the
rightfield wall and it was 4-0 Carp.
Yakult appeared that they would do something in
the fourth, when rightfielder Atsunori Inaba legged out a tapper and first
baseman Roberto Petagine singled to right. Leftfielder Alex Ramirez struckout,
but third baseman Akinori Iwamura singled to center to deliver Inaba. Hasegawa
then battened down the hatches by fanning the next two men and for all practical
purposes, they were done, since Hasegawa did a better job of keeping his
stuff down in the zone and dominated from that point on.
For Hiroshima, second baseman Eddie Diaz was 0-4
and is at .308. Luis lopez struckout in a pinch hit role and is at .241.
With the emergence of Takahiro Arai and his ineffectuality since that tiff
with Maeda, the 37 year old Lopez could be a civilian once the schedule
concludes.
For Yakult, Petagine was 1-4 and is at .296. Ramirez
was was 1-4 and is at .332.
Pitching Lines:
Yakult:
Sakamoto (L, 1-5) IP 4.0 PC 61 H 6 HR
2 K 1 BB 0 R 4 ER 4 ERA 2.91
Masanori Ishikawa IP 2.2 PC 46 H 3 HR 0 K 1 BB 0 R 0 ER
0 ERA 3.72
R.
Igarashi
IP 0.1 PC 5 H 0 HR 0 K 1 BB 0 R 0 ER 0 ERA 2.17
H.
Ishii
IP 1.0 PC 18 H 0 HR 0 K 1 BB 0 R 0 ER 0 ERA 2.43
Hiroshima:
Hasegawa (W, 7-2) IP 9.0 PC 114 H 8 HR 0 K 9 BB 0 R 1 ER
1 ERA 2.90
E: K. Nomura
2B: Manaka, Ogata
HR: Ogata (12), Kanemoto (11)
RBI: Ogata 2, Kanemoto 2, Iwamura
WP: R. Igarashi
GIDP: Manaka
LOB: Yakult 5, Hiroshima 4
Season Series: Yakult 4, Hiroshima 8
Game Time: 2:45
Attendance: 12,000
Umpires: Suginaga (HP), Mori (1B), Nishimoto (2B), Watamari (3B)
Takashi Ishii Brilliant in 3-1 Lions Victory
Over Kintetsu
Seibu Lions starter Takashi Ishii threw seven solid
innings Sunday at Sapporo Dome, coughing up one run on six hits to improve
to 4-1, and Kazhiro Wada drove in two runs with a homer and a seventh inning
single in a 3-1 victory over the Kintetsu Buffaloes in the rubber game of
the three game series. Katsuhiko Maekawa, a Seibu nemesis, wasn't bad, but
he wasn't all that on and he suffered the defeat, his sixth, after 6.1 innings
of three run ball on eight hits. Moreover, the Lions have guarenteed themselves
to be in first place through the all star break, the tenth time the club
has done that in its long history. They have won the PL crown in eight of
those previous nine occasions.
Kintetsu drew first blood in the second, when first
baseman Yuji Yoshioka blowed one up real good over the leftfield fence to
make it 1-0.
Wada knotted it, however, in the with one out in
the fourth, as he got a pitch up in the strike zone and lofted it beyond
the leftcenterfield wall and it was 1-1.
Kintetsu had a man on third with one out, but couldn't
get him home in the fifth. The Lions then did similarly, loading the bases
with one out in the sixth before a lineout and a flyout killed that opening.
In the seventh, though, Seibu did climb on top.
Shortstop Kazuo Matsui singled to left and went to second on a sac bunt.
Maekawa attempted to jam DH Toshiaki Inubushi, but he left it out over the
plate and Inubushi turned and burned on it and cannonaded it fair down the
leftfield line to usher in Matsui. Hiroyuki Shibata came in to pinch run
for Inubushi. First baseman Alex Cabrera was intentionally walked. Wada singled
to right and Shibata chugged in and it was 3-1 Lions.
Seibu closer Kiyoshi Toyoda strode in from the pen
for the ninth after giving up a game winning homer to Norihiro Nakamura the
night before. So who was the first hitter of the inning? Nakamura, of course.
Toyoda worked him to a 1-2 count and then threw him a 90mph fastball that
the burly third baseman grounded to short on. Toyoda may have then mentally
let down, as the next batter, rightfielder Kenshi Kawaguchi, singled to right
and Toyoda hit Yoshioka. Now the tying run was on first. Toyoda, though,
induced a popup from DH Hirotoshi Kitagawa and pinch hitter Masuda whiffed
on a forkball for the final out as Toyoda pumped his fist in celebration.
For Seibu, Cabrera was 0-2 with two walks and is
at .282. Third baseman Tom Evans was 1-2 with two walks and is at .296.
For Kintetsu, leftfielder Tuffy Rhodes was 0-4 and
is at .264. Rhodes was 1-12 in the series with five strikeouts, saying that
he's not tired, he's just in a rut right now.
Pitching Lines:
Kintetsu:
Maekawa (L, 3-6) IP 6.1 PC 111 H 8 HR 1 K 2 BB 4 R 3 ER 3 ERA
4.37
A.
Okamoto
IP 0.2 PC 13 H 1 HR 0 K 1 BB 0 R 0 ER 0 ERA 1.69
Misawa
IP 1.0 PC 10 H 0 HR 0 K 1 BB 0 R 0 ER 0 ERA 4.74
Seibu:
Takashi Ishii (W, 4-1) IP 7.0 PC 113 H 6 HR 1 K 1 BB 1 R 1 ER 1 ERA
2.58
Doi
IP 1.0 PC 13 H 0 HR 0 K 0 BB 0 R 0 ER 0 ERA 1.74
Toyoda (S,
14)
IP 1.0 PC 25 H 1 HR 0 K 1 BB 0 R 0 ER 0 ERA 1.29
E: N. Nakamura
2B: Kitagawa, Nakajima, Inubushi
HR: Yoshioka (10), Wada (10)
RBI: Yoshioka, Inubushi, Wada 2
IBB: Cabrera
HBP: Yoshioka (Toyoda)
Balk: Maekawa
GIDP: Yoshioka
LOB: Kintetsu 7, Seibu 10
Season Series: Kintetsu 7, Seibu 6
Game Time: 3:18
Attendance: 18,000
Umpires: Nakamura (HP), Sakaemura (1B), Tachibana (2B), Akimura (3B)
Raggio Back for Daiei and He Three Hits Lotte
6-1
Brady Raggio picked up his first win since April
20th Sunday at Fukuoka Dome and he overpowered the hapless Chiba Lotte Marines,
three hitting them over seven innings to basically cruise his way through
the game. He was backed by an epic day from second baseman Tadahito Iguchi,
who laced a two run first inning double and then homered in the eighth to
spearhead the 6-1 triumph.
Kosuke Kato continues to have a nightmarish season,
as he got just one out and was permitted to face only five hitters before
manager Koji Yamamoto yanked him in favor of Ken Yamasaki, who proceeded
to twirl 4.2 excellent innings. I would guess that if Kato can't get his
act together in his next start, he will be on a bus for the minors.
Daiei took Kato down when centerfielder Hiroshi
Shibahara leadoff with a single to center and leftfielder Pedro Valdez singled
to left to set the table. Iguchi had the count in his favor, 2-1, and then
squared as if to bunt. When Kato delivered the pitch, Iguchi pulled the bat
back and spanked it into the leftcenter alley and both Valdez and Shibahara
blazed around to make it 2-0 Hawks. One out later, first baseman Nobuhiko
Matsunaka singled to left and that's when Kato was pulled in favor of Yamasaki,
who lured the next two men into grounding out and striking out respectively
to limit the potential damage.
As Raggio had Lotte killing worms (yes, I know you
can't do that in an artificial turf ballpark; it's just an expression, okay?),
the Hawks tacked another one on in the fifth. Catcher Masanori Taguchi catalyzed
it by taking a pitch in the body and he was sacrificed to second and then
went to third on a groundout. Valdez singled to right and it was 3-0 home
team.
Lotte averted the shutout in the sixth when leftfielder
Kenji Morozumi scorched one into the rightfield corner for a two bagger and
he came around on two groundouts to make it 3-1 Hawks.
Daiei third baseman Hiroki Kokubo got that back,
though, in a single stroke when he leadoff the bottom of the inning with
a shot into the leftfield bleachers to attain a 4-1 advantage. Two outs later,
Motoi Okoshi singled to center and the ball got through Saburo Omura for
a three base error as Okoshi sped all the way around to widen the gap to
5-1.
In the eighth, Iguchi got a slider and went with
it to right, the ball just barely making it over the 18 foot high wall for
a solo homer, and his third longball in three games, to complete the day's
scoring at 6-1.
For Lotte, DH Derrick May was 0-3 with a walk and
is at .233.
For Daiei, Valdez was 2-4 with an RBI and is at.287.
Pitching Lines:
Lotte:
K. Kato (L, 3-9) IP 0.1 PC 23 H 4 HR 0 K 0 BB 0 R 2 ER
2 ERA 6.37
K. Yamasaki IP 4.2 PC 59
H 1 HR 0 K 5 BB 1 R 1 ER 1 ERA 4.18
H. Kobayashi IP 1.0 PC 18 H 2 HR 1 K
1 BB 0 R 2 ER 1 ERA 3.19
T.
Tanaka
IP 1.0 PC 10 H 0 HR 0 K 1 BB 0 R 0 ER 0 ERA 3.45
Yoshida
IP 1.0 CP 14 H 2 HR 1 K 0 BB 0 R 1 ER 1 ERA 3.80
Daiei:
Raggio (W, 3-3) IP 7.0 PC 97 H 3 HR 0 K 3 BB 2 R
1 ER 1 ERA 5.18
S.
Yoshida
IP 1.0 PC 12 H 2 HR 0 K 0 BB 0 R 0 ER 0 ERA 3.44
Nagai
IP 1.0 PC 8 H 0 HR 0 K 1 BB 0 R 0 ER 0 ERA 7.94
E: S. Omura, Tsuji
SB: Morozumi, Okoshi
2B: Morozumi, Iguchi
HR: Kokubo (19), Iguchi (11)
RBI: Fukuura, P. Valdez, Iguchi 3, Kokubo
WP: Raggio
HBP: Taguchi (Yamasaki), Kokubo (Yoshida)
GIDP: Morozumi
LOB: Lotte 5, Daiei 4
Season Series: Lotte 3, Daiei 10
Game Time: 2:58
Attendance: 48,000
Umpires: Azuma (HP), Tamba (1B), Yamamura (2B), Hayashi (3B)
Seelbach, Yarnell Battle to a 2-2
Standoff
Making his first start in a month, Chris Seelbach
pitched well, fashioning eight innings of two run ball on seven hits for
Nippon Ham Sunday at Kobe Green Stadium. Unfortunately, Orix starter Ed Yarnell
flashed almost identical numbers and neither side could break through from
there, so it culminated in a 2-2 12 inning tie. One encouraging thing for
the occasionally wild Seelbach is that he only walked two while striking
out seven. Nippon Ham manager Yasunori Oshima would be pleased to see more
outings like this one.
In the third inning, Orix pulled to the head of
the line when centerfielder Yoshitomo Tani leadoff with a single and stole
the second of his four bases in the game. Two outs later, Shiotani doubled
to leftcenter to score Tani and it was 1-0 Blue Wave.
Nippon Ham, though, surged ahead in the sixth, when
second baseman Takaya Hayashi walked and first baseman Michihiro Ogasawara
doubled into the leftfield corner. After leftfielder Sherman Obando flied
out, third baseman Yukio Tanaka doubled down the rightfield line to chase
in both runners and it was 2-1 Fighters.
Orix third baseman Scott Sheldon homered to left
in the eighth, however, to gridlock it 2-2.
Neither team had much of a scoring opportunity until
the 11th when Orix loaded the bases on three walks with two outs, but Fernando
Seguignol grounded out to first and, for all practical purposes, it was over
at that juncture since neither side could get a runner on in the 12th.
For Nippon Ham, Obando was 0-4 and is at .249. DH
D.T. Cromer was 0-5 with two strikeouts and is at .268.
For Orix, Seguignol was 0-4 with an HBP and a walk
and three strikeouts and is at .213. Sheldon was 2-6 with an RBI and three
strikeouts and is at .227.
Pitching Lines:
Nippon Ham:
Seelbach
IP 8.0 PC 121 H 7 HR 1 K 7 BB 2 R 2 ER 2 ERA 3.93
N. Takahashi IP 0.1
PC 2 H 0 HR 0 K 0 BB 0 R 0 ER 0 ERA 4.50
Shibakusa
IP 1.2 PC 22 H 1 HR 0 K 2 BB 0 R 0 ER 0 ERA 3.86
Kato
IP 0.0 PC 7 H 0 HR 0 K 0 BB 1 R 0 ER 0 ERA 3.20
Tateyama
IP 0.1 PC 5 H 0 HR 0 K 0 BB 1 R 0 ER 0 ERA 1.15
Iba
IP 1.2 PC 28 H 0 HR 0 K 1 BB 1 R 0 ER 0 ERA 4.71
Orix:
Yarnell
IP 8.0 PC 114 H 6 HR 0 K 7 BB 2 R 2 ER 2 ERA 3.64
K. Yamaguchi IP 2.0 PC 28 H 1 HR 0 K 4 BB 0 R 0 ER 0 ERA
1.54
Iwashita
IP 0.1 PC 4 H 0 HR 0 K 0 BB 0 R 0 ER 0 ERA
6.75
Okubo
IP 1.2 PC 21 H 0 HR 0 K 2 BB 0 R 0 ER 0 ERA 3.32
SB: Tani 4
2B: M. Ogasawara 2 , Y. Tanaka, Shiotani
HR: Sheldon (8)
RBI: Y. Tanaka 2, Shiotani, Sheldon
IBB: Soejima
HBP: Tani (Seelbach), Seguignol (Seelbach)
GIDP: Shimada
LOB: Nippon Ham 6, Orix 13
Season Series: Nippon Ham 9, Orix 5 1 tie
Game Time: 3:53
Attendance: 23,000
Umpires: Yoshikawa (HP), Sato (1B), Kodera (2B), Kakigizono (3B)
Tatsunami, Tanishige Lead Dragons Past Yokohama
3-1
Chunichi Dragons manager Hisashi Yamada, with Leo
Gomez possibly facing retirement if he needs knee surgery, slotted third
baseman Kazuyoshi Tatsunami in the cleanup role and he produced, going
3-3 with a pair of RBIs and a walk to spur the Nagoya nine to a 3-1 victory
at Ishikawa Prefectural Stadium in Kanazawa (300 down the lines, 400 to center;
you can see a pic of the facility
at:http://homepage1.nifty.com/tadaf/ishikawa.htm).
Shane Bowers started for Yokohama and while he threw
a lot of pitches during his time on the hill, he allowed a measly two hits
and a run while striking out six, ultimatley not figuring in the decision.
But neither did his opposite number, who also permitted a mere run on five
hits in six innings, so it devolved down to a battle of the bullpens and
the Dragons were clear winners in that department and so they prevailed when
Yokohama's Hosomi was tagged for two runs on two hits in just a little more
than an inning.
Tatsunami ended a scoreless deadlock in the fourth,
when he slammed a Bowers pitch into the leftfield bleachers to make it 1-0
Dragons.
Yokohama countered when second baseman Seiichi Uchikawa
went yard for the first time in his short pro career and it was even at 1-1.
Dragons catcher Motonobu Tanishige haunted his old
team yet again ijn the seventh, poleaxing a Hosomi offering into the rightfield
stands and it was 2-1.
An inning later, Dragons shortstop Hirokazu Ibata
singled to left and was sacrificed to second. Rightfielder Kosuke Fukudome
legged out a bleeder. Tatsunami singled to right and Ibata jogged in for
a 3-1 lead. Eddie Gaillard set the Stars lineup down in order in the ninth
to put it to bed and end the Dragons seven game losing streak.
For Yokohama, centerfielder Ernie Young was 0-3
with a walk and is at .178. Rightfielder Boi Rodrigues was 0-4 with two
strikeouts and is at .268.
Pitching Lines:
Yokohama:
Bowers
IP 6.0 PC 104 H 2 HR 1 K 6 BB 3 R 1 ER 1 ERA 3.95
Hosomi (L, 0-1) IP 1.1 PC 21 H 2 HR 1 K 1 BB 0 R
2 ER 2 ERA 3.77
R. Kawahara IP 0.0
PC 3 H 2 HR 0 K 0 BB 0 R 0 ER 0 ERA 2.70
Azuma
IP 0.2 PC 6 H 0 HR 0 K 0 BB 0 R 0 ER 0 ERA 2.65
Chunichi:
Yamai
IP 6.0 PC 75 H 5 HR 1 K 4 BB 1 R 1 ER 1 ERA 2.65
Endo (W, 3-1) IP 2.0 PC 29 H 2 HR 0 K 3 BB 0 R 0
ER 0 ERA 3.82
Gaillard (S,17) IP 1.0 PC 14 H 0 HR 0 K 1 BB 0 R
0 ER 0 ERA 1.80
2B: Uchikawa, T. Ishii, T. Nakamura, Tatsunami
HR: Uchikawa (1), Tatsunami (9), Tanishige (12)
RBI: Tatsunami 2, Tanishige, Uchikawa
HBP: Young (Yamai)
PB: Tanishige
LOB: Yokohama 6, Chunichi 6
Season Series: Yokohama 5, Chunichi 10
Game Time: 2:52
Attendance: 16,000
Umpires: K. Kobayashi (HP), Tomoyori (1B), Kittaka (2B), Hamano (3B)
Nagata May be Prime High School Pick
According to Nikkan Sports, Tokaidai Boyo High School
shortstop Masahiro Nagata could be one of the top high school picks in a
November draft that is likely to be dominated mainly by college pitching.
Nagata, who is a lefthand hitter with great extension that likes the ball
middle in, has raked 30 homers during his scholastic career and some think
he has the raw tools to one day be a .280 20 homer guy.
Nagata's father, Koji, played baseball in his youth,
but due to "family circumstances," had to quit the sport. However, this doesn't
look like a father trying to live through his son since his son didn't started
out playing softball in elementary school before moving on to senior league
baseball in junior high. His father has coached him and Nagata calls his
dad his most trusted adviser. Nevertheless, Nagata may be more project than
instant superstar.
According to scouts, Nagata's virtues are that he
is exceptionally quick on the defensive side of the ball, a heady player
who can make all the routine plays thanks to soft hands and one who won't
risk throwing the ball away in order to make a flashy play. Moreover, he
gets himself in good throwing position each time, possessing a good flexible
body that allows him to do that. He has above average, though hardly astonishing,
speed (6.0 for 50 meters).
Where he tends to fall down, scouts say, is that
he has a tremendous amount of difficulty with breaking stuff away and anything
down and away in general, especially against lefties. That's surprising when
you take a look at his swing, where it seems as if he likes to really get
extended, but a preference for middle in is the mark of a classic pull hitter
and he will have to make that adjustment to get to the big club level. He
has a tremendous swing, though, at times reminding of Sadaharu Oh with less
of a leg kick and he can hit the ball a long way in spite of his relatively
small size (5'11" 170 pounds). You can see an mpg of him at:
http://homepage1.nifty.com/marcphoto/02cyuumoku/02cba-nagata.htm You can
see a still pic at:
http://homepage1.nifty.com/marcphoto/02cyuumoku/02cba-nagata.htm
Kazuo Matsui, not suprisingly and rather aptly,
is his favorite player despite the fact that he is a Yomiuri Giants fan.
In fact, the way Nagata gets rid of the ball recalls Matsui. A player this
advanced defensively probably won't benefit from going to college and should
accept a pro offer even if he is still a few years away as a hitter. I love
his swing and if he can make some adjustments could be a real contributor
for a club in the future as long, as scouts say, whoever takes him on has
some patience.
Source: Some of the details of this report wouldn't have been possible without
the information provided by the Mei Scout website:
http://www1.odn.ne.jp/~caq79450/www1.odn.ne.jp/index.htm
Brother Elephants Take First Half Title in
Taiwan
See Taipei Times story at:
http://www.taipeitimes.com/news/2002/07/07/story/0000147404
Today in Japanese Baseball History
This report is for July 7th and on that date in
Japanese baseball history in 1957, Taiyo Whales lefthander Masatoshi Gondo
ended his 28 game losing streak at Kawasaki Stadium against the Yomiuri Giants,
cracking an RBI knock and throwing a 4-0 shutout.
July 6, 2002
Carlyle, Fukuhara Rocked
in 12-2 Loss to
Giants
Yomiuri Giants centerfielder Hideki Matsui celebrated moving into third place
all time for consecutive games played Saturday with a two run third inning
bases loaded double, as the Tokyoites stomped their Osaka rival, the Hanshin
Tigers, 12-2. Yusaku Iriki was the benificiary of the offensive explosion,
one that saw 13 batters come up in the eight during an eight run revolt that
put it on ice for the kyojin. Ex-San Diego Padre Buddy Carlyle, in his 2002
debut, was hammered for four runs on five hits in four innings to absorb
the loss.
Carlyle actually started out impressively, fanning the four of the first
seven men he faced through the second inning. but he was confronted with
a bit of bad business in the third. Giants catcher Yoshinori Murata ignited
it with a leadoff single to right and was sacrificed to second. Leftfielder
Takayuki Shimizu singled to left. Shortstop Tomohiro Nioka doubled down the
leftfield line to plate Murata. Rightfielder Yoshinobu Takahashi walked to
pack the sacks. Matsui then got a 3-1 fastball that was letter high and middle
out and though he says he kind of got it toward the end of the bat, he torched
it into the leftcenter alley to chase in a pair as he went into second with
a standup double. First baseman Kazuhiro Kiyohara then hit a little tapper
by the mound that Carlyle got to, but his only play was to first as Takahashi
hustled in to make it 4-0 Yomiuri.
Hanshin squandered a men on first and second, one out opportunity in the
fourth and then a man on second, one out chance in the fifth before Iriki
left a fat one to centerfielder Osamu Hamanaka in the seventh and Hamanaka
gutted it for a solo homer to left. Two outs later, Kentaro Sekimoto beat
out a little bouncer and second baseman Makoto Imaoka slammed a double into
the rightcenter gap to shrink the deficit with the Giants to 4-2.
Shinobu Fukuhara had entered the game in the seventh to throw a perfect inning,
but he really got his head handed to him in the eighth. Shimizu leadoff with
his 100th hit of the season, a big fly into the rightfield stands. One out
later, Takahashi singled to right. Matsui walked. Koji Goto, who had replaced
Kiyohara when the latter's hanstring began to bother him again, also drew
a freebie to juice the bags. Masahiro Kawai struckout, but then Nishi clobbered
one off the centerfield fence and everybody went home (and so should have
Hanshin at this point) to make it 8-2. Fukuhara plunked Murata. Takayuki
Saito, pinch hitting for Iriki, singled to center to send in Nishi. Takehiro
Hashimoto was called in from the bullpen and continued to be a huge
disappointment, as Daisuke Motoki clocked a double down the leftfield line
for two runs. Nioka singled to right, and Takahashi went the same direction
to convert Motoki and it was 12-2 Giants.
Mercifully, Hector Almonte finished the Tigers off real quick like in the
ninth and it was "game setto."
Matsui, who has racked up ten RBIs in his last six games, extended his
consecutive games string to 1180, which brings him up even with former Yakult
Swallow and now Hanshin Tiger Katsumi Hirosawa. The Giants cleanup hitter's
streak began on August 22, 1993 against the Yokohama Bay Stars at Yokohama.
This is also his 345th straight contest in the four hole. Next on the list
is Nankai Hawks and Kokutetsu Swallows great Tokuji Iida, with 1246. If Matsui
maintains his good health, he should pass that up the final week of the season.
Iida also owns the Pacific League record with 899 that was eclipsed by Seibu
Lions shortstop Kazuo Matsui earlier this season.
Hanshin, however, can assert no such glory, as they have dropped their last
three and are down to just one game over .500. That means that they are six
games under .500 since that seven game victory binge that kicked off their
regular schedule. Manager Senichi Hoshino, in fact, was so displeased with
the ugliness of this affair that he spent a few minutes after the end of
it getting his foot intimately aquainted with a dugout trash can. By contrast,
the Giants have won all five of their July tilts. Thanks to Sports Nippon
and Nikkan Sports for the stats.
For Hanshin, first baseman George Arias was 1-3 with a walk and is at .258.
It seems like it was the Eisenhower adminstration when he last went deep.
Carlyle was 1-1 and is batting 1.000.
Pitching Lines:
Hanshin:
Carlyle (L,
0-1) IP 4.0 PC 60 H 5 HR
0 K 6 BB 1 R 4 ER 4 ERA 9.00
Taninaka
IP 2.0 PC 25 H 0 HR 0 K 1 BB 1 R 0 ER 0 ERA 4.06
Fukuhara
IP 1.2 PC 55 H 5 HR 1 K 2 BB 1 R 7 ER 7 ERA 5.47
T.H. Hashimoto IP 0.1 PC 13 H 3 HR 0
K 0 BB 0 R 1 ER 1 ERA 23.14
Yomiuri:
Y. Iriki (W, 3-1)
IP 7.0 PC 98 H 8 HR 1 K 4 BB 1 R 2 ER 2 ERA 2.91
Okajima
IP 1.0 PC 14 H 1 HR 0 K 0 BB 0 R 0 ER 0 ERA 3.86
Almonte
IP 1.0 PC 13 H 0 HR 0 K 1 BB 0 R 0 ER 0 ERA 1.29
2B: Nioka, H. Matsui, Nishi,
Motoki, Imaoka, Yano, Kataoka
HR: Hamanaka (12), T. Shimizu (8)
RBI: Hamanaka, Imaoka, T. Shimizu, Motoki 2, Nioka, Y. Takahashi, H. Matsui
2, Kiyohara, Nishi 3, Takayuki Saito
HBP: Murata (Fukuhara)
GIDP: Imaoka, Etoh
LOB: Hanshin 6, Yomiuri 4
Season Series: Hanshin 5,
Yomiuri 9
Game Time: 3:20
Attendance: 55,000
Umpires: Kamimoto (HP), Sasaki (1B), Shikida (2B), Tani (3B)
Ramirez Slam, Three Run
Homer, Club Record Nine RBIs Crushes Carp
17-3
Yakult Swallows leftfielder Alex Ramirez had the best day of his entire pro
baseball career Saturday, as he slugged a pair of homers, one a grand slam,
as part of a 4-6 night and set a new RBI team single game standard with nine
runs driven in to spur his team's steamrollering of the Hiroshima Carp at
Hiroshima Municipal Stadium 17-3. All five Carp hurlers where screwed, blued
and tattooed for at least two runs in the barrage by the birds. Ramirez also
seized the top spot in the CL RBI race with 53.
The Swallows offense in general also had its highest hit total, 22, since
September of 1984, when it rapped out 23 knocks against the Hanshin Tigers.
Four players had at least three hits and another three had a pair. This display
also ended a four game losing streak against Hiroshima.
Yakult centerfielder Mitsuru Manaka leadoff the game with a single to center
and, one out later, rightfielder Atsunori Inaba walked. First baseman Roberto
Petagine whiffed, but then Carp starter Yasushi Tsuruta nailed catcher Atusya
Furuta with a pitch to load the bases. Ramirez was next and after taking
a couple of fastballs, he got the forkball he was expecting, a hanger, and
though he got it kind of on the middle of the bat (see photo at the end of
the paragraph), he got it up into the wind and the ball carried out to
rightcenter for a "sensei manrui" (grand slam that gives you the first lead
of the game) and a 4-0 advantage. singled
http://www.nikkansports.com/news/baseball/bb-020707-5.jpg
Yakult starter Takahiko Hagiwara, unfortunately, fared about as well in the
Carp half of the same frame. Centerfielder Koichi Ogata singled to center.
Takuya Kimura singled to right. Second baseman Eddie Diaz singled to left
to push Ogata in. Two outs later, rightfielder Tomonori Maeda singled to
center to recall Kimura and third baseman Takahiro Arai singled to right
to deliver Diaz and it was 4-3.
In the top of the third,.Petagine latched on to a Tsuruta offering and buried
it beyond the rightcenterfield fence. The Swallows then loaded the bases
with one out to depose Tsuruta, but Koji Hiroike induced a pair of groundouts
to keep anyone else from scoring and the inning concluded with the Swallows
up 5-3.
The next time up, Yakult got another longball to widen their lead. Shortstop
Shinya Miyamoto walked to open the fourth and then Inaba tried his luck to
rightcenter, too, and it was successful, for his second roundtripper of the
campaign and it was 7-3.
Rigo Beltran was asked by Carp boss Koji Yamamoto to take the hill in the
fifth, and with dire results. Third baseman Akinori Iwamura walked and went
to second on a groundout. Reliever Yuya Kamada, who had replaced Hagiwara
in the third, slapped a comebacker to Beltran, who threw it away attempting
to get Iwamura at third and the Swallows had another run at 8-3.
The Swallows returned and gave Beltran a real hiding in the sixth. Petagine
cracked a one out single to left. Catcher Kosei Ono singled to right. Ramirez
went to the opposite field and put it in the seats for a three run homer
to make it 11-3. The next man up, Iwamura, exited stage left for back to
back jacks and now the difference with Hiroshima was a yawning 12-3.
In the seventh, Miyamoto singled to center and Inaba split the outfielders
in leftcenter for an RBI double. Petagine creamed another one into
the rightfield bleachers and it was 15-3. They then turned two singles and
a pair of doubles into two runs off of Rob Stanifer in the ninth to cap off
the rain of runs at 17-3.
For Hiroshima, Diaz was 1-4 with an RBI and is at .314. First baseman Luis
Lopez was 0-3 and is at .243.
For Yakult, Ramirez was 4-6 with nine RBIs and is at .297. Petagine was 3-5
with three RBIs and an error and is at .297.
Pitching Lines:
Yakult:
T.
Hagiwara IP 2.0
PC 40 H 5 HR 0 K 1 BB 0 R 3 ER 3 ERA 5.02
Kamada (W, 1-0) IP 3.0 PC 42 H 2 HR 0 K 3 BB 0 R 0 ER 0 ERA 0.00
Newman
IP 2.0 PC 21 H 1 HR 0 K 2 BB 1 R 0 ER 0 ERA 3.26
Matsuda
IP 1.0 PC 16 H 1 HR 0 K 3 BB 0 R 0 ER 0 ERA 0.00
Teramura
IP 1.0 PC 15 H 1 HR 0 K 1 BB 0 R 0 ER 0 ERA 3.92
Hiroshima:
Tsuruta (L,
2-4) IP 2.1 PC 55 H 6 HR 2 K 2 BB 1 R 5 ER 5 ERA 7.61
Hiroike
IP 1.2 PC 32 H 3 HR 1 K 0 BB 1 R 2 ER 2 ERA 3.63
Beltran
IP 1.1 PC 38 H 4 HR 2 K 1 BB 1 R 5 ER 5 ERA 9.15
Hayashi
IP 1.2 PC 25 H 5 HR 1 K 2 BB 0 R 3 ER 3 ERA 16.20
Stanifer
IP 2.0 PC 28 H 4 HR 0 K 2 BB 0 R 2 ER 2 ERA 4.42
E: Petagine, Lopez, Beltran
2B: Manaka, Inaba, K. Ono, Iwamura
HR: Ramirez 2, (15), Petagine 2 (20), Inaba (2), Iwamura (10)
RBI: Ramirez 9, Petagine 3, Inaba 3, Iwamura, Kamada, Diaz, T. Maeda, Arai
WP: Newman
HBP: Furuta (Tsuruta)
PB: K. Ono
GIDP: Furuta
LOB: Yakult 9, Hiroshima 9
Season Series: Yakult 4,
Hiroshima 7
Game Time: 3:12
Attendance: 15,000
Umpires: T. Kobayashi (HP), Nishimoto (1B), Watamari (2B), Suginaga (3B)
Shindo, Seguignol Combine
for Seven RBIs in 10-5 Bopping of Nippon
Ham
Koo Dae-sung, perhaps as a response to Pacific League manager Masataka
Nishida's leaving him off the all star team despite leading the circuit in
ERA, twirled another brilliant seven innings of one run ball on seven hits
against Nippon Ham at Kobe Green Stadium Saturday to reduce his ERA to 1.87
as his teammates were shredding Fighters starter Itsuki Shoda for six earned
runs on six hits in 1.1 innings and then reliever Tateishi for four more
to win it easily, 10-5.
Shoda went through the first with no trouble but then couldn't get anyone
out in the second. Leftfielder Kazuhiko Shiotani singled to left. First baseman
Scott Sheldon singled to center. Shortstop Makoto Shiozaki beat out a tapper
to load the bases. Third baseman Tatsuya Shindo singled to right and Shiotani
crossed to make it 1-0. Catcher Takeshi Hidaka singled to center to register
Sheldon and Shiozaki, but Shindo was out trying to go to third. Rightfielder
Daisuke Joji walked. Tani singled to left and Hidaka wheeled around. That
was the end for Shoda, who was substitued for Naoyuki Tateishi. Second baseman
Koichi Oshima grounded to second. DH Fernando Seguignol, though, went kablooie
and airmailed one to an address in the centerfield bleachers for a three
run homer and it was 7-0 Blue Wave.
Nippon Ham struck for their first run in the third, when shortstop Makoto
Kaneko singled to right and went to second on a groundout. First baseman
Michihiro Ogasawara doubled down the leftfield line and it was 7-1 Orix.
Orix then pillaged Tateishi for three more before going into hibernation.
With two out, Sheldon singled to right, as did Shiozaki. Shindo mashed one
over the leftfield wall and Orix was in control 10-1.
In the top of the eighth, Ogasawara raked an offering from reliever Jun Hagiwara
out to right to make it 10-2.
Imamura was then sent in to mop up for Orix and he demonstrated why he has
an ERA over 6.00. With one down, Kaneko singled to right. Rightfielder Kazuteru
Shimada singled to center. Ogasawara singled to center to plate Kaneko with
his third hit. Leftfielder Sherman Obando doubled in Shimada and second baseman
Kuniyuki Kimoto flied out to see in Ogasawara. Imamura walked third baseman
Yukio Tanaka and that was all for him, as Toshihiro Kase had to save his
butt, DH D.T. Cromer flying to left to put this baby to bed.
With his 3-5 day, Ogasawara is now hitting .365, leading the league by 26
points.
For Orix, Seguignol was 1-4 with three RBIs and is at .218. Sheldon was 2-4
with two strikeouts and is at .224.
For Nippon Ham, Obando was 3-5 with an RBI and a steal and is at .253. Cromer
was 0-4 with a walk and is at .274.
Pitching Lines:
Nippon Ham:
Shoda (L,
2-4) IP 1.1 PC 38 H 6 HR 0 K 0 BB 1 R 6 ER
6 ERA 3.15
Tateishi
IP 3.2 PC 61 H 6 HR 2 K 4 BB 0 R 4 ER 4 ERA 6.30
Muto
IP 2.0 PC 30 H 0 HR 0 K 3 BB 0 R 0 ER 0 ERA 4.64
N. Takahashi IP 1.0 PC 9 H 0 HR
0 K 1 BB 0 R 0 ER 0 ERA 4.91
Orix:
Koo (W,
5-4) IP 7.0 PC 120 H 7 HR 0 K 8
BB 1 R 1 ER 1 ERA 1.82
J. Hagiwara IP 1.0
PC 28 H 2 HR 1 K 0 BB 1 R 1 ER 1 ERA 5.17
Imamura
IP 0.2 PC 23 H 4 HR 0 K 0 BB 1 R 3 ER 3 ERA 6.45
Kase
IP 0.1 PC 2 H 0 HR 0 K 0 BB 0 R 0 ER 0 ERA 4.26
SB: Obando
2B: M. Ogasawara, Y. Tanaka, Obando, Hidaka
HR: M. Ogasawara (22), Seguignol (17), Shindo (2)
RBI: Seguignol 3, Shindo 4, Tani, Hidaka 2, M. Ogasawara 3, Obando, Kimoto
SF: Kimoto
HBP: Shiotani (Muto)
LOB: Nippon Ham 11, Orix 3
Season Series: Nippon Ham
9, Orix 5
Game Time: 3:13
Attendance: 20,000
Umpires: Maeda (HP), Kodera (1B), Kakigizono (2B), Yoshikawa (3B)
Ninth Inning Nakamura Longball
Gives Buffaloes 7-6
Win
The Kintetsu Buffaloes were down to their last strike Saturday at Sapporo
Dome in the top of the ninth, with Seibu Lions reliever Kiyoshi Toyoda
endeavoring to finish off Buffs third baseman Norihiro Nakamura, who had
already been thrown two strikes he had called unhittable. Toyoda tried his
luck with another 92mph heater, but left it up over the plate and Nakamura
did a real hatchet job on it, sending it the opposite way and well into the
rightfield seats to take his side from a 6-5 deficit to a 7-6 lead. Akinori
Otsuka then came on and retired the Lions in order to end it. That was the
stocky infielder's second come from behind final frame homer of the season
among the five total that have been unloaded in all of Japanese baseball
in 2002.
Buffaloes starter Hisashi Iwakuma lasted just five hitters and 15 pitches,
walking one and hitting another, before he was pulled, though nothing in
the press indicates why. If he's injured, though, it will be a huge loss
to an already thin staff.
The game was scoreless until the fourth, when Lions starter Mitsui seemed
a bit out of sync. Leftfielder Tuffy Rhodes kicked it off with a single to
right. One out later, first baseman Yuji Yoshioka walked. DH Hirotoshi Kitagawa
then got a fastball and lasered it over the leftcenterfield fence for a three
run homer and a 3-0 Buffs lead.
The Lions began to stir in the fifth, when third baseman Tom Evans leadoff
with a triple into the rightfield corner and crossed on a single to left
from catcher Tsutomu Itoh and it was 3-1 Kintetsu.
The Buffs turned that around and enlarged the size of the their lead in the
top of the sixth, as Nakamura leadoff with a single to center, Yoshioka singled
to right and Kitagawa beat out a bleeder to load the bases. Lions reliever
Hayato Aoki plunked pinch hitter Kenshi Kawaguchi to force a run in and shortstop
Masahiro Abe flied out to give Yoshioka time to tag and hustle in to make
it 5-1 Kintetsu.
Seibu, though, didn't quit and things got tense in the bottom segment. With
one down, DH Kazuhiro Wada doubled to leftcenter and went to third on a
groundout. Evans walked. Itoh then went yard to left and now it was a 5-4
contest.
Alex Cabrera stepped up and got counted bigtime in the seventh. Leftfielder
Tetsuya Kakiuchi slapped a two out single single to center and then Cabrera
applied some serious pain to an offering from Akira Okamoto and left the
remains bruised and battered in the leftcenterfield seats for a gyakuten
two run and a 6-5 Lions edge.
But in the ninth, Toyoda couldn't keep a good Buffalo down. Witn one out,
pinch hitter Masuda singled to left. One out later, Nakamura, who was looking
for either a forkball or a fastball, saw Toyoda leave it in his wheelhouse
and it was gone as soon as he hit it for the tying and go ahead runs and
the Osaka second favorite sons were up 7-6. That was the first homer that
Toyoda had surrendered in 25 appearances and the first for Nakamura in nine
games covering 37 at bats.
Otsuka then mosied in and kept the Lions quiet to wrap it up.
Mets scout Isao Ojimi is seriously following Nakamura around, insisting that
the third sacker has what it takes to be an everyday player in MLB (I beg
to differ). Come July 14, Nakamura will qualify for free agency.
For Seibu, Cabrera was 1-4 with two RBIs and is at .285, He has homered in
four consecutive games. Evans was 1-3 with two strikeouts and a walk and
is at .291.
For Kintetsu, Rhodes was 1-5, earning a golden sombrero with four whiffs,
and is at .268.
Pitching Lines:
Kintetsu:
Iwakuma
IP 1.1 PC 15 H 0 HR 0 K 0 BB 1 R 0 ER 0 ERA 3.20
Koike
IP 3.1 PC 68 H 4 HR 0 K 5 BB 1 R 1 ER 1 ERA 5.31
Johnson
IP 2.0 PC 36 H 3 HR 1 K 1 BB 1 R 4 ER 4 ERA 7.50
A.
Okamoto
IP 0.1 PC 14 H 2 HR 1 K 1 BB 0 R 1 ER 1 ERA 1.72
Misawa (W, 3-1) IP 1.0 PC
8 H 0 HR 0 K 1 BB 0 R 0 ER 0 ERA 4.94
A.N. Otsuka (S, 1) IP 1.0 PC 11 H 0 HR 0 K 2 BB 0 R 0 ER
0 ERA 2.70
Seibu:
Mitsui
IP 5.0 PC 76 H 6 HR 1 K 5 BB 2 R 4 ER 4 ERA 2.81
Aoki
IP 2.0 PC 34 H 3 HR 0 K 2 BB 0 R 1 ER 1 ERA 3.30
Mori
IP 1.0 PC 13 H 1 HR 0 K 1 BB 0 R 0 ER 0 ERA 1.62
Toyoda (L, 4-1) IP 1.0 PC 27 H 2 HR 1 K 2 BB 0 R 2 ER 2
ERA 1.33
E: Kakiuchi
SB: K. Matsui, T. Itoh, H. Takagi
2B: Kitagawa, Wada 2
3B: Evans
HR: Kitagawa (1), N. Nakamura (24), T. Itoh (5), Cabrera (23)
RBI: Kitagawa 3, N. Nakamura 2, Kawaguchi, M. Abe, T. Itoh 4, Cabrera 2
SF: M. Abe
HBP: Kawaguchi (Aoki), Miyaji (Iwakuma)
GIDP: Cabrera
LOB: Kintetsu 7, Seibu 6
Season Series: Kintetsu
7, Seibu 5
Game Time: 3:39
Attendance: 20,000
Umpires: Yanagida (HP), Akimura (1B), Nakamura (2B), Tachibana (3B)
May's Two Homers Help Lotte
Topple Hawks 6-4
Daiei Hawks manager Sadaharu Oh had rookie reliever Iijima make his first
ever pro start Saturday at Fukuoka Dome, but he didn't last out the third,
as the Chiba Lotte Marines got two homers from DH Derrick May to win for
the only time this season so far at the Hawks nest 6-4. Shingo Ono wasn't
that great, but by allowing three runs in five innings, he was just good
enough to claim his second victory of the year.
Daiei went out to a 2-0 lead in the first, as leftfielder Pedro Valdez walked
and second baseman Tadahito Iguchi mortared one over the centerfield wall
for his tenth homer of the campaign.
May leadoff the top of the second by taking a drive out to the rightcenterfield
bleachers to make it 2-1 Hawks.
In the third, Lotte leftfielder Kenji Morozumi leadoff with an infield hit
and stole the first of his two bases. Two outs later, rightfielder Takashi
Tachikawa singled to right to topple Iijima and knot it at 2-2. Nobuyasu
Matsu replaced him and May greeted him by making him ask for a new ball,
since May launched the old one over the rightfield fence for a two run homer
and it was now 4-2 Lotte.
Daiei loaded the bases with one out in the fourth on a hit batsman, a walk
and a single by DH Noriyoshi Omichi. But rightfielder Koji Akiyama rolled
into a 6-4-3 double play to kill the rally.
Lotte then played add on in the fifth, when first baseman Kazuya Fukuura
doubled down the leftfield line and went to third on a groundout. May flied
out, but centerfielder Saburo Omura singled to right to usher in Fukuura
and second baseman Koichi Hori doubled to rightcenter to drive in Omura to
make it 6-2.
In the sixth, Iguchi was hit again, this time by reliever Hiroyuki Kobayashi,
and first baseman Nobuhiko Matsnaka homered to left and Lotte's lead had
been whittled down to 6-4. That turned out to the final score, since Brian
Sikorsky and Masahide Kobayashi shut the Hawks down the rest of the way.
For Lotte, May was 3-5 with three RBIs and is at .236.
For Daiei, Valdez was 0-3 with a walk and is at .283.
Pitching Lines:
Lotte:
S. Ono (W,
2-3) IP
5.0 PC 84 H 3 HR 1 K 3 BB 2 R 3 ER 3 ERA 4.43
H.
Kobayashi
IP 1.0 PC 28 H 2 HR 1 K 2 BB 1 R 1 ER 1 ERA 3.06
Fujita
IP 0.2 PC 10 H 0 HR 0 K 0 BB 0 R 0 ER 0 ERA 4.50
Sikorsky
IP 1.1 PC 24 H 1 HR 0 K 2 BB 0 R 0 ER 0 ERA 4.40
M. Kobayashi (S, 14) IP 1.0 PC 7 H 0 HR 0 K 1 BB 0 R 0 ER 0 ERA
1.45
Daiei:
Iijima (L,
3-3) IP 2.2 PC
63 H 3 HR 1 K 2 BB 1 R 3 ER 3 ERA 3.41
Matsu
IP 2.0 PC 10 H 3 HR 1 K 0 BB 1 R 2 ER 2 ERA 1.80
Matsumoto
IP 0.1 PC 8 H 2 HR 0 K 0 BB 0 R 1 ER 1 ERA 1.17
Ogura
IP 2.0 PC 35 H 1 HR 0 K 4 BB 1 R 0 ER 0 ERA 1.80
K.
Okamoto
IP 1.0 PC 19 H 1 HR 0 K 0 BB 0 R 0 ER 0 ERA 1.42
Pedraza
IP 1.0 PC 20 H 1 HR 0 K 1 BB 0 R 0 ER 0 ERA 3.18
E: Torigoe
SB: S. Omura, Hori, Morozumi 2
2B: Akiyama, Fukuura, Hori, May
HR: May 2 (7), Iguchi (10), Matsunaka (12)
RBI: Tachikawa, May 3, S. Omura, Hori, Iguchi 2, Matsunaka 2
HBP: Hori (Iijima), Iguchi 2 (S. Ono)
Balk: Matsumoto
GIDP: Akiyama
LOB: Lotte 10, Daiei 6
Season Series: Lotte 3,
Daiei 9
Game Time: 4:00
Attendance: 48,000
Umpires: Nagami (HP), Yamamura (1B), Hayashi (2B), Higashi (3B)
Yoshimi Makes Ogawa Two
Run Homer Standup Against Dragons
2-1
Yuji Yoshimi outpitched Takashi Ogasawara Saturday at Toyama Municipal Stadium
to lead the Yokohama Bay Stars past the Chunichi Dragons 2-1. Stars third
baseman Hirofumi Ogawa provided the only offense that Yoshimi required, homering
to leftcenter with rightfielder Boi Rodrigues on second after a double in
the second.
The Dragons scored their sole run in the sixth by combining a single to center
from centerfielder Kuramoto and a sacrifice fly by rightfielder Kosuke Fukudome
to center. However, the game could very well have been tied had shortstop
Hirokazu Ibata not been thrown out trying to steal after he leadoff with
a single to center.
In the eighth, Chunichi outfielder Onishi doubled down the rightfield line
to commence the stanza and was sacrificed to third, but two Yokohama relievers
struckout the following two hitters and that was effectively the ballgame.
For Yokohama, centerfielder Ernie Young was 0-4 with two strikeouts and is
at .186. Rodrigues was 1-4 and is at .274.
For Chunichi,
Pitching:
Yokohama:
Yoshimi (W,
5-3) IP 7.1 PC 95 H 7 HR 0 K 5 BB 0 R 1 ER 1 ERA 3.21
Azuma
IP 0.1 PC 7 H 0 HR 0 K 1 BB 0 R 0 ER 0 ERA 2.76
R. Kawahara IP
0.1 PC 3 H 0 HR 0 K 1 BB 0 R 0 ER 0 ERA 2.70
T. Saito (S, 13) IP 1.0 PC 10 H
0 HR 0 K 0 BB 0 R 0 ER 0 ERA 2.43
Chunichi:
T. Ogasawara (L,
5-4) IP 8.0 PC 109 H 5 HR 1 K 6 BB 1 R 2 ER 2 ERA 3.22
Iwase
IP 1.0 PC 8 H 0 HR 0 K 0 BB 0 R 0 ER 0 ERA 1.47
2B: Rodrigues, Onishi
3B: Kuramoto
HR: Ogawa (4)
RBI: Ogawa 2
SF: Fukudome
GIDP: Saeki
LOB: Yokohama 3, Chunichi 5
Season Series: Yokohama
5, Chunichi 9
Game Time: 2:45
Attendance: 16,000
Umpires: Yoshimoto (HP), Kittaka (1B), Hamano (2B), K. Kobayashi (3B)
Marty Kuehnert Ruminates
on the Day of the MLB All Star
Game
See Japan Times story at:
http://www.japantimes.co.jp/cgi-bin/getsp.pl5?sp20020710mk.htm
Today in Japanese Baseball
History
This report is for July 6th and on that date in Japanese baseball history
in 1973, former Yankee Joe Pepitone, who was then with Yakult, just disappeared.
What happened was that he went back to the U.S. without telling anyone. So
he was, as you can guess, released.
Hisanori Takahashi Sinks Moore, Hanshin 4-1
Noticing that his fastball and slider were up in the strike zone the first couple of innings, Yomiuri Giants lefthander Hisanori Takahashi began relying on his sinker and to good effect, as the Hanshin Tigers didn't record a safety for the remaining five frames, as the kyojin exploited an error by Tigers third baseman Atsushi Kataoka to go in front and then got a two run homer from Godzilla Matsui for insurance in a 4-1 victory Friday at Tokyo Dome. Takahashi improved to 7-1 while Hanshin starter Trey Moore, who was excellent, saw his fall to 6-6. Hanshin also tumbled into fourth place thanks to the defeat.
One unfortunate fallout of the loss for Moore, though, is that he popped a blister on his index finger and was taken off the roster until it heals. The question is, how does that affect his all star berth? According to Sports Nippon, he won't be able to appear in it, which is sad for someone whose determination as well as fine pitching has injected a lot of life into the resurgent Tigers this season.
The Osaka contingent went in front in the second, as Takahashi endeavored to sneak a fastball under the hands of centerfielder Osamu Hamanaka, but Hamanaka turned and burned, unleashing a rocket into the leftfield seats for a 1-0 lead.
Moore had some control problems in the second and it cost him. Matsui tattooed a fastball past first for a basehit. First baseman Kazuhiro Kiyohara and third baseman Akira Etoh both walked to load the bases. Second baseman Toshihisa Nishi lifted a sac fly to left and it was a 1-1 deadlock.
In the fifth, the Giants received some defensive charity from the Tigers infield. With two gone, Kataoka fielded a ground ball from leftfielder Takayuki Shimizu and then dropped it. Shortstop Tomohiro Nioka looped a broken bat single to left and Shimizu motored to third. Moore then got a slider in to Yoshinobu Takahashi, but it was also up, and "Wolf," as he is nicknamed, fisted it into centerfield for an RBI and a 2-1 Giants advantage.
The score remained that way until the eighth, when Takahashi leadoff with a single off of Hanshin reliever Shoji Toyama to right and now it was Godzilla's turn. Matsui was 0-13 in 1999 against Toyama, who has generally owned the Yomiuri centerfielder. This time, though, Matsui would turn the tables. Toyama threw a 1-1 forkball that was up and on the outer half of the plate. Matsui appeared to be expecting something harder and had already begun to open his hips up to turn on the ball. He kept his hands back, however, and then threw his top hand at the ball and got it flush on the barrel and lined it into the centerfield seats 415 away, a fearsome piece of hitting technique, kind of Jim Edmonds-like. You can see what I mean when you view the following pic: http://www.nikkansports.com/news/baseball/bb-020706-6.jpg In any event, that made it 4-1 Yomiuri.
That was Matsui's 299th lifetime dinger and he will soon become the second youngest man ever to make it to 300 long gone kabongs in Japanese history. I trust that Baseball Guru readers, who are a cut above in any case, know who the youngest was. Godzilla said that he would like to hit the third century mark in front of the home folks before the all star break.
Junichi Kawahara came in from the pen batta bing, batta boom, game over.
For Hanshin, first baseman George Arias was 0-4 and is at .258. Moore was 0-2 and is at .257.
Source of some details on this game from the Yomiuri Shimbun english edition.
Pitching Lines:
Hanshin:
Moore (L, 6-6) IP 6.2 PC 112 H 3 HR 0 K 6 BB 5 R 2 ER 1
ERA 3.00
Hesaka
IP 0.1 PC 3 H 0 HR 0 K 0 BB 0 R 0 ER 0 ERA 0.00
Toyama
IP 0.0 PC 5 H 2 HR 1 K 0 BB 0 R 2 ER 2 ERA 10.13
Kanazawa IP 1.0
PC 11 H 0 HR 0 K 1 BB 0 R 0 ER 0 ERA 2.41
Yomiuri:
H. Takahashi (W, 7-1) IP 7.0 PC 98 H 2 HR 1 K 5 BB 3 R 1 ER 1
ERA 2.95
Jeon
IP 1.0 PC 20 H 1 HR 0 K 0 BB 0 R 0 ER 0 ERA 2.38
J. Kawahara (S, 15) IP 1.0 PC 11
H 0 HR 0 K 1 BB 0 R 0 ER 0 ERA 2.00
E: Kataoka
2B: Imaoka
HR: Hamanaka (11), H. Matsui (17)
RBI: Hamanaka, H. Matsui 2, Nishi, Y. Takahashi
SF: Nishi
WP: Moore
GIDP: Nishi
LOB: Hanshin 4, Yomiuri 6
Season Series: Hanshin 5, Yomiuri 8
Game Time: 2:40
Attendance: 55,000
Umpires: Watada (HP), Shikida (1B), Tani (2B), Kamimoto (3B)
Seventh Inning Ogata Balst a Winner for Hiroshima
Somehow, "nuketara shikkari utsu miseru yo" lacks the elan of "you hang 'em, we'll bang 'em," but that is exactly what occured at Hiroshima Municipal Stadium on a misty, drizzly Friday, as Hiroshima Carp centerfielder Koichi Ogata thwacked an offering from Yakult Swallows reliever Ryu Kawabata in the bottom of the seventh inning to power a 6-5 Carp triumph. Starter Ken Takahashi got the win for Hiroshima even though his performance blew, five runs on ten hits in seven innings to elevate his squad to third place in the CL pennant race.
Yakult starter Shugo Fujii got off to a rocky beginning in the first. With one out, he plunked Jun Hirose and walked Ogata. Leftfielder Tomoaki Kanemoto singled to right to pack the sacks. Second baseman Eddie Diaz singled to left and Hirose and Ogata galloped in for a 2-0 Carp lead.
The Swallows compensated for that in the top of the second, when leftfielder Alex Ramirez' single to left was followed up by a free roundtrip tour to leftcenter by third baseman Akinori Iwamura and it was 2-2.
Their next time at bat in the third, the Swallows splashed a three spot on the big board. Shortstop Shinya Miyamoto singled to center. Rightfielder Atsunori Inaba laid down a sac bunt. Takahashi tried to get Miyamoto at second, but it was not in time. Both men moved up on a groundout to first. Catcher Atsuya Furuta singled to right to cash the runners in and it was 4-2 Yakult.
But Fujii wasn't on and Hiroshima first baseman Luis Lopez got off. Diaz walked to open the inning and Lopez mashed a Fujii delivery into the leftfield stands and it was even again at 4-4.
Miyamoto catalyzed a mini rally for Yakult in the fifth when he cracked a one out single to center and advanced on a groundout. Now let's do some math, boys and girls, shall we? You have a base open with a man on second and Roberto Petagine looking to murder the first hittable ball he sees. Of course, you intentionally walk him! But nope, the Venezuelan cleanup man was allowed to hit and he did, lacing an RBI single to left to bring in Miyamoto with the lead run at 5-4. Yakult then loaded the bases on singles to center from Furuta and Ramirez, but Iwamura came up empty and they weren't able to inflict anymore damage on Takahashi.
Hiroshima charged back suring their turn, as Kimura leadoff with a single to left and went ot second on a sacrifice. One out later, Kanemoto lashed a single to right and Kimura strode in to restore equilibrium at 5-5.
In the seventh, in the aftermath of a blown sacrifice
that resulted in a double play for Hiroshima and thsu now with two down,
Ogata got a hanging slider from Kawabata and pounded it into the leftfield
seats for the 6-5 lead and the W, since Shigeo Tamaki and closer Yasuhiro
Oyamada threw a hitless inning apiece for the Carp to lock it up. You can
see a pic of the
homer at:
http://www.sponichi.co.jp/baseball/kiji/2002/07/06/20020706004530.jpg
For Yakult, Petagine was 1-4 with an RBI and two strikeouts and is at .289. Ramirez was 2-4 with two strikeouts and is at .325.
For Hiroshima, Diaz was 1-3 with a walk and two RBIs and is at .316. Lopez was 1-4 with two RBIs and is at .247.
Pitching Lines:
Yakult:
S.
Fujii
IP 5.0 PC 90 H 6 HR 1 K 4 BB 2 R 5 ER 5 ERA 2.84
Kawabata (L, 1-2) IP 2.0 PC 29 H 4 HR 1 K 1 BB 0 R 1 ER
1 ERA 3.63
Newman
IP 1.0 PC 19 H 1 HR 0 K 1 BB 1 R 0 ER 0 ERA 3.40
Hiroshima:
K. Takahashi (W, 7-6) IP 7.0 PC 101 H 10 HR 1 K 6 BB 0 R 5 ER 5 ERA
3.49
Tamaki
IP 1.0 PC 14 H 0 HR 0 K 1 BB 1 R 0 ER 0 ERA 3.51
Oyamada (S,
19) IP
1.0 PC 10 H 0 HR 0 K 1 BB 0 R 0 ER 0 ERA 1.09
SB: Fukuchi
HR: Iwamura (9), Lopez (5), Ogata (11)
RBI: Iwamura 2, Petagine, Furuta 2, Diaz 2, Lopez 2, Ogata, Kanemoto,
HBP: Hirose (S. Fujii)
GIDP: Manaka, Kanemoto, Hirose
LOB: Yakult 6, Hiroshima 7
Season Series: Yakult 3, Hiroshima 7
Game Time: 3:01
Attendance: 12,000
Umpires: Mori (HP), Watamari (1B), Suginaga (2B), T. Kobayashi (3B)
Powell Taken Deep Twice by Cabrera in First Loss in Two Months
Kintetsu Buffaloes starter Jermey Powell was bidding for his tenth win in a row Friday at Sapporo Dome, but was victimized by a pair of huge two run bombs by Seibu Lions first baseman Alex Cabrera as well as RBI singles from rightfielder Tatsuya Ozeki and centerfielder Kazuhiko Miyaji to lose it 6-5. Fumiya Nishiguchi claimed the victory for the winners, his eighth.
If the crowd came out to see Cabrera hit one real far, they came away delighted, as the former Diamondback followed up on a one out Ozeki single with a mooonshot off of a big slow curve ball that cleared the upper deck entirely and landed on a stairwell above that level, a shot which was estimated at more than 455 feet. Was Cabrera waiting on a breaking ball? He said after the game that Powell had been getting him out with that pitch (Cabrera had been 1-8 on the year against him), so he went up looking for it and got it and made it 2-0 Lions.
Kintetsu did some yardwork of their own in the top of the second to tie it up and then surge ahead.. Kenshi Kawaguchi leadoff with a drive into the rightfield bleachers. Two outs later, shortstop Masahiro Abe belted his third of the year to left to make it 2-2. Catcher Tetsuya Matsuyama doubled off the leftfield wall. Centerfielder Naoyuki Omura singled to left to recall Matoyama and it was 3-2 Buffs.
Powell struckout the side in the second, but when he came back for the third, Cabrera did it to him again. Second baseman Hiroyuki Takagi leadoff with a single to center and went to second on a groundout. Ozeki ripped a shot off the glove of Abe and Takagi kept on running until he hit home as the ball trickled away. Ozeki was sacrificed along, but that proved to be unnecessary, as Powell threw a high fastball to Cabrera that he caved in, the ball landing just to the left of straightway centerfield for another 455 foot voyage and an additional two RBIs to raise his side to 5-3.
In the fifth, leftfielder Tuffy Rhodes may have run the Buffs out of a scoring chance. Omura leadoff with a triple off the rightfield wall. One out later, Nishiguchi nailed Rhodes with a pitch. With third baseman Norihiro Nakamura up at the plate, Rhodes took off for second and the umpire said catcher Tsutomu Itoh's throw was in time, though Rhodes protested that shortstop Kazuo Matsui never touched him before he got to the bag. The umpire's call stood, as it always does, and Nakamura then struckout to end the inning.
No matter which way you cut it, though, that was a bonehead move by Rhodes. For one thing, even if he makes it, you take the bat out of the hands of one of your sluggers, since Nakamura probably would have been intentionally walked to set up a force at every base. Too, as was demonstrated above, if he is out, rather having the possibility of scoring on an out, you now need a knock to bring the runner in. For the record, though, Buffaloes manager Masataka Nishida said that he saw what Rhodes was trying to do and said he liked the ex-Cub's aggressiveness.
Seibu score again in the fifth by converting on an error from second baseman Eiji Mizuguchi. With two outs, Ozeki rolled one to Muzuguchi, who booted it. He went to second on a wild pitch by Powell. Miyaji singled to right and Ozeki blazed in and it was 6-3 Lions.
Kintetsu rallied in the sixth to heighten the tension. DH Kenshi Kawaguchi walked to start it and rightfielder Fumitoshi Takano flamed a one out triple up the rightcenter gap to redeem Kawaguchi. Abe grounded to second and it was 6-5 Seibu. Kintetsu would only muster one more hit the rest of the way, however, and that was the ballgame.
For Seibu, third baseman Tom Evans was 0-2 with a walk and is at .289. Cabrera was 2-4 with four RBIs and is at .286.
For Kintetsu, Rhodes was 0-3 with an HBP and is at. 269.
Pitching Lines:
Kintetsu:
Powell (L, 9-4) IP 5.0 PC 80 H 6 HR 2 K 5 BB 0 R
6 ER 5 ERA 3.41
T. Yoshida IP 2.1 PC
36 H 0 HR 0 K 2 BB 1 R 0 ER 0 ERA 1.59
A.N. Otsuka IP 0.2 PC 6 H
0 HR 0 K 0 BB 0 R 0 ER 0 ERA 3.18
Seibu:
Nishiguchi (W, 8-4) IP 6.0 PC 109 H 8 HR 2 K 6 BB 1 R 5 ER 5 ERA 3.35
Doi
IP 1.1 PC 21 H 0 HR 0 K 1 BB 1 R 0 ER 0 ERA 1.83
Mori
IP 0.2 PC 8 H 0 HR 0 K 1 BB 0 R 0 ER 0 ERA 1.66
Toyoda (S, 13) IP 1.0
PC 11 H 1 HR 0 K 0 BB 0 R 0 ER 0 ERA 0.69
E: Mizuguchi
2B: Matoyama
3B: Takano, N. Omura
HR: Kawaguchi (4), M. Abe (3), Cabrera 2 (22)
RBI: Cabrera 4, Ozeki, Miyaji, N. Omura, Kawaguchi, Takano, M. Abe 2
HBP: Rhodes (Nishiguchi)
GIDP: N. Omura
LOB: Kintetsu 5, Seibu 2
Season Series: Kintetsu 6, Seibu 5
Game Time: 2:50
Attendance: 16,000
Umpires: Sakaemura (HP), Tachibana (1B), Akimura (2B), Yanagida (3B)
Kokubo's Four RBIs Lead 8-3 Thumping of Lotte by Daiei
In front of his old manager at Aoyama Gakuin University and 46,000 other folks at Fukuoka Dome Friday, Daiei Hawks third baseman Hiroki Kokubo homered and drove in four runs to help starter Akichika Yamada win his first game in just a hair under two months in an 8-3 Hawks victory over the Chiba Lotte Marines. Another alumnus of that school, which under the tutelage of manager Masao Kawaharai as produced so many fine pro players, second baseman Tadahito Iguchi, also went deep.
Naoyuki Shimizu started for Lotte and he was leaving a lot of pitches up in the zone, and, as he told reporters after the game, "I couldn't make that work," as he was assaulted for five earned runs on five hits to even his record at 5-5.
Daiei went to work on Shimizu rightaway, as centerfielder Hiroshi Shibahara leadoff the bottom of the first with a single to center and leftfielder Pedro Valdez, who is starting to show signs of pulling out of his long slump, singled to right. Iguchi sacrificed both men along and Kokubo then pounded a ball off the 18 foot high leftfield fence for a double as Valdez and Shibahara found their way home for a 2-0 Hawks lead. First baseman Nobuhiko Matsunaka smacked a liner that was headed for leftcenter if not for the intervention of Lotte's gold glove shortstop Makoto Kosaka, who snared it for the second out. DH Noriyoshi Omichi then struckout to minimize the damage to Shimizu.
In the third, Valdez worked a one out walk and was forced out at second on a grounder from Iguchi. Kokubo then stepped up and atomized an 89mph fastball on the outer half of the plate and hurtled it way back in the leftfield seats to double his side's advantage to 4-0.
Yamada, who has been having problems sticking around past the fifth recently, appeared as if he was going to require a rescue effort in the fifth, as Lotte made it close. Third baseman Tadaharu Sakai leadoff with a bunt single. One out later, leftfielder Kenji Morozumi singled to center. The little guy Kosaka tattooed a shot off the centerfield fence for a double to drive in Sakai. First baseman Kazuya Fukuura flew out to deep center to plate Morozumi and get Kosaka to third. Rightfielder Takashi Tachikawa then beat out a tapper toward third and Kosaka was in with the third run to make it 4-3.
Daiei went back up by two in the fifth, as shortstop Yusuke Torigoe tripled into the leftcenter alley and came in on a sac fly from Shibahara and the Hawks had a 5-3 edge.
They then tacked on another tally in the sixth, when Matsunaka singled to center with one out, Omichi singled to left and rightfielder Koji Akiyama singled to center to usher in Matsunaka and it was 6-3 Hawks.
In the seventh and with two out, Iguchi righteously abused a curve ball from Lotte reliever Atsushi Yoshida and rocketed it up into the second deck in left to make it 7-3. You can see a pic of the Kokubo and Iguchi dingers at: http://www.nikkansports.com/news/baseball/bb-020706-9.jpg
The Hawks then aquired their final run of the night in the eighth when Omichi finagled a one out walk and was pinch run for by Munenori Kawasaki, who subsequently went to second on a flyout and scored on a single to left from catcher Masanori Taguchi and that's how it ended, 8-3.
For Lotte, DH Derrick May was 1-3 with a walk and is at .227.
For Daiei, Valdez was 1-3 with a walk and is at .287.
Pitching Lines:
Lotte:
N. Shimizu (L, 5-5) IP 4.0 PC 69 H 5 HR 1 K 2 BB 2 R 5 ER 5 ERA 3.65
Kawai
IP 1.1 PC 19 H 1 HR 0 K 2 BB 0 R 1 ER 1 ERA 3.53
H. Kobayashi IP 0.2 PC 14
H 2 HR 0 K 2 BB 0 R 0 ER 0 ERA 2.93
Fujita
IP 0.2 PC 3 H 1 HR 0 K 0 BB 0 R 0 ER 0 ERA 4.82
A.
Yoshida
IP 1.1 PC 31 H 2 HR 1 K 1 BB 1 R 2 ER 2 ERA 3.57
Daiei:
A. Yamada (W, 5-5) IP 5.0 PC 106 H 8 HR 0 K 4 BB 2 R 3 ER 3 ERA
4.30
Matsu
IP 2.0 PC 29 H 1 HR 0 K 0 BB 0 R 0 ER 0 ERA 0.00
K.
Okamoto
IP 1.0 PC 18 H 0 HR 0 K 3 BB 0 R 0 ER 0 ERA 1.54
Matsumoto
IP 1.0 PC 10 H 0 HR 0 K 0 BB 0 R 0 ER 0 ERA 0.00
SB: Kosaka, Tachikawa, Kawasaki
2B: Kosaka, Kokubo
3B: Torigoe
HR: Kokubo (18), Iguchi (9)
RBI: Kokubo 4, Iguchi, Shibahara, Akiyama, Taguchi, Kosaka, Fukuura, Tachikawa
SF: Fukuura, Shibahara
HBP: T. Sakai (A. Yamada)
GIDP: T. Tsuji, Taguchi, P. Valdez
LOB: Lotte 8, Daiei 4
Season Series: Lotte 2, Daiei 9
Game Time: 3:41
Attendance: 46,000
Umpires: Tamba (HP), Hayashi (1B), Higashi (2B), Nagami (3B)
Mets, Braves Circling Around Japanese High Schooler
According to Nikkan Sports, scouts for the Atlanta Braves and the New York Mets are keeping a close eye on Utsunomiya Gakuen righthander Masayoshi Izumi, 18. Izumi, a 5'11" 160 pound Yokohama native who has been playing baseball since first grade, has reportedly touched 92mph on the radar gun. In addition to the heater, he has two types of curve ball, too. Mets scout Isao Ojimi likes his raw potential and due to that wants him to take a shot with the Mets. Braves scout Hiroyuki Ohya likes Izumi's take no prisoners attitude and thinks it's well suited to MLB.
As a first year student high school, Izumi, who was hitting 88mph at the time, hurt his elbow during a Koshien relief appearance and he was converted to an outfielder. However, not satisfied with that, he quit school for a year (in Japan, you only have to attend school up through ninth grade, though more than 90% of Japanese children do finish high school) and basically threw until his elbow quit bothering him. He rejoined his high school squad this year and became its ace and now he looks poised for an appearance at the Koshien Summer Tournament that's coming up. From a press perspective, reporters are hoping that he will hit 93mph or more (150km/h and above is something of a fetish for the baseball press there) on the gun and perhaps be the story of the tournament.
As for Japan's domestic teams, Nippon Ham has expressed interest in him. In a draft that most think will focus mainly on collegians such as Tsuyoshi Wada, Nagisa Arakaki, and Kazuhito Tadano, Izumi's potential could see him go as the highest among high schoolers. Pic of Izumi at: http://www.sponichi.co.jp/baseball/ama/2000summer/82koshien/image/0810ugaku.jpg
Today in Japanese Baseball History
This report is for July 5th and on that date in Japanese baseball history in 1980, in a game at Osaka Stadium between the Nankai Hawks and the Hankyu Braves, Hawks manager Yoshinori Hirose, coach Akitada Niiyama, and first baseman Shinsaku Katahira were ejected when either one or all struck the umpire, the first time in Japanese annals that three people had been tossed in a single incident in a game. I couldn't find what precipitated it.
Hodges Celebrates All Star Nomination with
Tenth Win
Tetsuro Kawajiri, in the wake of throwing 33.2
consecutive shutout innings in the minors for Hanshin this season, was called
back up and made his first start of the season at Meiji Jingu Stadium. The
righthanded sidearmer aquitted himself well, allowing just two runs on seven
hits in six innings of work, both runs coming on a jack into the umbrella
oendan in right with rightfielder Atsunori Inaba aboard. Unfortunately, his
opposite number was Kevin Hodges, who three hit the Tigers in his 6.1 innings
and he collected his seventh consecutive victory 2-0 and tenth overall to
lead everybody in Japan in that department.
The former Mariners farmhand was getting ahead with
first pitch breaking ball strikes consistently and the Tigers found it a
challenge to hit the ball out of the infield. He was swatting the Hanshin
lineup away like a horse swatting away flies and had only one credible threat
during his stint, which came in the sixth. With one out, shortstop Shuta
Tanaka singled to center and third baseman Atsushi Kataoka walked. First
baseman George Arias struckout on a 1-2 89mph fastball, but Yakult manager
Tsutomu Wakamatsui ordered up an intentional walk to rightfielder Shinjiro
Hiyama, one of the league's leading hitters. So with the bases loaded,
centerfielder Osamu Hamanaka stood in and Hodges lured him into grounding
to short to quell the uprising.
The Swallows bats then got active in the home portion,
as Inaba ripped a leadoff single to center and then Petagine put a beating
on the Kawajiri mistake and it was 2-0 home team.
Hodges hit leftfielder Derrick White with a pitch
to begin the seventh, but got catcher Akihiro Yano to flyout. Then Wakamatsu
went to the pen (maybe Hodges had lost something on his fastball?) and Ryota
Igarashi responded with 1.2 superlative innings of one walk scoreless relief
to get to closer Shingo Takatsu.
The sinkerballer surrendered a little parachute
single to left by Hamanaka to lead it off. Veteran Katsumi Hirosawa, himself
a former Swallow, pinch hit in his first at bat of the season and grounded
to third. Yano then went down on strikes. Koji Hirashita was next and he
singled to right to put the tying run on. Second baseman Makoto Imaoka, also
one of the league batting leaders, flew harmelessly to right and Takatsu
had lifetime save number 214.
By winning this game, Hodges became the first foreign
pitcher to outrace everyone else in Japanese baseball to ten victories since
Taigen Kaku (Chinese name: Kuo Tai-yuan) of the Seibu Lions in 1988. Former
Hanshin Tiger Gene Bacque was the first to do it when he pulled it off in
1965. "Even when I've given up runs, they come back and score," Hodges noted
of his offense. "I'm really grateful.for that." The Swallows are the ones
who ought to be grateful, as they have won all of Hodges last 11 starts.
His last loss was May 3rd against the Chunichi Dragons. All star? As the
Japanese say, "monku nashi," or "no doubt about it."
His younger brother, a pitcher for Richmond, the
Braves AAA farm team, will be participating in a minor league all star game,
so they can compare notes when they get a chance. You can see pics of him
at: http://www.sponichi.co.jp/baseball/kiji/2002/07/05/20020705012955.jpg
and http://www.nikkansports.com/news/baseball/bb-020705-3.jpg
For Hanshin, Arias was 0-4 with two strikeouts and
is at .262. White was 0-2 with an HBP and is at .246.
For Yakult, Petagine was 1-3 with two RBIs and a
walk and is at .290. He is also now tied for the CL lead in homers with Arias
at 18. Leftfielder Alex Ramirez was 2-3 and is at .322.
Pitching Lines:
Hanshin:
Kawajiri (L 0-1,) IP 6.0 PC 85 H 7 HR 1 K 2 BB 1 R 2 ER 2 ERA 4.15
Taninaka
IP 1.0 PC 16 H 1 HR 0 K 0 BB 0 R 0 ER 0 ERA 4.20
Toyama
IP 1.0 PC 12 H 0 HR 0 K 1 BB 0 R 0 ER 0 ERA 7.88
Yakult:
Hodges (W, 10-2) IP 6.1 PC 94 H 3 HR 0 K 4 BB 4 R 0 ER 0 ERA
2.66
R.
Igarashi
IP 1.2 PC 20 H 0 HR 0 K 1 BB 1 R 0 ER 0 ERA 2.19
Takatsu (S, 20) IP 1.0 PC 17 H
2 HR 0 K 1 BB 0 R 0 ER 0 ERA 3.00
SB: S. Tanaka
HR: Petagine (18)
RBI: Petagine 2
IBB: Hiyama
WP: Hodges
HBP: White (Hodges)
GIDP: White
LOB: Hanshin 10, Yakult 6
Season Series: Hanshin 7, Yakult 9
Game Time: 2:50
Attendance: 36,000
Umpires: Sasaki (HP), Kamimoto (1B), Yoshimoto (2B), K. Kobayashi (3B)
Watanabe Error, Matsui Triple, Downs Dragons
5-4
An error on a groundball off the bat of Yomiuri
Giants rightfielder Yoshinobu Takahashi by Chunichi Dragons first baseman
Hiroyuki Watanabe in the bottom of the third at Tokyo Dome Thursday lead
to three unearned runs and, at the end of the day, a 5-4 Giants victory to
maintain their healthy lead over the Yakult Swallows in the Central League
pennant race. Masumi Kuwata was the beneficiary of Watanabe's largesse, picking
up his fourth victory with seven innings of three run, four hit ball.
The Dragons soured the Giants faithful when they
took what turned out to be an ephemeral 2-0 advantage in the first. Shortstop
Hirokazu Ibata walked to leadoff the game and second baseman Masahiko Morino
doubled down the rightfield line. Rightfielder Kosuke Fukudome singled to
left and Ibata swept in to make it 1-0. One out later, third baseman Kazuyoshi
Tatsunami flew out to center and Morino tagged and scored for the 2-0 edge.
The Giants halved that in the second, when third
baseman Akira Etoh clobbered a pitch from Dragons starter Kenta Asakura over
the rightfield fence for an opposite field home run and it was 2-1 Dragons.
In that pivotal third inning, Giants leftfielder
Takayuki Shimizu singled to center with one out. Shortstop Tomohiro Nioka
struckout. Takahashi then hit one to Watanabe, who geeked it. That gave Godzilla
Matsui a chance to hit and he fought Asakura to a 3-2 count over the course
of eight pitches. On the ninth, the Ishikawa native rifled a pea past Watanabe
and down into the rightfield corner to easily score both runners while he
made like a bat out of hell for third for his 16th career triple. First baseman
Kazuhiro Kiyohara then produced a clutch single to left and it was 4-2 Giants.
Asakura bent but didn't break from there through
the sixth, weathering a couple of two out scoring threats. In the seventh,
however, he hung a forkball to Nioka, who hit it real hard and kinda far
for a solo homer and it was 5-2 Yomiuri.
The Dragons retaliated in the top of the eighth,
when Kuwata walked Ibata to leadoff the inning. Giants manager Tatsunori
Hara waved in reliever Hideki Okajima, who got two easy outs. But Watanabe,
seeking to redeem himself for the important miscue, took Okajima over the
leftfield wall and it was 5-4 Giants.
That was as far as the Dragons were able to go,
though, as Giants Junichi Kawahara spun a 1-2-3 ninth to put it in the fridge
for the kyojin.
No foreign players appeared in this one.
Pitching Lines:
Chunichi:
Asakura (L, 5-6) IP 8.0 PC 149 H 11 HR 2 K 4 BB 3 R 5 ER 2 ERA 2.95
Yomiuri:
Kuwata (W, 4-3) IP 7.0 PC 106 H
4 HR 0 K 3 BB 3 R 3 ER 3 ERA 2.27
Okajima
IP 1.0 PC 10 H 1 HR 1 K 1 BB 0 R 1 ER 1 ERA 3.98
J. Kawahara (S, 14) IP 1.0 PC 8 H 0 HR
0 K 0 BB 0 R 0 ER 0 ERA 2.08
E: H.Y. Watanabe
2B: Morino, Kuwata
3B: H. Matsui
HR: H.Y. Watanabe (2), Etoh (8), Nioka (7)
RBI: H. Matsui 2, Kiyohara, Etoh, Nioka, Fukudome, H.Y. Watanabe 2, Tatsunami
SF: Tatsunami
WP: Asakura
LOB: Chunichi 4, Yomiuri 10
Season Series: Chunichi 6, Yomiuri 8
Game Time: 3:14
Attendance: 55,000
Umpires: Tomoyori (HP), Tani (1B), Nishimoto (2B), Kiuchi (3B)
Clutch Saeki RBI Single Earns Yokohama 6-5
Triumph
A timely single by Yokohama Bay Stars first baseman
Takahiro Saeki in the bottom of the eighth inning at Yokohama Stadium Thursday
gave the home team a 6-5 lead, one they were able to defend and they ended
a three game losing streak in snatching off a 6-5 triumph over the Hiroshima
Carp.Stars starter Daisuke Miura, after being named to his first all star
team, went out and stunk, being knocked around for five earned runs on seven
hits in seven innings. Thus, closer Takashi Saito was credited with his first
win of the year.
Hiroshima starter Shinji Sasaoka's performance was
as ugly as Miura's, being pulled in the fifth in the aftermath of permitting
five starts baserunners to reach home on ten hits, though he didn't figure
in the decision.
The Carp were first to get to the head of the line
in the second, when second baseman Eddie Diaz singled to center and, one
out later, third baseman Takahiro Arai boomed one beyond the leftcenterfield
fence for a 2-0 Hiroshima lead.
Yokohama got off the shnide to tie in the bottom
of the inning, as centerfielder Ernie Young leadoff with a single to center
and, one out later, third baseman Hirofumi Ogawa walked. Catcher Ryoji Aikawa
singled to center to plate Young and Kazu Tanaka singled to right for the
equalizer and it was 2-2 after two.
The Stars then came back up in the fourth and pulled
ahead. Rightfielder Boi Rodrigues singled to center and Ogawa singled to
right. Two outs later, Miura singled to center to deliver Rodrigues to make
it 3-2 Yokohama.
An inning later, Yokohama knocked Sasaoka out of
the box. Shortstop Takuro Ishii commenced with with a single to right, but
was out trying to steal second. Saeki singled to right, too. Young doubled
to rightcenter. Rodrigues directed a single near the rightfield line to drive
in Saeki and Young for a 5-2 Stars lead.
The Carp retorted with some more lightning in the
sixth. With two gone, leftfielder Tomoaki Kanemoto singled to left and Diaz
cleaned and jerked one into the centerfield bleachers to shrink the gap with
the Stars to 5-4.
Miura then gave the lead away in the seventh. With
one out, catcher Shuji Nishiyama legged out a bleeder toward third and was
pinch run for by Okagami, who went to second on a groundout by rightfielder
Tomonori Maeda. Takuya Kimura then hit a little groundball back to the mound.
Miura, feeling pressured by Kimura's speed, threw hastily to first and past
Saeki, which enabled Okagami to score to knot it at 5-5.
Yokohama Masaaki Mori is a proponent of small ball
and the eighth inning must have tickled him pink. Second baseman Hitoshi
Taneda started it with a single to left and he went to second on a sacrifice.
Rigo Beltran (can somebody please tell me why he isn't in the minors?) was
summoned by Carp boss Koji Yamamoto and the first pitch he threw Saeki went
for, getting it on the end of the bat, but yet finding some empty real estate
to go up 6-5.
Hiroshima then had to take on Takashi Saito, who
has some pretty wicked stuff when he's on, and they failed, not being able
to transgress the infield and it was see you later.
For Yokohama, Young was 2-5 with two strikeouts
and is at .197. Rodrigues was 2-4 with two RBIs and two strikeouts and is
at .274.
For Hiroshima, Diaz was 2-4 with two RBIs and is
at .315. First baseman Luis Lopez was 0-4 and is at .247.
Pitching Lines:
Hiroshima:
Sasaoka
IP 4.1 PC 69 H 10 HR 0 K 4 BB 1 R 5 ER 5 ERA 3.63
Stanifer
IP 0.2 PC 19 H 1 HR 0 K 0 BB 1 R 0 ER 0 ERA 3.86
Hiroike
IP 1.0 PC 18 H 1 HR 0 K 0 BB 0 R 0 ER 0 ERA 2.87
Kobayashi (L, 3-3) IP 1.1 PC 26 H 3 HR
0 K 1 BB 0 R 1 ER 1 ERA 2.28
Beltran
IP 0.0 PC 1 H 1 HR 0 K 0 BB 0 R 0 ER 0 ERA 7.36
Tamaki
IP 0.2 PC 11 H 0 HR 0 K 1 BB 1 R 0 ER 0 ERA 3.65
Yokohama:
Miura
IP 7.0 PC 103 H 7 HR 2 K 5 BB 0 R 5 ER 4 ERA 2.96
T. Saito (W, 1-1) IP 2.0 PC 34 H 1 HR 0 K 3 BB 0
R 0 ER 0 ERA 2.51
E: Miura, Taneda
SB: Ogata
2B: Young, Ryoji Aikawa
3B: I. Asai
HR: Arai (15), Diaz (14)
RBI: Saeki, Rodrigues 2, Ryoji Aikawa, Miura, K. Tanaka, Arai 2, Diaz 2
IBB: Rodrigues
HBP: Ogata (Miura)
LOB: Hiroshima 4, Yokohama 12
Season Series: Hiroshima 6, Yokohama 7
Game Time: 3:14
Attendance: 12,000
Umpires: Shikida (HP), Suginaga (1B), T. Kobayashi (2B), ? (3B)
Central and Pacific Leagues Announce Their
All Star Teams
Well, it's getting to be all star time for MLB and
it for Japan as well. Thursday, the Central and Pacific Leagues announced
who made it to this year's mid-summer classic:
Central:
Pitchers:
Kei Igawa (Hanshin), Hideki Okajima (Yomiuri), Junichi Kawahara (Yomiuri),
Ryota Igarashi (Yakult), Kevin Hodges (Yakult), Hirotoshi Ishii (Yakult),
Koji Uehara (Yomiuri), Daisuke Miura (Yokohama), Yasuhiro Oyamada (Hiroshima),
Kenshin Kawakami (Chunichi), Trey Moore (Hanshin).
Catchers:
Akihiro Yano (Hanshin), Atsuya Furuta (Yakult), Motonobu Tanishige (Chunichi).
Infielders:
Kazuhiro Kiyohara (Yomiuri), Makoto Imaoka (Hanshin), Atsushi Kataoka (Hanshin),
Hirokazu Ibata (Chunichi), Shinya Miyamoto (Yakult), Takahiro Arai (Hiroshima),
George Arias (Hanshin), Kazuyoshi Tatsunami (Chunichi).
Outfielders:
Hideki Matsui (Yomiur), Yoshinobu Takahashi (Yomiuri), Takayuki Shimizu
(Yomiuri), Shinjiro Hiyama (Hanshin), Alex Ramirez (Yakult), Kosuke Fukudome
(Chunichi).
Pacific League:
Pitchers:
Daisuke Matsuzaka (Seibu), Shinji Mori (Seibu), Rodney Pedraza (Daiei), Jeremy
Powell (Kintetsu), Akira Okamoto (Kintetsu), Kenichi Wakatabe (Daiei), Shuji
Yoshida (Daiei), Kiyoshi Toyoda (Seibu), Masahiko Kaneda (Orix), Kazuo Yamaguchi
(Orix), Hiroyuki Kobayashi (Lotte), Hayato Nakamura (Nippon Ham).
Catchers:
Tsutomu Itoh (Seibu), Takeshi Hidaka (Orix), Tetsuya Matoyama (Kintetsu).
Note: Matoyama replaces Kenji Johjima (Daiei), who is out with an injury.
Infielders:
Michihiro Ogasawara (Nippon Ham), Tadahito Iguchi (Daiei), Norihiro Nakamura
(Kintetsu), Kazuo Matsui (Seibu), Yuji Yoshioka (Kintetsu), Hiroki Kokubo
(Daiei), Makoto Kaneko (Nippon Ham).
Outfielders:
Tuffy Rhodes (Kintetsu), Koji Akiyama (Daiei), Yoshitomo Tani (Orix), Naoyuki
Omura (Kintetsu), Saburo Omura (Lotte).
Designated Hitter:
Alex Cabrera (Seibu).
Question: why no Koo Dae-sung? He's only leading the Pacific League in ERA.
Flashback: Mike Hargrove, Vinny Castilla and
Mike Jackson on Ichiro c.1998
While researching another matter, I came across
the following quotes from a 1998 Sankei Shimbun article about what major
league players thought of Ichiro, after seeing him in that year's NPB-MLB
all star series in Japan, which some of you might find amusing.
Mike Hargrove, who was then managing the Cleveland Indians: "He's a good
outfielder and he has an above average arm. He wants to come to the majors?
It would be impossible for him to be a regular player there."
Vinny Castilla: "he opens his front shoulder early, which cuts his power
in half. It will be difficult for him to do anything in the major leagues."
Mike Jackson: "they'll find his weaknesses. If they pound him up and in,
he won't hit like he does now."
Rhodes, Petagine, Other Foreign Players Pay
Tribute to Darryl Kile
See Japan Times article at:
http://www.japantimes.co.jp/cgi-bin/getsp.pl5?sb20020706a3.htm
Even After World Cup, Baseball Still Reigns
Supreme in Japan
See Japan Times article by the lovely and talented
Dan Latham at:
http://www.japantimes.co.jp/cgi-bin/getsp.pl5?sb20020705a2.htm
Today in Japanese Baseball History
This report is for July 4th and on that date in
Japanese baseball history in 1959, (Suguru Yukida? Not sure how to read that
kanji) of the Taiyo Whales struckout four in the top of the second against
the Hiroshima Carp at Kawasaki Stadium, the first time that ever happened
in a Japanese game.
The first hitter of the inning, Hiroshima leftfielder
and cleanup hitter Akira Owada, fanned for strike three, but the ball got
through Whales catcher Kiyoshi Doi for a passed ball as Owada made it safely
to first and then proceeded to steal second while the next two men also fanned.
Catcher Toshiharu Ueda singled to left to drive in Owada before pitcher (Yukida?)
then got third baseman Tatsuo Okitsu to come up empty to end the inning.
Taiyo went on to ultimately prevail 4-3 on a sayonara homer in the bottom
of the 16th by infielder Nobuyuki Hikiji. (Yukida?) didn't figure in the
decision.
Astonishingly, nobody blew down four in an inning
again until August 3rd 1993, in a game pittting the Daiei Hawks against the
Orix Blue Wave at Toyama Stadium, when Orix' Takahito Nomura, now with the
Brewers, did it. The only pitchers to do it since were Kimiyasu Kudoh, who
was then with Daiei, on August 2, 1996 against Lotte, Seibu Lions hurler
Fumiya Nishiguchi against Lotte on April 12th, 1997, Hideki Okajima of Yomiuri
against Hanshin on July 4, 1997 at Koshien Stadium and Yakult hurler Don
Lemon on April 14th, 2000 against Hiroshima at Fukuoka Dome. Lemon did it
in the process of getting rocked for three runs in the fifth inning on a
jack to righth by Itsuki Asai and was named the loser in an 8-3 thrashing
by the fish.
Four strikeouts in an inning has occurred 36 times
in MLB history, for those wondering. As a historical side note, two days
after Lemon did it for Yakult, Chuck Finley did it for Cleveland against
the Rangers on April 16th at Jacobs Field. Finley gave up a run in that inning
on a single by Ivan Rodriguez before getting Rafael Palmeiro on a 3-2 called
strike three four the fourth K to end the inning.
Source:
Jimmy's Strike Zone
http://www.asahi-net.or.jp/~KP7S-OOTK/SANSHIN/4SO/4SO_MAIN.html
Condolences
We here at Baseball Guru would like to send along
our best wishes to the family of former Pacific League official and baseball
commentator Kazuo "Pancho" Itoh, who died Thursday from cardiac arrest at
the age of 68.
Itoh, a Tokyo native, worked as an assistant to
the chairman of the Pacific League starting in 1959 and moved up through
the ranks until becoming head of the league's publicity department in 1976.
From 1968 until he retired in 1991, he was also master of ceremonies for
the pro draft conferences, but was actually more known for his expertise
on all things related to the U.S. major leagues.
Itoh had been a fan of MLB since his early teens
in an era even before television was introduced into Japan in 1955, listening
to MLB games on Armed Forces Radio and studying english that way as well.
After starting work for the PL, he also often appeared on television
and wrote pieces for various newspapers, including Sankei Sports, when an
expert on the big leagues was needed. He even pressed on MLB Commissioner
Bud Selig during an interview he did with him that he would like to see a
true World Series between the best in Japan and that of MLB.
Japanese commissioner Kawashima lamented the passing
of someone "who acted as a bridge between American and Japanese baseball."
With his trademark high voice, Kawashima also praised Itoh for the way he
handled the draft conferences. "He was still so young. May he rest in peace"
Kawashima solemnly offered.
Japan's Mr. Baseball, Shigeo Nagashima, revealed
that Itoh accompanied him to MLB games after Nagashima retired as a player
and said that he and Itoh were close friends. The Yomiuri Giants hall of
famer posited that the reason many Japanese are playing in MLB now is due
in large part to Itoh's influence. "May he rest in peace," Nagashima said.
Ichiro Suzuki had spoken on the phone with
Itoh during spring training. "He gave me a lot of encouragement before I
came [to MLB]. He said that as long as he's been alive, he's wanted to see
Japanese play in the major leagues and that really moved me." When Ichiro
had heard that Itoh wasn't in very good health recently, he remarked, "if
only he could see me play in Seattle one more time...."
Kazuhiro Sasaki revealed that Itoh had also encouraged
him to try his luck in MLB. "If Pancho hadn't told us about major league
baseball, I doubt that we would have known it existed. He started from scratch
in trying to get MLB and Japanese baseball together. He showed that you could
make something of nothing. He was an amazing guy."
For a personal account from Marty Kuhnert and Wayne
Graczyk, who both knew Pancho personally, please go to:
http://www.japantimes.co.jp/cgi-bin/getsp.pl5?sb20020706a2.htm
Hanshin Pounds Yakult 8-1
Hanshin Tigers starter Keiichi Yabu was able to
consistently pound the Yakult Swallows lineup in while his teammates lit
up Yakult starter Masanori Ishikawa for six earned run on the way to an 8-1
spanking of the Tokyo team at Meiji Jingu Stadium Wednesday. Yabu is now
6-4 with his first shiroboshi in a month and a half.
Yakult jumped in front in the bottom of the first,
as shortstop Shinya Miyamoto took Yabu over the leftfield wall for a 1-0
Swallows lead.
Hanshin counterattacked and never looked back afterward.
Hanshin rightfielder Shinjiro Hiyama leadoff the top of the second with a
single to left and went to second when centerfielder Osamu Hamanaka laid
down a perfect bunt down the third base line for a hit. One out later, catcher
Akihiro Yano tripled to rightcenter to drive in both men to make it 2-1 Tigers.
Hanshin manager Senichi Hoshino called for the squeeze bunt. Yano went while
Yabu squared around. However, the veteran hurler whiffed on the attempt and
Yano was meat. Yabu then popped up to end the inning.
While Yabu was inducing groundballs as if they were
going out of style, Hanshin went back on the offensive in the fifth. Yano
tripled AGAIN (now how often do you see a catcher do THAT?) to kick off the
stanza and scored on a roller to short by Yabu for a 3-1 advantage.
Then in the sixth, Hanshin got maximum separation.
Third baseman Atsushi Kataoka legged out a tapper. First baseman George Arias
seared a double into the leftfield corner and the far less than gifted with
quickness Kataoka sprinted all the way in. Hiyama doubled to leftcenter for
an RBI. Hamanaka hammered an Ishikawa delivery, but right at Hajime Miki
at second. Koji Hirashita singled to right for an RBI and turned for second
on the throw home. Yakult catcher Atusya Furuta endeavored to shoot Hirashita
down at second and threw it away to enable him to move to third. Yano grounded
to Miki, who went home to try to nail Hirashita, but it was late and it was
7-1 Tigers.
In the ninth, Kentaro Sekimoto leadoff with a walk
and one out later shortstop Okihara doubled off the leftfield wall to plate
Sekimoto and that's how it ended, an 8-1 Hanshin laugher.
For Yakult, first baseman Roberto Petagine
struckout three times and walked in four plate appearances and is at .289.
Leftfielder Alex Ramirez was 1-4 and is at .318.
For Hanshin, Arias was 1-5 with an RBI and is at
.266. He leads the Central League in both homers, 18, and RBIs, 48.Leftfielder
Derrick White whiffed in his two times up and .249.
Pitching Lines:
Hanshin:
Yabu (W, 6-4) IP 7.0
PC 104 H 6 HR 1 K 5 BB 2 R 1 ER 1 ERA 2.86
T.H. Hashimoto IP 0.2 PC
14 H 0 HR 0 K 1 BB 0 R 0 ER 0 ERA 22.50
Kanazawa
IP 0.1 PC 3 H 0 HR 0 K 0 BB 0 R 0 ER 0 ERA 3.51
Fukuhara
IP 1.0 PC 12 H 0 HR 0 K 1 BB 0 R 0 ER 0 ERA 3.28
Yakult:
Masanori Ishikawa (L, 5-5) IP 5.0 PC 66 H 9 HR 0 K 2 BB 0 R 6 ER 6 ERA 3.86
Teramura
IP 2.0 PC 29 H 1 HR 0 K 0 BB 0 R 1 ER 0 ERA 4.12
Matsuda
IP 1.0 PC 14 H 0 HR 0 K 0 BB 1 R 0 ER 0 ERA 0.00
H.
Ishii
IP 1.0 PC 17 H 1 HR 0 K 0 BB 1 R 1 ER 1 ERA 2.50
E: Furuta
2B: Arias, Hiyama, Okihara
3B: Yano 2
HR: S. Miyamoto (4)
RBI: Okihara, Arias, Hiyama, Hirashita, Yano 3, Yabu, S. Miyamoto
PB: Yano
LOB: Hanshin 5, Yakult 7
Season Series: Hanshin 7, Yakult 8
Game Time: 2:46
Attendance: 34,000
Umpires: Ino (HP), Yoshimoto (1B), T. Kobayashi (2B), Sasaki (3B)
Four Giants Homers Rout Dragons 9-3
For the first time in two years, the heart of the
Yomiuri Giants batting order, rightfielder Yoshinobu Takahashi, centerfielder
Hideki Matsui, and first baseman Kazuhiro Kiyohara, all went yard in the
same game, as the kyojin crunched the Chunichi Dragons at Tokyo Dome Wednesday
9-3. In addition, Giants leftfielder Takayuki Shimizu also borrowed the yard
implements so that all three outfielders went deep as well.
Koji Uehara was hardly in top form, being mugged
for 11 hits in seven innings, but he permitted just three runs to grab his
ninth victory of the year.
Dragons starter Melvin Bunch was the victim of the
Yomiuri bombardment, as he was in for a mere three innings and was charged
with four earned run on seven hits.
The Nagoya nine had an early 2-0 edge when shortstop
Hirokazu Ibata leadoff the game with a double down the leftfield line and
went to third on a groundout. With two now gone, first baseman Leo Gomez
singled to center to convert Ibata. Leftfielder Kazuki Inoue doubled off
the base of the centerfield wall to usher in Gomez.
Shimizu, though, doubled to commence the Giants
half and, one out later, Takahashi swung through a fastball that was up in
the strike zone and he powdered it into the leftcenterfield seats to knot
it at 2-2. Matsui dug in and massacred a 3-2 hanging forkball that was down
in a lefty hitter's happy zone and Godzilla dropped it into the upper deck
in right to make it 3-2 Giants.
In the third, Kiyohara lined a fastball deep into
the centerfield seats and now the Giants were two up at 4-2.
An inning later. Shimizu joined the parade and unloaded
his eighth of the season to right and it was 5-2 Yomiuri.
Inoue got that one back when he blitzed an Uehara
offering into the rightcenterfield bleachers in the sixth to make it 5-3
Giants.
Giants third baseman Akira Etoh walked to begin
the Giants half and another rally. Second baseman Toshihisa Nishi singled
to center. Catcher Yoshinori Murata singled to left and Etoh scored. Uehara
sacrificed the runners to third and second respectively. Shimizu then squirted
one back through the middle to drive in Murata and Nishi and it was 8-3 Yomiuri.
The final Giants tally came in the seventh, when
Kiyohara singled and was pinch run for by Koji Goto. Daisuke Motoki doubled
into the leftfield corner and Goto hotfooted it to the plate to make it 9-3.
Kiyohara, 34 years and ten months old, is 11th on
the all time homer list and was sixth fastest to 450 while also being the
third youngest to that mark behind Sadaharu Oh (30 years and ten months)
and Katsuya Nomura (34 years and nine months). His first bomb was on April
5, 1986 when he was with Seibu against Osamu Fujimoto of the Nankai Hawks.
Thanks to Nikkan Sports for the stats.
For Chunichi, Gomez was 1-4 with an RBI and two
strikeouts and is at .267.
Pitching Lines:
Chunichi:
Bunch (L, 6-6) IP 3.0 PC 59 H 7 HR 3 K 4 BB 0 R 4 ER 4 ERA 3.40
Kito
IP 2.0 PC 26 H 1 HR 1 K 1 BB 0 R 1 ER 1 ERA 2.72
Yamakita
IP 1.1 PC 31 H 3 HR 0 K 1 BB 1 R 3 ER 3 ERA 3.86
Yaguchi
IP 0.2 PC 14 H 3 HR 0 K 0 BB 1 R 1 ER 1 ERA 6.75
Kuriyama IP 1.0
PC 15 H 1 HR 0 K 0 BB 0 R 0 ER 0 ERA 12.00
Yomiuri:
Uehara (W, 9-3) IP 7.0 PC 116 H 11 HR 1 K 4 BB 0 R 3 ER 3 ERA 2.78
Kawamoto IP 1.0
PC 17 H 0 HR 0 K 0 BB 0 R 0 ER 0 ERA 1.69
Jobe
IP 1.0 PC 10 H 0 HR 0 K 2 BB 0 R 0 ER 0 ERA 2.78
SB: Etoh
2B: Ibata, Inoue, Tanishige 2, Fukudome, T. Shimizu, Motoki, Y. Takahashi
HR: Inoue (6), Y. Takahashi (11), H. Matsui (16), Kiyohara (8), T. Shimizu
(7)
RBI: Gomez, Inoue 2, Y. Takahashi 2, H. Matsui, Kiyohara, T. Shimizu 3, Murata
2
GIDP: Takayuki Saito
LOB: Chunichi 7, Yomiuri 7
Season Series: Chunichi 6, Yomiuri 7
Game Time: 3:11
Attendance: 55,000
Umpires: Kasahara (HP), Nishimoto (1B), Kiuchi (2B), Tomoyori (3B)
Wakatabe Tosses Four Hit 7-0 Shutout at
Orix
I'm not sure how long he will be able to sustain
this pace since he lost his number one starter's role after a mediocre 2001
campaign, but Kenichi Wakatabe is hot right now, racking up his fifth consecutive
win with an outstanding four hit shutout against the Orix Blue Wave at Miyagi
Stadium (300 down the lines, 400 to center; you can see pics of the ballpark
at: http://www2.csc.ne.jp/~fudoki/sendai.htm) in Sendai, Miyagi Prefecture.
Despite the small dimentions, though, nobody was able to transgress the friendly
confines.
Masahiko Kaneda started for Orix and was doing okay
until the third, when Hawks leftfielder Pedro Valdez wacked a ball off Kaneda's
elbow and he was removed as a precaution. X rays showed no fracture or any
other abnormality except a bruise. Iguchi kept on motoring as it deflected
off of Kaneda and slid in safely at second. One out later, Third baseman
Hiroki Kokubo, first baseman Nobuhiko Matsunaka and DH Noriyoshi Omichi all
singled to center off of reliever Satoshi Tokumoto and it was 2-0. Okoshi
singled to right and Matsunaka hustled home to make it 3-0.
A succession of Orix relievers quieted the Daiei
offense down until the top of the ninth, when they mauled closer Masanobu
Okubo. Shibahara instigated it with a leadoff walk. Valdez legged out a roller.
Iguchi singled to left to push both Shibahara and Valdez in to make it 5-0
Hawks. One out later, Matsunaka walked. Okubo then plunked Omichi to load
the bases. Mitsuru Honma jogged out to pinch run for Omichi. Rightfielder
Motoi Okoshi grounded out to shortstop Makoto Shiozaki, who went home for
the force. Catcher Masanori Taguchi singled to left and two more Daiei runs
resulted and it was 7-0. Wakatabe put three of the four hitters he
saw in the bottom of the inning away and it was "game setto."
For Orix, Fernando Seguignol struckout in a pinch
hitting appearance and is at .217. Scott Sheldon was also sent up to pinch
hit and went 0-1 and is at .219.
For Daiei, Valdez was 2-4 and is at .286.
Daiei:
Wakatabe (W, 5-0) IP 9.0 PC 116 H 4 HR 0 K 10 BB 0 R 0 ER 0 ERA 2.10
Orix:
Kaneda (L, 3-5) IP 2.1 PC 37 H 4 HR 0 K 0 BB 0 R 1 ER 1 ERA 2.49
Tokumoto IP 0.1
PC 15 H 3 HR 0 K 0 BB 0 R 2 ER 2 ERA 4.58
Kawagoe
IP 2.2 PC 59 H 3 HR 0 K 1 BB 2 R 0 ER 0 ERA 4.82
Kase
IP 0.1 PC 5 H 0 HR 0 K 0 BB 0 R 0 ER 0 ERA 4.38
J. Hagiwara IP 1.1
PC 18 H 0 HR 0 K 1 BB 0 R 0 ER 0 ERA 4.91
Yamaguchi IP 1.0 PC
11 H 0 HR 0 K 0 BB 1 R 0 ER 0 ERA 1.62
Okubo
IP 1.0 PC 39 H 3 HR 0 K 0 BB 3 R 4 ER 3 ERA 3.60
E: Shiotani, M. Shiozaki
SB: Iguchi
2B: Taguchi, P. Valdez, R. Tsuji
RBI: Iguchi 2, Kokubo, Omichi, Okoshi, Taguchi
WP: Wakatabe
HBP: Omichi (Okubo)
LOB: Daiei 11, Orix 4
Season Series: Daiei 5, Orix 6
Game Time: 3:20
Attendance: 13,000
Umpires: Sato (HP), Kakigizono (1B), Yoshikawa (2B), Maeda (3B)
Hiroshima Continues A Class Bid with 3-1 Win
Over Yokohama
Chris Holt didn't pitch as well this time as he
did in his last outing, but he gave up three runs in the third and that was
it for his five inning stint, and that was all Hiroshima Carp starter Hiroki
Kuroda needed, as he went eight innings of one run ball on nine hits to level
his record at 4-4 in the Carp's 3-1 victory at Yokohama Stadium Wednesday,
the club's fifth win in a row.
The trouble for Holt started when Hiroshima third
baseman Takahiro Arai singled to left and went to third on a couple of
groundouts. Shortstop Kenjiro Nomura plowed a Holt offering off the rightfield
wall for a long single and an RBI. Second baseman Takuya Kimura singled to
center. Centerfielder Koichi Ogata drilled a double to the centerfield wall
and Kimura and Nomura sped in for the 3-0 advantage.
Kuroda weathered a major storm in the sixth, escaping
with the most minimal damage. Yokohama second baseman Hitoshi Taneda inaugurated
it with a single to center and first baseman Takahiro Saeki singled to left.
One out later, rightfielder Boi Rodrigues singled to left to load the bases.
Third baseman Hirofumi Ogawa singled to left to deliver Taneda and make it
3-1. With the game on the line, Kuroda strukcout both leftfielder Hitoshi
Tamura and pinch hitter Hitoshi Nakane to terminate the threat. He then gave
up just one hit over the last three innings and sailed on to the winner's
circle.
For Yokohama, centerfielder Ernie Young was
0-4 with two strikeouts and is at .180. Rodrigues was 1-4 and is at .269.
For Hiroshima, first baseman Luis Lopez was 0-3
and is at .253. Eddie Diaz was 0-1 in a pinch hitting role and is at .312.
Pitching Lines:
Hiroshima:
Kuroda (W, 4-4) IP 8.0 PC 105 H 9 HR 0 K 7 BB 0 R 1 ER 1 ERA
3.99
Oyamada (S, 18) IP 1.0 PC 17 H 0 HR 0 K 0 BB 1 R
0 ER 0 ERA 1.14
Yokohama:
Holt (L, 3-2) IP 5.0 PC 76 H 8 HR 0 K 3 BB
1 R 3 ER 3 ERA 2.87
Sugimoto IP 2.0 PC
15 H 0 HR 0 K 1 BB 0 R 0 ER 0 ERA 2.82
Hosomi
IP 0.1 PC 11 H 0 HR 0 K 0 BB 1 R 0 ER 0 ERA 3.29
R. Kawahara IP 0.1 PC 8 H 1 HR 0 K 1 BB 0 R
0 ER 0 ERA 2.79
Azuma
IP 1.1 PC 14 H 0 HR 0 K 0 BB 1 R 0 ER 0 ERA 2.81
2B: Ogata
RBI: K. Nomura, Ogata 2, Ogawa
HBP: Ogata (Hosomi), Arai (Azuma)
GIDP: K. Nomura, T. Maeda
LOB: Hiroshima 6, Yokohama 8
Season Series: Hiroshima 6, Yokohama 6
Game Time: 2.52
Attendance: 13,000
Umpires: Manabe (HP), T. Kobayashi (1B), ? (2B), Shikida (3B)
Japan's Ishii Adjusts to a New Culture
See an exceedingly well done article by Orange County
Register sportswriter Marcia Smith on Kazuhisa Ishii at:
http://www.ocregister.com/sports/ishii00707cci1.shtml (and yes, the quotes
from me are accurate).
Today in Japanese Baseball History
This report is for July 3rd and on that date in
Japanese baseball history in 1952, the first game of that year's all star
series was played to a 2-2 21 inning tie at Nishinomiya Stadium. What is
perhaps even more interesting was the relative brevity of the game in terms
of elapsed time, just 4 hours and 30 minutes. God only knows how long it
would have taken if it had been played by MLB teams.
Igawa Shuts Out Yakult on Two Hits 2-0
Last season, Hanshin southpaw Kei Igawa had zero
wins against the eventual Japan Series champion Yakult Swallows. Tuesday
at Meiji Jingu Stadium, he collected his third shiroboshi against the Tokyo
outfit in 2002, shutting them out on three hits while striking out a career
best 13 in a 2-0 Tigers victory. Yataro Sakamoto took another frustrating
loss, his fourth despite surrendering only two hits and a run in six innings.
This was his fourth shutout of the 2002 campaign and he was clocked at a
lifetime high of 92mph.
Hanshin obtained the sole run it would require in
the first, as shortstop Shuta Tanaka ripped the first pitch he saw from Sakamoto
into the leftcenter alley for a one out double and then came around when
Sakamoto walked first baseman George Arias, hit rightfielder Shinjiro Hiyama
and walked centerfielder Osamu Hamanaka to force in Tanaka for a 1-0 Tigers
lead.
In the eighth, Hanshin picked up some insurance
when pinch hitter Katsunori Nomura grounded to third and Akinori Iwamura
kicked it, Hanshin third baseman Atsushi Kataoka doubled off the rightfield
fence, and Arias flew out to left for a sacrifice fly and the final margin
of victory, 2-0.
Igawa then put an exclamation mark on the night
by striking out the side in the ninth.
Tigers manager Senichi Hoshino accumulated his 800th
lifetime win in a field boss role, first with the Chunichi Dragons and now
with Hanshin.
For Yakult, first baseman Roberto Petagine was 0-3
and is at .294. Leftfielder Alex Ramirez was 0-3 and is at .319.
For Hanshin, Arias was 0-2 with a walk and an RBI.
and is at .267. Leftfielder Derrick White was 0-3 and is at .251.
Pitching Lines:
Hanshin:
Igawa (W, 9-4) IP 9.0 PC 121 H 2 HR 0 13 BB
0 R 0 ER 0 ERA 1.78
Yakult:
Sakamoto (L, 1-4) IP 6.0 PC 96 H 2 HR 0 K 4 BB 4 R 1 ER 1 ERA
2.51
Kawabata
IP 1.0 PC 14 H 1 HR 0 K 0 BB 0 R 0 ER 0 ERA 3.52
Newman
IP 2.0 PC 30 H 2 HR 0 K 1 BB 0 R 1 ER 0 ERA 3.47
E: Iwamura
2B: S. Tanaka, Kataoka
RBI: Arias, Hamanaka
SF: Arias
HBP: Hiyama (Sakamoto)
PB: Furuta
GIDP: Hamanaka
LOB: Hanshin 8, Yakult 2
Season Series: Hanshin 6, Yakult 8
Game Time: 2:47
Attendance: 32,000
Umpires: Kamimoto (HP), T. Kobayashi (1B), Sasaki (2B), Ino (3B)
Tsuji Grand Slam Keys Rout of Lions
10-2
Lotte rookie catcher Toshiya Tsuji launched the
first home run of his career Tuesday at Seibu Dome, and what a blast
it was, a grand slam off of Koji Onuma as part of six run fifth that broke
the game wide open and allowed the Chiba bunch to bury the Lions 10-2. Nathan
Minchey went six innings of two run ball on four hits to net his fifth victory
of the season.
Hsu Ming-chieh started for Seibu and he lasted less
than four innings, being shaken down for four runs, two earned on four hits
to drop his fourth of the campaign.
Lotte seized an initial advantage in the first,
as leftfielder Kenji Morozumi walked to begin the game and was sacrificed
to second. After going to third on a groundout, Morozumi coasted home on
rightfielder Takashi Tachikawa's single to right and it was 1-0 Lotte.
Tachikawa also did some damage in the fourth, bouncing
a Hsu pitch off the centerfield wall for a double. DH Derrick May then pancaked
a shot off the rightfield wall for a long single and an RBI. One out later,
second baseman Koichi Hori walked. third baseman Tadaharu Sakai fanned,
but then Tsuji hit one through Tom Evans wickets and down the third baseline
for an error and both runners came around to make it 4-0 Lotte.
Seibu cut that lead in the fourth. First baseman
Alex Cabrera poleaxed a Minchey offering into the leftcenterfield seats,
his 20th of the season. One out later, centerfielder Susumu Otomo did the
long distance runaround to right and it was 4-2 Lotte.
The fifth, however, decided it for Lotte. Shortstop
Makoto Kosaka leadoff with a single to left. First baseman Kazuya Fukuura
walked. Tachikawa singled in Kosaka. May walked to load the bases. centerfielder
Saburo Omura hit a sac fly to right to plate Fukuura. One out later, Sakai
singled to left to reload the bags. Tsuji then fought off four pitches from
reliever Onuma before bringing the hammer down on a 90mph fastball and hurtling
it into the leftfield stands to not only make it 10-2, but to make him the
first PL rookie since Daiei's Tadahito Iguchi in 1997 to have a granny as
his first pro homer. Yomiuri Giants backstop Shinnosuke Abe did it last year
in the CL. Tsuji is the first Lotte rookie to accomplish that since Kiyoshi
Hatsushiba pulled it off in 1989. The last PL rookie catcher to perform such
a feat was Taiheiyo Club Lions receiver Tooru Kusugi in 1974. Thanks to Nikkan
Sports and Sports Nippon for the stats.
For Seibu, Cabrera was 1-3 with a walk and an RBI
and is at .281. Evans wore a shiny new golden sombrero (four times up,.four
turns toward the dugout without putting the ball in play) and is at .297.
For Lotte, May was 1-3 with a walk and an RBI and
is at .225.
Pitching Lines:
Lotte:
Minchey (W, 5-9) IP 6.0 PC 85 H 4 HR 2 K 2 BB 1 R 2 ER 2 ERA 3.69
Kawai
IP 1.2 PC 42 H 1 HR 0 K 3 BB 2 R 0 ER 0 ERA 3.43
H. Kobayashi IP 0.1 PC
1 H 0 HR 0 K 0 BB 0 R 0 ER 0 ERA 2.98
Sikorsky
IP 1.0 PC 16 H 1 HR 0 K 2 BB 0 R 0 ER 0 ERA 4.50
Seibu:
Hsu (L, 2-4) IP 3.2 PC 60 H 4 HR 0 K 3 BB 2
R 4 ER 2 ERA 4.76
Mizuo
IP 0.1 PC 17 H 1 HR 0 K 1 BB 1 R 2 ER 2 ERA 2.79
Onuma
IP 4.1 PC 70 H 6 HR 1 K 1 BB 1 R 4 ER 4 ERA 6.52
Doi
IP 0.2 PC 13 H 1 HR 0 K 1 BB 0 R 0 ER 0 ERA 1.96
E: Evans
SB: S. Omura, K. Matsui
2B: Hori, Tachikawa, Wada, K. Matsui
HR: T. Tsuji (1), Cabrera (20), Otomo (1)
RBI: Tachikawa 2, May, S. Omura, T. Tsuji 4, Cabrera, Otomo
WP: Onuma
HBP: S. Omura (Doi)
GIDP: Kosaka
LOB: Lotte 7, Seibu 7
Season Series: Lotte 4, Seibu 9
Game Time: 3:07
Attendance: 14,000
Umpires: Kawaguchi (HP), Yamamoto (1B), Tsugawa (2B), Yamazaki (3B)
More Frustration for Kudoh in Giants Extra
Inning 5-2 Victory
Geez, why doesn't Giants lefthander Kimiyasu Kudoh
just retire? Everytime he goes out to the mound, the Giants bats go on
sabbatical. Tuesday at Tokyo Dome, he went eight sterling innings of two
run (one earned) ball on eight hits, striking out five and walking one to
get yet another no decision. That's because Chunichi Dragons starter Kenshin
Kawakami wove a gem himself, leaving the game ahead 2-1 after eight innings
of three hit ball. Unfortunately, he was also hung with a no decision when
closer Eddie Gaillard surrendered a seeing eye RBI single by Yomiuri first
baseman Kazuhiro Kiyohara in the bottom of the ninth to send it into bonus
time, where Giants shortstop Tomohiro Nioka won it on a three run homer to
right in the last of the 12th off of Masataka Endo, the final score being
5-2.
In the first, Kudoh tried to get an 85mph fastball
down and in to Dragons centerfielder Hidenori Kuramoto, but left it up and
out over the plate instead and Kuramoto wrenched it into the leftcenterfield
seats for a 1-0 Chunichi lead. "The ball felt really light when I struck
it, so I was sure it would get out," Kuramoto told reporters after the game.
Chunichi fomented a rally in the fifth, but it went
for nought thanks to rightfielder Yoshinobu Takahashi, who literally made
the Giants victory possible with his defensive excellence. With two down,
Kawakami singled to right. Shortstop Hirokazu Ibata singled to left. Kuramoto
lashed a shot that was headed down into the rightfield corner for one and
maybe two runs until it was cutoff with a midair leaping catch to his left
by Takahashi. You can see a pic of the stab at:
http://www.nikkansports.com/news/baseball/bb-020703-3.jpg
Kawakami was breezing, finally being touched for
a single by rightfielder Takahashi in the bottom of the inning after his
spectacular grab, the Giants first of the contest. As he was throttling the
Yomiuri order, Kawakami's teammates put another run on the board in the seventh.
With two outs, second baseman Masahiko Morino singled to center. Centerfielder
Hideki Matsui thought at first he had a chance to catch it on the fly, but
quickly realizing he didn't, he tried to make a sliding stop and the ball
went by him for a two base error and Morino was standing on third before
the ball got back to the infield. Kawakami then banged a single to left and
it was 2-0 Dragons.
Kawakami finally made a mistake in the bottom of
the eighth, throwing a fastball over the outer half of the plate to Kiyohara,
who buried it in the rightfield seats to get his side within 2-1. It was
also the burly ex-Lion's 450th lifetime dinger.
Kawakami had only gone home 92 times, but Dragons
manager opted to dispatch a fresh arm out there in the form of Gaillard and
he blew the save. Leftfielder Takayuki Shimizu walked to lead it off and
was sacrificed to second. Takahashi singled to left. One out later, Kiyohara
yanked a Gaillard heater between third and short and into leftfield to convert
Shimizu with the equalizer at 2-2.
Each team had men on second with one out in the
tenth and 11th and couldn't bring them in. In the top of the 12th, that almost
changed. With one away, Ibata doubled down the rightfield line. One out later,
rightfielder Kosuke Fukudome singled to left. As the fleet footed Ibata made
the turn, Shimizu got to the ball and winged it on the fly to catcher Kohei
Ota, who applied the tag for the final out of the stanza.
Maybe that woke the Tokyo contingent up, I don't
know, but in their last at bat, they improved their already tremendous extra
innings record to 10-1. Second baseman Toshihisa Nishi leadoff with a single
to left and was sacrificed to second. Shimizu was intentionally walked to
set up the double play possibility. Nioka got a 2-2 slider away and wacked
it deep to rightcenter, the ball easing into the first row for his fifth
career sayonara homer and a 5-2 Giants triumph. It also extended the Dragons
losing string to four games.
Nioka is now third in Giants history in sayonara
jacks. Sadaharu Oh is first with eight, Shigeo Nagashima is second with seven
and Matsui, Kiyohara, Tatsnunori Hara and Nioka all have five. However, Nioka,
who has just 39 homers in his four years, is the only player in all of Japanese
baseball to have gone yard in a final at bat to win the game five times since
1999.
For Chunichi, first baseman Leo Gomez was 1-5 and
is at .267.
Pitching Lines:
Chunichi:
Kawakami
IP 8.0 PC 92 H 3 HR 1 K 3 BB 0 R 1 ER 1 ERA 2.49
Gaillard
IP 1.0 PC 21 H 2 HR 0 K 0 BB 1 R 0 ER 0 ERA 1.88
Ochiai
IP 1.0 PC 20 H 1 HR 0 K 1 BB 1 R 0 ER 0 ERA 2.25
Iwase
IP 0.1 PC 7 H 1 HR 0 K 0 BB 0 R 0 ER 0 ERA 1.52
Endo (L, 2-1) IP 1.1 PC 31 H 2
HR 1 K 1 BB 2 R 3 ER 3 ERA 4.06
Yomiuri:
Kudoh
IP 8.0 PC 128 H 8 HR 1 K 5 BB 1 R 2 ER 1 ERA 2.47
Jeon
IP 1.1 PC 26 H 0 HR 0 K 1 BB 1 R 0 ER 0 ERA 2.61
Okajima
IP 0.2 PC 8 H 0 HR 0 K 1 BB 0 R 0 ER 0 ERA 3.82
Y.
Maeda
IP 0.1 PC 2 H 1 HR 0 K 0 BB 0 R 0 ER 0 ERA 2.05
Almonte
IP 0.2 PC 9 H 0 HR 0 K 0 BB 0 R 0 ER 0 ERA 1.38
Kawahara (W, 3-2) IP 1.0 PC 12 H 2 HR 0 K 1 BB 0
R 0 ER 0 ERA 2.16
E: H. Matsui
2B: Fukudome, Ibata, Oda
HR: Kuramoto (2), Nioka (6), Kiyohara (7)
RBI: Kuramoto, Kawakami, Nioka 3, Kiyohara 2
IBB: T. Shimizu 2
WP: Endo
GIDP: K. Goto
LOB: Chunichi 10, Yomiuri 6
Season Series: Chunichi 6, Yomiuri 6
Game Times: 4:21
Attendance: 55,000
Umpires: Tani (HP), Kiuchi (1B), Tomoyori (2B), Kasahara (3B)
Mirabal Wins Ninth with Six Hit 7-2 Triumph
for Nippon Ham
Supported by two run homers from first baseman Michihiro
Ogasawara and centerfielder Tatsuya Ide, Nippon Ham starter Carlos Mirabal
won his ninth of the season Tuesday at Osaka Dome with seven innings of four
hit, one run ball in a 7-2 triumph over the Kintetsu Buffaloes.
Sean Bergman absorbed the defeat for the losers.
The Buffs actually carved out a 1-0 edge in the
bottom of the first and managed to sit on it for a while. With one out, second
baseman Eiji Mizuguchi singled to right and leftfielder Tuffy Rhodes walked.
Third baseman Norihiro Nakamura singled to left and Mizuguchi galloped
in.
Bergman was able to defend that advantage until
the sixth, when Nippon Ham got organized. Second baseman Kuniyuki Kimoto
singled to left. Ogasawara put a charge into a Bergman fastball and lashed
it it deep into the rightfield seats for the gyakuten two run and a 2-1 Fighters
lead. Leftfielder D.T. Cromer legged out a tapper toward short and stole
second. He was sacrificed to third. One out later, third baseman Yukio Tanaka
singled to left and it was 3-1 Fighters.
In the seventh, shortstop Makoto Kaneko beat out
an infield roller and Buffs manager Masataka Nishida sent Bergman to the
showers. Pinch hitter Takaya Hayashi singled to left and Kaneko blazed to
third. Cromer legged out another infield hit and cashed in Kaneko in the
process to make it 4-1 Fighters.
An inning later, Nippon Ham leftfielder Seigo Fujishima
beat out a bleeder. After Tanaka struckout, Ide clobbered an offering from
reliever Hiroshi Takamura into the centerfield seats. Catcher Kazunari Sanematsu
walked and went to second on a groundout. Backup seocnd baseman Hiroshi Narahara
then ushered Sanematsu in with a drive into the leftcenter alley and the
Fighters were comfortably on top 7-1.
Kintetsu got a homer to right from Koichi Isobe
in the bottom of the ninth, but that was it and it finished as a 7-2 Nippon
Ham victory.
For Kintetsu, Rhodes was 0-2 with two walks and
is at .273.
For Nippon Ham, Cromer was 3-5 with an RBI and a
stolen base and is at .278. DH Sherman Obando was 1-3 and is at .246.
Pitching Lines:
Nippon Ham:
Mirabal (W, 9-3) IP 7.0 PC 107 H 4 HR 0 K 5 BB 4 R 1 ER
0 ERA 3.26
Shibakusa
IP 1.0 PC 21 H 1 HR 0 K 0 BB 0 R 0 ER 0 ERA 4.13
Iba
IP 1.0 PC 21 H 1 HR 1 K 2 BB 0 R 1 ER 1 ERA 5.12
Kintetsu:
Bergman (L, 4-2) IP 6.1 PC 107 H 9 HR 1 K 6 BB 0 R 4 ER
4 ERA 3.30
T.
Yoshida
IP 0.1 PC 16 H 2 HR 0 K 1 BB 0 R 0 ER 0 ERA 2.00
Takamura
IP 1.0 PC 34 H 3 HR 1 K 2 BB 1 R 3 ER 3 ERA 2.84
Yamamoto
IP 0.1 PC 5 H 0 HR 0 K 1 BB 0 R 0 ER 0 ERA 1.88
D. Miyamoto IP
1.0 PC 7 H 0 HR 0 K 0 BB 0 R 0 ER 0 ERA 4.84
E: Shimada, Mizuguchi
SB: Cromer
2B: Ide, Narahara, N. Nakamura
HR: M. Ogasawara (21), Ide (10), Isobe (2)
RBI: Narahara, M. Ogasawara 2, Cromer, Y. Tanaka, Ide 2, N. Nakamura, Isobe
WP: Takamura
GIDP: N. Nakamura
LOB: Nippon Ham 8, Kintetsu 7
Season Series: Nippon Ham 6, Kintetsu 6
Game Time: 3:36
Attendance: 17,000
Umpires: Yamamura (HP), Tamba (1B), Nagami (2B), Higashi (3B)
Azuma Walks in Winning Run in 3-2 Hiroshima
Defeat of Bay Stars
Yokohama Bay Stars centerfielder Ernie Young unloaded
a pair of solo homers, but that was it for the productivity of his club's
offense and they went down to a 3-2 defeat in the ninth when reliever Kazumasa
Azuma walked Hiroshima Carp third baseman Takahiro Arai to push in centerfielder
Koichi Ogata with the game winning tally. The loss wasted an outstanding
effort by Shane Bowers, who went seven innings of two run ball on four hits,
striking out four and walking none. Instead, Masayuki Hasegawa emerged with
his sixth victory and Yasuhiro Oyamada raked in his 17th save.
Hasegawa was the first to crack, as Young flamed
a pitch over the centerfield wall to put Yokohama at the head of the line
1-0.
The Carp overtook Yokohama in the top of the fifth,
when rightfielder Itsuki Asai singled to left with one out and went to second
on a knock to center by Arai. Bowers wildpitched both men up 90 feet. Catcher
Kazuyoshi Kimura singled to center and both men checked in to register
the 2-1 lead.
Young restored equilibrium when he went midieval
again on Hasegawa to right to make it 2-2.
In the top of the ninth, Ogata leadoff with a single
to center. Leftfielder Tomoaki Kanemoto walked. Both men were sacrificed
along. Pinch hitter Eddie Diaz was intentionally walked to set up a
double play possibility. Azuma came in from the bullpen and issued the
unintentional free pass to Arai and the Carp had a 3-2 lead.
Yokohama put the first two men on in the bottom
of the inning, but a double play ball off the bat of, ironically, Young,
sabotaged the comeback and rightfielder Boi Rodrigues struckout to end the
game and secure the Hiroshima triumph.
There was an incident in the game you don't see
much of in Japan. Stars shortstop Takuro Ishii took a called third strike
in the eighth and a fan started riding him. Apparently, the guy said the
magic word at some point and upon the last out being made, Ishii attempted
to go up into the stands after him. Fortunately, he was restrained
from doing so by club employees.
For Hiroshima, first baseman Luis Lopez was 0-3
and is at .258. Diaz was 0-0 with a walk and is at .313.
For Yokohama, Young was 2-4 with two RBIs and is
at .193. Rodrigues was 0-4 and is at .270.
Pitching Lines:
Hiroshima:
Hasegawa (W, 6-2) IP 8.0 PC 124 H 4 HR 2 K 8 BB 1
R 2 ER 2 ERA 3.09
Oyamada (S, 17) IP
1.0 PC 17 H 1 HR 0 K 1 BB 1 R 0 ER 0 ERA 1.19
Yokohama:
Bowers
IP 7.0 PC 114 H 4 HR 0 K 4 BB 0 R 2 ER 2 ERA 4.34
Hosomi
IP 1.0 PC 7 H 0 HR 0 K 1 BB 0 R 0 ER 0 ERA 3.33
Takeshita (L, 2-1) IP 0.1 PC 16 H 1 HR 0 K
0 BB 2 R 1 ER 1 ERA 2.73
Azuma
IP 0.2 PC 9 H 0 HR 0 K 0 BB 1 R 0 ER 0 ERA 3.07
E: T. Ishii
SB: T. Ishii
2B: Ogata
HR: Young 2 (7)
RBI: Arai, K. Kimura 2, Young 2
IBB: Diaz
WP: Bowers
GIDP: K. Kimura, Young
LOB: Hiroshima 5, Yokohama 3
Season Series: Hiroshima 5, Yokohama 6
Game Time: 3:02
Attendance: 12,000
Umpires: Suginaga (HP), ? (1B), Shikida (2B), Manabe (3B)
With the World Cup Thankfully Over, It's Back
to Baseball
See Wayne Graczyk article at:
http://www.japantimes.co.jp/cgi-bin/getsp.pl5?sb20020703wg.htm
Ichiro and His Bats
Really revealing article about what Ichiro thinks
of, and how he handles, his equipment from Jim Caple at:
http://espn.go.com/mlb/columns/caple_jim/1400915.html
Today in Japanese Baseball History
This report is for July 2nd and on that date in
Japanese baseball history in 1959, a night game at Korakuen Stadium between
the Yomiuri Giants and the Taiyo Whales was the first color telecast of a
baseball game in Japanese history by NTV, Yomiuri's tv outlet in Tokyo. The
Japanese had started experimental color broadcasts in 1956. In 1957,
Toshiba became the first manufacturer to make color televisions for the consumer
market.
KBO Leaders and Standings
Team
Record
GB
Kia
Tigers
42-22-3
---
Samsung Lions
40-28-0
4.0
Doosan
Bears
38-27-2
4.5
LG
Twins
33-31-3
9.0
Hyundai Unicorns
31-31-4
10.0
SK
Wyverns
28-33-3
12.5
Hanhwa Eagles
25-38-2
16.5
Lotte
Giants
19-46-1
23.5
Hitting
AVG
Lee Yeong-wu
(Hanhwa)
.364
Chang Seong-ho
(Kia)
.347
Lee Seung-yeop (Samsung) .343
Kim Dong-joo
(Doosan)
.341
Kim Jae-hyun
(LG)
.341
Lee Soong-yong (Hyundai) .330
Shim Jeong-soo (Hyundai)
.325
Lee Ho-joon
(SK)
.323
Chae Jong-beom
(SK)
.317
Lee Jong-beom
(Kia)
.315
Homers
HR
Lee Seung-yeop (Samsung)
26
Song Ji-man
(Hanhwa)
26
Ma Hae-yeong
(Samsung) 26
Shim Jeong-soo
(Hyundai) 22
Kim Dong-joo
(Doosan)
18
Lee Yeong-wu
(Hanhwa)
17
Tyrone Woods
(Doosan)
15
Jose Fernandez
(SK)
15
Chang Seong-ho
(Kia)
13
Lee Ho-joon
(SK)
13
Runs Batted
In
RBI
Lee Seung-yeop (Samsung)
74
Ma Hae-yeong
(Samsung) 65
Chang Seong-ho
(Kia)
63
Song Ji-man
(Hanhwa)
61
Shim Jeong-soo
(Hyundai) 51
Tyrone Woods
(Doosan)
45
Jose Fernandez
(SK)
45
Lee Do-hyung
(Hanhwa)
44
Jin Gap-young
(Samsung) 43
Kim Dong-joo
(Doosan)
42
Pitching
ERA
Song Jin-wu
(Hanhwa)
2.48
Melquicides Torres (Hyundai) 2.91
Mark Kiefer
(Kia)
3.04
Park Myeong-hwan (Doosan) 3.04
Lee Seung-ho
(SK)
3.15
Wins
W
Gary Rath
(Doosan)
11
Mark Kiefer
(Kia)
9
Song Jin-wu
(Hanhwa)
9
Kim Jin-wu
(Kia)
8
Im Chang-yong
(Samsung)
8
Strikeouts
K
Lee Seung-ho
(SK)
93
Gary Rath
(Doosan)
86
Park Myeong-hwan (Doosan) 86
Kim Jin-wu
(Kia)
83
Dave McGee
(Lotte)
82
Chang Overpowers Lotte with Three Hit
Shutout
Chang Chih-chiah of the Seibu Lions continues to
make it look easy, as he twirled a complete game three hit 7-0 shutout against
the Chiba Lotte Marines Monday at Seibu Dome, blowing away nine hitters and
walking one to earn his third victory of the season. The win also fended
off any advancement in the standings by the second place Kintetsu Buffaloes
who were also triumphant. Lions first baseman Alex Cabrera also marked his
return from back fatigue by obliterating a forkball down in the zone from
Kosuke Kato and golfing it on a line into the centerfield seats just below
the scoreboard in the fourth for the game's first run.
The score remained 1-0 until the fifth, when the
Lions finished Kato off. With two outs, third baseman Kazunori Iyoda booted
a ground ball from Lions second baseman Hiroyuki Takagi. Shortstop Kazuo
Matsui singled to right, as did Tatsuya Ozeki to plate Takagi. Tetsuya Kakiuchi
dug in and got real gone to left for a three run homer and a 5-0 Seibu lead.
In an inning later, they took a pound of flesh out
of Ken Yamasaki, as Evans was hit with a pitch and catcher Tsutomu Itoh beat
out a tapper. Yamasaki left in favor of rookie Takashi Tanaka and Takagi
seared one down the rightfield line to pickup Evans. A Matsui groundout later,
Itoh crossed and that is how it ended, 7-0 Lions.
Change just literally cruised, wielding an 89mph
fastball and a wicked sinking changeup. Itoh noted that "I didn't feel that
they could hit his changeup." Leave it to the great 20 year veteran backstop
to see what is what and make best use of it.
The loss also sank Lotte back inthe Pacific League
cellar.
For Seibu, Cabrera was 2-3 with a walk and an RBI
and is at .280. The Lions are 16-1 this season when he homers. Evans was
0-3 with an HBP and is at .314.
For Lotte, Derrick May was 0-1 in a pinch hitting
appearance and is at .224.
Pitching Lines:
Lotte:
K. Kato (L, 3-8 ) IP 4.2 PC 88 H 7 HR 2 K 3 BB 2 R 5 ER 1 ERA 6.12
K. Yamasaki IP 0.2 PC 15 H 1 HR
0 K 0 BB 0 R 2 ER 2 ERA 4.63
T.
Tanaka
IP 1.2 PC 23 H 2 HR 0 K 1 BB 0 R 0 ER 0 ERA 3.68
Kawai
IP 1.0 PC 15 H 1 HR 0 K 1 BB 0 R 0 ER 0 ERA 3.57
Seibu:
Chang (W, 3-1) IP 9.0 PC 119 H 3 HR 0 K 9 BB 1 R
0 ER 0 ERA 1.64
E: Iyoda
SB: K. Matsui, H. Takagi
2B: Kosaka, Cabrera, H. Takagi
HR: Cabrera (19), Kakiuchi (4)
RBI: Ozeki, Cabrera, Kakiuchi 3, H. Takagi
HBP: Evans (K. Yamasaki)
GIDP: H. Takagi, Wada, Evans
LOB: Lotte 4, Seibu 4
Season Series: Lotte 3, Seibu 9
Game Time: 2:46
Attendance: 13,000
Umpires: Akimura (HP), Nakamura (2B), Yanagida (2B), Yamamoto (3B)
Kintetsu Keeps Pace in PL with Win Over Nippon
Ham
Kintetsu Buffaloes starter Katsuhiko Maekawa won
his first game in more than a month and a half Monday, as first baseman Yuji
Yoshioka homered and drove in three runs and rightfielder Koichi Isobe put
across two more in a 7-2 victory
over the Nippon Ham Fighters at Osaka Dome.
Hayato Nakamura started for Nippon Ham and wasn't
what we've otherwise seen from him this season, as he was rocked for five
runs on six hits in 4.1 innings, his shortest outing of the year, to get
the blame for the defeat.
Nippon Ham took an early lead in the second when
Yukio Tanaka doubled down the leftfield line and then wheeled on in on a
single to left by Takaya Hayashi to make it 1-0 Fighters.
They added to that in the third, as first baseman
Michihiro Ogasawara walked with two away, DH Sherman Obando singled to left
and centerfielder Tatsuya Ide went to left, too, for the RBI and it was 2-0
Fighters.
The Buffaloes then went on a stampeded in the fourth.
Second baseman Eiji Mizuguchi walked to kick it off. One out later, third
baseman Norihiro Nakamura doubled to leftcenter. Yoshioka drilled a double
to leftcenter to score Mizuguchi. Isobe clocked another two bagger, this
one to rightcenter, which plated both Nakamura and Yoshioka and now Kintetsu
was ahead 3-2. Shortstop Masahiro Abe tripled to rightcenter (geez, Ide must
have been one tired hombre by now) and it was 4-2.
In the fifth, The Buffs got one out singles from
Mizuguchi, leftfielder Tuffy Rhodes and Nakamura to make it 5-2 Kintetsu.
Two innings down the line, Kintetsu DH Kenshi Kawaguchi
walked with two outs and Yoshioka exited to the lefthand side and they were
up by five at 7-2.
Mike Johnson came on in the ninth and retired three
out of the four men that came up in that inning to end it.
For Nippon Ham, Obando was 1-4 and is at .245.
Leftfielder D.T. Cromer was was 1-4 and is at .272.
For Kintetsu, Rhodes was 1-4 and is at .275.
Pitching Lines:
Nippon Ham:
H. Nakamura (L, 4-3) IP 4.1 PC 71 H 6 HR 0 K 2 BB
1 R 5 ER 5 ERA 3.12
N.
Takahashi
IP 0.1 PC 13 H 2 HR 0 K 0 BB 0 R 0 ER 0 ERA 6.75
Muto
IP 0.1 PC 13 H 0 HR 0 K 0 BB 1 R 0 ER 0 ERA 5.12
Sekine
IP 2.0 PC 37 H 2 HR 1 K 0 BB 1 R 2 ER 2 ERA 3.74
Tateishi
IP 1.0 PC 13 H 0 HR 0 K 0 BB 0 R 0 ER 0 ERA 4.26
Kintetsu:
Maekawa (W, 3-5) IP 6.2 PC 108
H 9 HR 0 K 2 BB 2 R 2 ER 2 ERA 4.37
A.N.
Otsuka
IP 1.1 PC 17 H 0 HR 0 K 3 BB 0 R 0 ER 0 ERA 3.60
Johnson
IP 1.0 PC 15 H 1 HR 0 K 1 BB 0 R 0 ER 0 ERA 2.25
SB: Kawaguchi
2B: Kaneko 2, Y. Tanaka, S. Takahashi, N. Nakamura, Yoshioka, Isobe
3B: M. Abe
HR: Yoshioka (9)
RBI: Ide, Hayashi, N. Nakamura, Yoshioka 3, Isobe 2, M. Abe
GIDP: Obando
LOB: Nippon Ham 9, Kintetsu 6
Season Series: Nippon Ham 5, Kintetsu 6
Game Time: 3:22
Attendance: 13,000
Umpires: Iizuka (HP), Higashi (1B), Tamba (2B), Hayashi (3B)
Today in Japanese Baseball History
This report is for July 1st and on that date in
Japanese baseball history in 1962, Yomiuri Giants first baseman Sadaharu
Oh debuted his now well known flamingo batting style in a game at Kawasaki
Stadium with the Taiyo Whales, where he raised one leg high in the air. Actually,
that was to cure a hitch he had in his swing, since he would fall over if
he tried to buggywhip on the ball. He went 3-4 with a homer.
Also, on this date in 1970, the great Kintetsu Buffaloes
leftfielder, Masahiro Doi was referred to prosecutors for allegedly gambling.
Moreover, he was later given a one month suspension from the Japanese
commissioner's office. That limited him to just 73 games that season, hitting
11 homers and driving in 41 runs while batting .280. The next season, though,
he rebounded with his best year ever, batting .309 and establishing career
highs in homers (40), RBIs (113) and SLG (.603). Lifetime, he batted .282
with 465 longballs and an OPS of .839. He also amassed 2452 hits (he was
only the tenth man at the time to reach the 2,000 knock plateau) and was
named to 15 all star squads. Doi then went on to be the batting coach for
the Seibu Lions after retiring in 1981. As a member of the Lions in 1978,
he tied a PL record with homers in six consecutive games. He was the Buffaloes
cleanup hitter starting at age 19. Wow!
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