Highlights: Eagles at Lions Following a nine game winning streak that also included ten wins from 11 games (with one tie) the Rakuten Golden Eagles are now in the midst of a four game losing streak after losing to the Seibu Lions 5-4 on Saturday. Rakuten opened the scoring in the second inning when Ryosuke Tatsumi singled off Lions starter Shinsuke Sato bringing home Hiroaki Shimauchi from second. Takeya Nakamura tied it in the bottom of the frame with a solo blast to straight away center off Takahisa Hayakawa, but Rakuten retook the lead an inning later when Shimauchi doubled in Fumiya Kurokawa. The Eagles increased their lead to 4-1 in the fifth when Hideto Asamura scored from second on a double by José Marmolejos, and Eigoro Mogi singled to left driving in Shimauchi with his second run. But the Lions staged a comeback with four runs in the Lucky 7. Seiji Kawagoe singled home Takumi Kuriyama, then Natsuo Takizawa tripled into the right-center alley driving in Kawagoe and Aito Takeda. Takizawa then raced home with what would be the game-winning run on Tomohiro Anraku's wild pitch. Rakuten threatened to tie it in the ninth inning when Kurokawa led off with a double but Seibu closer Tatsushi Masuda settled down and retired the next three batters to pick up his ninth save of the year.
Bonus: Marines at Buffaloes Shuhei Fukuda doubled to open the home half of the first inning and came around to score when Yuma Mune's single was misplayed by Lotte centerfielder Hiromi Oka. Despite getting into a few tough spots the one run was all Yoshinobu Yamamoto needed to pick up his fourth win of the campaign. In his first outing since allowing seven runs in six innings ending his streak of 22 consecutive quality starts, Yamamoto protected the 1-0 lead going eight innings allowing five hits and three walks while striking out nine. Marines rookie Shoma Sato allowed just the one unearned run on two hits and one walk over six innings in his starting debut but ended up with the tough loss. The game ended with a major talking point when Orix reliever Yoshihisa Hirano benefitted with a called third strike by home plate umpire Hideto Fuke on a 3-2 pitch that appeared low to Adeiny Hechavarria who argued the call. After a verbal warning was given Marines skipper Tadahito Iguchi came out to protest and was ejected with the game already ended.
Sunday, May 15 Swallows at Carp finished in a tie after 12 innings. Boxscores: http://hosted.stats.com/npb/scoreboard.asp?day=20220515
ビッグボス The season may have started off slowly but flamboyant first-year manager Tsuyoshi "BigBoss" Shinjo is living the dream and showing no signs of changing his unconventional ways as he looks to rebuild the young Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters. Shinjo was brought in to shake things up after the team finished in fifth place in the six-team Pacific League standings the last three consecutive seasons. And while hiring a manager with no previous experience may seem like a risky proposition, with naysayers in the notoriously staid world of NPB already questioning his managerial abilities, it hasn’t fazed Shinjo one bit. He knows there will be growing pains with this young team and he is perfectly content with that. During a pre-game interview in April the 50-year-old Shinjo referred to the managers he played for in MLB, saying he had plenty to learn from Dusty Baker and Bobby Valentine. “Baker’s style was pretty much to stick with a set lineup,” Shinjo said, reflecting on his time with the San Francisco Giants in 2002. “That was good for a mature team like the one he had. But that approach doesn’t really fit with a young team like this one. My approach now is more similar to Bobby’s.” Bobby V was not afraid to try different things and that seems to have made a lasting impression on the first-year skipper who has used a dizzying array of batting orders this season. One case in point is promising young infielder Kotaro Kiyomiya. During the off-season the Fighters dealt away slugging first baseman Sho Nakata to the Yomiuri Giants after it was revealed he had bullied a teammate. That opened the door for Kiyomiya, a player who hit a record 111 home runs over three seasons in high school but has yet to reach his full potential in his four years as a professional. Shinjo told the 22-year-old Tokyo native he needed to lose weight. Kiyomiya showed up for spring training this season 10 pounds lighter at a respectable 98 kilograms. While it’s still early, Kiyomiya is off to a decent start with four homers, 15 hits (including six doubles) and ten RBIs in 33 games. Those numbers indicate he may be in for his most productive season yet. “His swing looks better than it used to,” Shinjo told reporters. “I want him and all the other batters to feel they can relax at the plate." "I’m not so worried about the wins and losses. The important thing now is to get experience for the players and build for the future.” The pitching staff is very much a work in progress. Their team ERA of 3.79 currently ranks next-to-last (11th) in NPB and their two best starters - Naoyuki Uwasawa and Hiromi Ito - have a combined six wins with 8 quality starts in their 15 appearances. The team brought in former major leaguer John Gant, who went 11-1 in St. Louis in 2019, but he has yet to take the mound. Whether or not that is due to injury the club won’t say, but having a pitcher of his caliber will certainly help. Meanwhile, Shinjo has turned heads both on and off the field with his unorthodox methods. He flew over the Sapporo Dome field on Opening Day in a hovercraft that looked like something out of The Jetsons. The move created worldwide attention with news outlets from the UK to CBS Morning News to a Fox TV affiliate in Seattle posting the futuristic scene on Twitter accounts. #PicOfTheDay: Captured in @TheTimes. “Tsuyoshi Shinjo, below, entered the Sapporo dome on the XTurismo which can fly at up to 62mph.”— Newsworks (@newsworks_uk) March 31, 2022 Before games during batting and fielding practice he sits perched on a 12-foot highchair behind home plate called the “Big Boss Stage” that comes with its own built-in ladder. But what’s perfectly clear is that Shinjo is a players’ manager and his young squad seems to like the atmosphere surrounding the team. “He’s great, he tries to give you the confidence to play the game,” said Fighters infielder and former major leaguer Arismendy Alcantara, who is in his first season in Japan. “He’s always trying something new and I like that. We work hard every day but we are also having fun and that’s very important for a young team like ours.” Shinjo seems to be the right man to lead a new generation of Japanese players. The days of drill-sergeant managers like Senichi Hoshino and Tatsuro Hirooka, with their practice-till-you-drop mantras, are long gone. Shinjo is more in tune with fellow managers Tadahito Iguchi (Lotte Marines) and Shingo Takatsu (Yakult Swallows), who have played in MLB and know it takes a softer touch these days. Meanwhile, the Nippon-Ham fan base seems content to weather the storm. “It’s a young team with a lot of potential so we can’t expect too much from them this season,” said Sapporo taxi driver Masanori Kondo. “When they got rid of Nakata and brought Shinjo in, that’s when I started to take an interest in the team. Shinjo’s job right now is to build a team for the future. Nobody is expecting them to win the Japan Series this year.” How long that patience will last is anyone’s guess. The fans seem entertained by Shinjo’s off-field antics, but as former Chunichi Dragons manager Hiromitsu Ochiai said during an interview, “Winning is the ultimate form of fan service.” The Shinjo effect is already taking hold. The team enjoyed its second-highest Opening Day TV rating of 26.5% since moving to Sapporo for their first game of the season on March 25 in Fukuoka. The highest was 31.6% on Opening Day in 2012 when Yuki Saito, the Handkerchief Prince, threw his first complete-game win. Along with the arrival of Shinjo, there are other exciting projects in the works for the Fighters. The team will play at a new state-of-the-art stadium in 2023. ES CON Field Hokkaido in Kitahiroshima will have a retractable roof and a capacity of 35,000. www.hkdballpark.com/livecamera/ Over the years, the team has had a reputation for thinking outside the box and that has served it well. Japanese baseball, especially in the Yomiuri-dominated Central League, can be quite resistant to change. But for now, everyone seems on board with the Shinjo methods despite the early-season losses. This isn’t the first time Tsuyoshi Shinjo has been called upon to revive the team. Prior to moving to Sapporo in 2004 the Fighters shared the Tokyo Dome with the ever-popular Yomiuri Giants. Fighters’ games were sparsely attended and the results on the field were, for the most part, uninspiring. When the team moved to Japan’s northernmost island of Hokkaido in 2004, they called upon Shinjo. At the time, Shinjo was famous in Japan for his playing days with the Hanshin Tigers. He had also spent time in MLB, where he became the first Japanese player to appear in a World Series in 2002 while with the San Francisco Giants. Bringing Shinjo in at the time was a stroke of genius as he gave the team some much-needed star power just when it was trying to generate a new fan base in Hokkaido. Along with his flashy play during games, Shinjo was known for several stunts like taking the field for pre-game warm-ups in a variety of costumes. Along with the help of Yu Darvish and Atsunori Inaba (the Fighters current GM) the team became wildly popular in Hokkaido and rewarded their fans with a championship in 2006. Getting away from Tokyo and the burden of having to play second fiddle to the Giants proved to be a huge boost for the team as they could establish their own identity in Sapporo. As a player, Shinjo wasn’t blessed with outstanding ability but managed to play 13 seasons in NPB and three in MLB. He made the most of his abilities, becoming a seven-time NPB All-Star and a 10-time Golden Glove Award winner. His crowning moment came when he helped the Fighters win the Japan Series in 2006. It was his last season as a player and he became very emotional after the final out was made. Some may have underestimated him due to his flamboyant behavior but he was a smart player with a keen sense for what it took to win. Now as manager of the Fighters, he’s hoping those same baseball instincts will lead to more success. “He brings a lot of energy to the team,” added Alcantara. “So far, everything I see is good. He’s having fun too and cheers with us.”
BigBoss doing things his way. Highlights: Hawks at Fighters In the first two games of the weekend series the Fighters gained shutout victories over the second place Softbank Hawks 1-0 and 2-0 (with Naoyuki Uwasawa going eight innings on Saturday). On Sunday hopes for a third consecutive shutout ended in the first inning when Yuki Yanagita blasted a two-run homer off Toshihiro Sugiura. But that would be all Softnack would score as last-place Nippon-Ham crushed the second place Hawks 10-2 to complete the three-game sweep. Chusei Mannami led the barrage going 3-for-5 including a two-run triple and a two-run home run while also scoring three runs. Go Matsumoto also achieved a modasho going 3-for-4 while Kotaro Kiyomiya tripled, walked twice, was hit by a pitch and scored twice. Sugiura struck out seven without issuing a walk over five innings, and four relievers retired three batters apiece to close it out.
Highlights: Swallows at Carp In NPB games during the regular season play a maximum of 12 innings. If the score remains tied after 12, the result goes down as a tie. This normally wouldn't bother me but in the case of NPB I hate them because they are not taken into account in the team's winning percentage. It's as if the game was never played. I feel they should count as half win/half loss so that they are reflected in the standings. The same way they are in, for example, the NFL. [/soap box] In Hiroshima the Central League's top two teams clashed in a rain-shortened two game weekend series, Friday's game having been washed out. Munetaka Murakami gave the Swallows the lead with a two-run first-inning home run, his 12th of the season. Hiroshima rookie Kento Nakamura leveled the score with two-run homer, the first of his career, in the Carp's three-run fifth inning. With the score at 5-5 after 9, the home team loaded the bases in the 10th with two outs against rookie reliever Naofumi Kizawa. But new Swallows import A.J. Cole struck out veteran Kosuke Tanaka to end the inning and also worked a scoreless 11th. Nakamura, who also doubled and was intentionally walked twice, singled in the 12th to give the Carp hope of a sayonara victory. But with twqo on and two outs Murakami evaded the barrel of pinch-hitter Shosei Nakamura's shattered bat at third base to record the final out after after 4 hours, 44 minutes of play at Mazda Stadium. The tie leaves the Swallows a half-game ahead of the Carp at the top of the Central League.
BATTING Average .377 - Go Matsumoto (Fighters) .339 - Kenta Imamiya (Hawks) .325 - Masataka Yoshida (Buffaloes) .295 - Hiroaki Shimauchi (Eagles) .281 - Hideto Asamura (Eagles) On-Base % .453 - Masataka Yoshida (Buffaloes) .429 - Go Matsumoto (Fighters) .416 -Haruki Nishikawa (Eagles) .394 - Kenta Imamiya (Hawks) .393 - Hideto Asamura (Eagles) OPS .932 - Masataka Yoshida (Buffaloes) .904 - Haruki Nishikawa (Eagles) .867 - Hideto Asamura (Eagles) .855 - Go Matsumoto (Fighters) .837 - Hiroaki Shimauchi (Eagles) Home Runs 14 - Hotaka Yamakawa (Lions) 6 - Yuki Yanagita (Hawks) 6 - Hideto Asamura (Eagles) 6 - Yuma Imagawa (Fighters) 6 - Arismendy Alcántara (Fighters) RBIs 31 - Hotaka Yamakawa (Lions) 27 - Hideto Asamura (Eagles) 25 - Masataka Yoshida (Buffaloes) 24 - Haruki Nishikawa (Eagles) 20 - 2 players tied AVG with RISP .542 - Masataka Yoshida (Buffaloes) .474 - Go Matsumoto (Fighters) .414 - Haruki Nishikawa (Eagles) .371 - Kazunari Ishii (Fighters) .368 - Hideto Asamura (Eagles) Stolen Bases 14 - Go Matsumoto (Fighters) 12 - Akito Takabe (Marines) 9 - Haruki Nishikawa (Eagles) 9 - Tsuyoshi Yamasaki (Eagles) 6 - 2 players tied PITCHING ERA 1.17 - Masahiro Tanaka (Eagles) 1.24 - Koudai Senga (Hawks) 1.47 - Roki Sasaki (Marines) 1.66 - Takahisa Hayakawa (Eagles) 1.67 - Kona Takahashi (Lions) WHIP 0.63 - Roki Sasaki (Marines) 0.78 - Masahiro Tanaka (Eagles) 0.79 - Nao Higashihama (Hawks) 0.82 - Takayuki Katoh (Fighters) 0.92 - Takahisa Hayakawa (Eagles) Innings pitched 58.0 - Koudai Senga (Hawks) 54.0 - Kona Takahashi (Lions) 50.1 - Yoshinobu Yamamoto (Buffaloes) 49.0 - Roki Sasaki (Marines) 49.0 - Takayuki Katoh (Fighters) Strikeouts 78 - Roki Sasaki (Marines) 62 - Koudai Senga (Hawks) 55 - Yoshinobu Yamamoto (Buffaloes) 45 - Hiroya Miyagi (Buffaloes) 43 - Naoyuki Uwasawa (Fighters) Wins 4 - 6 players tied Holds 12 - Kaima Taira (Lions) 11 - Jesse Biddle (Buffaloes) 10 - Katsuki Matayoshi (Hawks) 7 - 6 players tied Saves 11 - Yuki Matsui (Eagles) 11 - Yoshihisa Hirano (Buffaloes) 9 - Tatsushi Masuda (Lions) 6 - Naoya Masuda (Marines) 6 - Yuito Mori (Hawks)
BATTING Average .341 - Naoki Yoshikawa (Giants) .337 - Shugo Maki (BayStars) .316 - Shogo Sakakura (Carp) .307 - Keita Sano (BayStars) .304 - Ryoma Nishikawa (Carp) On-Base % .431 - Shugo Maki (BayStars) .411 - Munetaka Murakami (Swallows) .401 - Naoki Yoshikawa (Giants) .376 - Tetsuto Yamada (Swallows) .371 - Ryan McBroom (Carp) OPS 1.075 - Shugo Maki (BayStars) 1.008 - Munetaka Murakami (Swallows) .893 - Teruaki Sato (Tigers) .858 - Kazuma Okamoto (Giants) .850 - Tetsuto Yamada (Swallows) Home Runs 12 - Munetaka Murakami (Swallows) 12 - Kazuma Okamoto (Giants) 9 - Teruaki Sato (Tigers) 8 - Shugo Maki (BayStars) 8 - Yoshihiro Maru (Giants) RBIs 35 - Munetaka Murakami (Swallows) 29 - Kazuma Okamoto (Giants) 25 - Shugo Maki (BayStars) 25 - Shogo Sakakura (Carp) 24 - Ryoma Nishikawa (Carp) AVG with RISP .462 - Shugo Maki (BayStars) .419 - Shogo Sakakura (Carp) .390 - Ryoma Nishikawa (Carp) .368 - Koji Chikamoto (Tigers) .355 - Tetsuto Yamada (Swallows) Stolen Bases 9 - Yasutaka Shiomi (Swallows) 8 - Takumu Nakano (Tigers) 7 - Tetsuto Yamada (Swallows) 6 - Koji Chikamoto (Tigers) 6 - Yuki Okabayashi (Dragons) PITCHING ERA 1.09 - Koyo Aoyagi (Tigers) 2.11 - Yuki Nishi (Tigers) 2.22 - Aren Kuri (Carp) 2.30 - Hiroki Tokoda (Carp) 2.47 - Daichi Ohsera (Carp) WHIP 0.82 - Koyo Aoyagi (Tigers) 1.00 - Taiga Kamichatani (BayStars) 1.039 - Daichi Ohsera (Carp) 1.040 - Yudai Ohno (Dragons) 1.042 - Yuki Nishi (Tigers) Innings pitched 56.0 - Masato Morishita (Carp) 51.2 - Yūya Yanagi (Dragons) 51.0 - Daichi Ohsera (Carp) 49.0 - Yudai Ohno (Dragons) 47.0 - 2 players tied Strikeouts 49 - Yūya Yanagi (Dragons) 39 - Daichi Ohsera (Carp) 38 - Keiji Takahashi (Swallows) 37 - Shosei Togo (Giants) 35 - 2 players tied Wins 5 - Shosei Togo (Giants) 4 - 6 players tied Holds 12 - Nobutaka Imamura (Giants) 11 - Yariel Rodriguez (Dragons) 9 - Kazuto Taguchi (Swallows) 9 - Atsuki Yuasa (Tigers) 9 - Takuya Kuwahara (Giants) Saves 14 - Taisei Ota (Giants) 11 - Scott McGough (Swallows) 10 - Raidel Martínez (Dragons) 7 - Ryoji Kuribayashi (Carp) 5 - Suguru Iwazaki (Tigers)
Interested in buying NPB team caps and/or player jerseys? There's a website based in Osaka that ships overseas including the United States. Highly recommend reading the FAQ before purchasing. https://japan-baseball-jersey.com/faq/ Many player jerseys, past and present, are available. Based on their twitter account I would guess the most popular jerseys seem to be (in no particular order)... - Shohei Ohtani #11 (retro Nippon-Ham Fighters) - "BigBoss" Shinjo #1 (current Nippon-Ham Fighters) - Seiya Suzuki #51 and #1 (retro Hiroshima Carp) Order has been shipped to Hamilton, Canada.2013-2017 Hokkaido Nippon Ham Fighters Home Baseball Jersey #11 Ohtani. pic.twitter.com/2wa6bVslSF— Japan Baseball Jersey Store (@baseball_shirt) April 12, 2022 Order has been shipped to Long Island City, USA.Hokkaido Nippon Ham Fighters Baseball Cap.Tohoku Rakuten Golden Eagles Baseball Cap.Chiba Lotte Marines Baseball Cap.Saitama Seibu Lions Baseball Cap.Orix Buffaloes Baseball Cap.Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks Baseball Cap. pic.twitter.com/ii32HKbMBu— Japan Baseball Jersey Store (@baseball_shirt) April 13, 2022 Order has been shipped to Arlington, USA.2013-2018 Hiroshima Toyo Carp Away High Quality Baseball Jersey #51 Suzuki. pic.twitter.com/5HDe8Kh313— Japan Baseball Jersey Store (@baseball_shirt) March 23, 2022
Highlights: Carp at Giants Roughly every three years the Yomiuri Giants will play a game at the Kiyohara Baseball Stadium in Utsunomiya, in the northern Tochigi Prefecture. Tuesday saw the latest edition with Giants hosting the Hiroshima Carp. It was one that will have the baseball pundits scratching their heads in wonderment for days. Hiroshima took the lead in the second inning when Shota Suekane's hard liner past first base brought in Shogo Sakakura and Kaito Kozono. Giants starter Cristopher Mercedes pitched well despite giving up the two runs, going eight full innings but his quest of picking up his fifth win of the season eluded him for the second consecutive start. Carp hurler Atsushi Endoh also pitched a gem, allowing just three hits and two walks after eight innings. But then came the head scratching moment as Hiroshima were batting in the ninth. Still holding the 2-0 advantage, Carp manager Shinji Sasaoka decided to let Endoh go for the complete game shutout by allowing him to bat with the bases loaded and one out rather than bringing in a pinch hitter for a possible insurance run. Result: Endoh grounded into a 6-2-3 double play to end the inning. It would prove fatal. Already at 110 pitches as he began the ninth and the heart of the Giants lineup coming to bat, Endoh gave up two hits and a walk to load the bases with no outs before being pulled. Gregory Polanco then singled off reliever Nik Turley to bring in Adam Walker with the first run, and with the bases still loaded with no outs Hiroyuki Nakajima lined a shot into the left-center alley allowing Naoki Yoshikawa to score the tying run and pinch runner Daiki Masuda to score the sayonara run in a dramatic end to the contest. The decision of manager Sasaoka to let Endoh bat for himself is all the more curious given that Sasaoka was a closer during his playing days.
Other brief highlights At Meiji Jingu, the Hanshin Tigers took a 1-0 lead into the ninth inning thanks to Kento Itohara's first home run of the season in the fifth inning. But closer Suguru Iwazaki incurred his first blown save of the year by allowing two runs to the Yakult Swallows, Takahiro Araki scoring the sayonara by tagging up on Norichika Aoki's line out to deep right field. In the Pacific League, the second place Softbank Hawks were on the verge of losing their fourth in a row when the Seibu Lions scored in the bottom of the eighth to lead 1-0 in Naha, Okinawa. But the team from Fukuoka went off in the ninth scoring five runs to come away with the victory and halt their losing streak. In Chiba, Masahiro Tanaka pitched well for six innings but was shelled in the seventh allowing five runs as the Lotte Marines defeated the Rakuten Golden Eagles 6-3. The gif above makes it look like the pitch hit him in the face, but this pic from Sports Hochi shows a piece of his helmet chipped off, meaning the pitch hit his helmet first then deflected off his face https://t.co/4qOWTrL3co— NPB on reddit (@NPB_Reddit) May 17, 2022
Highlights: Tigers at Swallows With regular catcher Ryutaro Umeno deactivated due to a strained right oblique muscle, Hanshin manager Akihiro Yano decided to shake up the lineup a bit by inserting starting pitcher Junya Nishi eighth in the batting order. In addition to being a quality pitcher, Nishi was a standout hitter in high school where he often batted cleanup and DHing on days he wasn't pitching. With the Tigers in NPB Nishi has only had six plate appearances in four games, with two hits and two strikeouts. On Wednesday with his team already leading 1-0 in the second inning, Junya slugged his first home run as a professional, a two-run blast into the left field bleachers off Keiji Takahashi. On the mound Junya was superb, allowing six hits and no walks while fanning seven. His only blemish was giving up a two-out solo blast to Tetsuto Yamada in the sixth inning that cut the Tiger lead to 6-1. By pitching a complete game victory coupled with hitting a home run in the same game, Junya Nishi produced a few fun facts: - He's the first pitcher to achieve the feat since Daichi Ohsera (Carp) on Opening Day 2020 (June 19, late pandemic start). - He's the first to hit his first career homer and pitch his first complete game on the same day since Chikafusa Ikeda (Tigers) on May 11, 1984. - He's the first pitcher in four seasons to hit a home run while batting somewhere other than ninth in the order since Joe Wieland (Baystars) did it on July 10, 2018, and the first Japanese pitcher to do it since Shohei Ohtani (Fighters) back in 2016 when he batted leadoff. Junya is part of a pitching staff that has now gone 20 consecutive games allowing 3 or fewer runs. Yet the team is just 12-8 during this run with the lack of run production being the reason. Jefry Marté's much anticipated first home run in the first inning since returning from injury last week could be a major boost. After achieving 22 home runs and 77 RBIs last season Marté was expected to help lead the team in 2022. But a right foot injury kept him out of action since the start of the season and with the team sluggish at the plate during his absence the return of the Dominican slugger was welcomed by all who hope today's home run (and his La Pampara celebration) will help rejuvenate the squad.
さよなら Another team with a strong pitching staff are the Lotte Marines. After finishing second in the PL last season and losing the Climax Series Final to the Orix Buffaloes, the club from Chiba have struggled in the standings this year due mainly to their offensive woes. The main culprit has been Leonys Martín. After spending nine years bouncing up and down from MLB to the minors, Martín has consistently led the team's offensive prowess the past three seasons. But season four has been a struggle for the 34 year old Cuban-American, who is hitting just .144 with only six RBIs. But that sixth RBI came on Wednesday night as Martín connected on a 1-1 pitch from reliever Tomohito Sakai sending the ball deep and just inside the right field foul pole for just his second home run of the season - the 68th of his NPB career - to give the Marines a 1-0 Sayonara victory in 10 innings over the Rakuten Golden Eagles. 本日のヒーロー2人目！待望の一発で試合を決めた #レオネス・マーティン 選手のヒーローインタビューです！#chibalotte #MarinesBaseball #CLM30th #TodaysHero pic.twitter.com/PtLdRBgG98— 千葉ロッテマリーンズ (@chibalotte) May 18, 2022
Thursday, May 19 Only three games were scheduled. Boxscores: http://hosted.stats.com/npb/scoreboard.asp?day=20220519
Highlights: Carp at Giants A good pitching matchup at the Tokyo Dome saw Tomoyuki Sugano outgun Aren Kuri as the Yomiuri Giants defeated the Hiroshima Carp 2-1 to complete a three game sweep. Kuri struck out 10 in seven innings of work but Raito Nakayama's seventh inning single up the middle was misplayed by Carp centerfielder Takayoshi Noma which allowed pinch runner Daiki Masuda to score from second which ultimately became the winning run. Sugano had thrown 116 pitches as he entered the ninth inning looking for his first complete game of the year. But with one out he surrendered two consecutive singles and was pulled having tossed 127 pitches. Reliever Ryu Ohta loaded the bases by hitting his first batter, Shogo Sakakura, before getting Kaito Kozono to fly out to shallow center field which held the tying run at third. Ohta then struck out Noma to earn his league-leading 16th save and allowing Sugano to record his fifth win of the campaign.
Other highlights On the west side of Tokyo the Yakult Swallows maintained their Central League lead - albeit via winning percentage - by beating the Hanshin Tigers 3-0. It's the 11th time Hanshin have been shutout this season. And on the other side of Tokyo Bay the Chiba Lotte Marines took a 2-0 lead on solo home runs from their slugging gaijins, Brandon Laird and Leonys Martín But a six-run seventh inning capped off by a grand slam from José Marmolejos provided the Rakuten Golden Eagles with a 7-2 victory for the Pacific League leaders.
安打 + 失策 → 本塁打 Single and error or Inside-the-park home run? In the ninth inning of last Sunday's game between the Hanshin Tigers and Yokohama BayStars Kento Itohara hit a liner to right field that bounced in front of Taishi Kusumoto and got by the right fielder. As the ball rolled to the fence Itohara never stopped running and he eventually beat the throw home. The official scorer ruled the play as a single and error. On Thursday NPB announced that the ruling would be changed to a "running home run", or what we in the U.S. call an inside-the-park home run. The change in scoring means that Itohara now has two homers for the season and was awarded two RBIs instead of one. 阪神タイガース 糸原 健斗ランニングホームラン pic.twitter.com/ePv32grsOm— ドラペイ (@Dorapeinet) May 15, 2022 Carter Stewart update. Update on Carter Steward Jr for those interested, he pitched in a practice game today with the 2nd level farm team (3gun), going 3 IP with 1 unearned run and striking out 4 on 43 pitches. He's still in rehab after injuring his abdominal rectus musclehttps://t.co/ZLgh4mshrE #npb— NPB on reddit (@NPB_Reddit) May 19, 2022
Their first meeting two weeks ago didn't quite live up to the hype but that doesn't dilute the anticipation of Friday's pitching rematch between Softbank's Koudai Senga (3-1, 1.24) and Lotte's Roki Sasaki (4-0, 1.47). First pitch from Fukuoka is scheduled for 6pm Japan / 5am Eastern. FTF (For The Fans) will be streaming the game on delay on Friday at 1pm Eastern/10am Pacific. https://therokuchannel.roku.com/watch/207a46cee141505885b9ba3868251d55 https://twitter.com/ForTheFansHQ And looking ahead to Sunday, the Pacific League's English youtube channel will be streaming their second live 'PL Game of the Month' broadcast which will be the final game of the Hawks-Marines three-game series. First pitch will be Sunday midnight Eastern / Saturday 9:00pm Pacific. (1:00pm Sunday Japan)
Highlights: Marines at Hawks The unusual sight of an open roof at the PayPay Dome in Fukuoka welcomed Round 2 of Senga vs Sasaki. Roki Sasaki went six innings allowing one earned run on four hits and two walks while striking out nine to pick up his fifth win of the season as the Chiba Lotte Marines defeated the Softbank Hawks 8-1. Softbank's Koudai Senga got off to a rocky start, allowing two runs on two hits, two walks and a sacrifice fly in the first inning. He allowed two more runs in the third inning and was pulled after the fourth. Senga's line was four innings, four earned runs allowed on six hits and three walks. He only struck out two. Adeiny Hechavarria led the offensive assault for the Marines going 3-for-4 with two RBIs. Following their ten game winning streak the Pacific League leading Rakuten Eagles have been in quite a slump, going 2-7 including Friday's 1-0 defeat at home against the Orix Buffaloes. Koji Ohshiro provided the game's only run with a solo shot to the center field bleachers in the third inning. 左中間スタンドへ飛び込む先制アーチ🌈オリックス #大城滉二 選手 ソロホームランを放つ！#Bs2022 @Orix_Buffaloes @adohen1023👇大城選手の過去の活躍動画はこちら！https://t.co/2LEAIZk1Ep pic.twitter.com/JrCBC4iYlT— パ・リーグ.com / パーソル パ・リーグTV【公式】 (@PacificleagueTV) May 20, 2022