Kazuya Ojima pitched seven quality innings and Hisanori Yasuda went 2-for-3 with a walk, one RBI and two runs scored as the Chiba Lotte Marines secured second place in the Pacific League standings with a 5-0 shutout victory over the Rakuten Eagles. The win not only clinched a playoff spot for the Marines but they will also host the SoftBank Hawks at ZOZO Marine Stadium in the best-of-three first phase Climax Series this coming weekend. Hiromi Oka looped a single down the line over first base allowing Koki Yamaguchi to slide home from second with the first run of the game in the second inning. Yasuda made it 2-0 in the fourth as his deep fly to the opposite field crashed off the left field foul pole . In the seventh, Takashi Ogino's comeback liner rebounded off the foot off Eagles reliever Sung Chia-hao which allowed Yasuda to race home for Lotte's third run. And the visitors completed the scoring in the eighth when Toshiya Satoh lined a two-out bases loaded double to left-center scoring two runs to finish off Rakuten. It's a heartbreaking end to the season for the Eagles. 10 games out of third place in early July and 5 games off the pace on August 24, the club representing the Tohoku region finished their campaign with a strong run but were unable to clear the final hurdle on the last day of the season.
BATTING Average .326 - Toshiro Miyazaki (BayStars) .305 - Ryoma Nishikawa (Carp) .300 - Domingo Santana (Swallows) .293 - Shugo Maki (BayStars) .289 - Yohei Ohshima (Dragons) .2884 - Yusuke Ohyama (Tigers) .2878 - Hayato Sakamoto (Giants) .2854 - Koji Chikamoto (Tigers) .2852 - Takumu Nakano (Tigers) .281 - Takumi Ohshiro (Giants) On-Base Percentage .403 - Yusuke Ohyama (Tigers) .395 - Toshiro Miyazaki (BayStars) .379 - Koji Chikamoto (Tigers) .375 - Munetaka Murakami (Swallows) .374 - Kazuma Okamoto (Giants) .361 - Hayato Sakamoto (Giants) .360 - Domingo Santana (Swallows) .349 - Takumu Nakano (Tigers) .347 - Shogo Sakakura (Carp) .341 - Takumi Ohshiro (Giants) OPS .958 - Kazuma Okamoto (Giants) .934 - Toshiro Miyazaki (BayStars) .884 - Hayato Sakamoto (Giants) .875 - Munetaka Murakami (Swallows) .867 - Shugo Maki (BayStars) .859 - Yusuke Ohyama (Tigers) .844 - Domingo Santana (Swallows) .837 - Teruaki Sato (Tigers) .809 - Koji Chikamoto (Tigers) .787 - Takumi Ohshiro (Giants) Home Runs 41 - Kazuma Okamoto (Giants) 31 - Munetaka Murakami (Swallows) 29 - Shugo Maki (BayStars) 24 - Teruaki Sato (Tigers) 24 - Seiya Hosokawa (Dragons) 23 - Jose Osuna (Swallows) 22 - Hayato Sakamoto (Giants) 20 - Toshiro Miyazaki (BayStars) 19 - Yusuke Ohyama (Tigers) 19 - Matt Davidson (Carp) RBIs 103 - Shugo Maki (BayStars) 93 - Kazuma Okamoto (Giants) 92 - Teruaki Sato (Tigers) 84 - Munetaka Murakami (Swallows) 78 - Yusuke Ohyama (Tigers) 78 - Seiya Hosokawa (Dragons) 71 - Toshiro Miyazaki (BayStars) 71 - Jose Osuna (Swallows) 66 - Domingo Santana (Swallows) 65 - Keita Sano (BayStars) AVG with RISP .374 - Koji Chikamoto (Tigers) .366 - Toshiro Miyazaki (BayStars) .354 - Shugo Maki (BayStars) .316 - Shogo Akiyama (Carp) .310 - Seiya Kinami (Tigers) .308 - Taiki Sekine (BayStars) .304 - Ryoma Nishikawa (Carp) .298 - Yohei Ohshima (Dragons) .294 - Yusuke Ohyama (Tigers) .286 - Naoki Yoshikawa (Giants) Stolen Bases 28 - Koji Chikamoto (Tigers) 20 - Takumu Nakano (Tigers) 15 - Hidetaka Namiki (Swallows) 14 - Ryutaro Hatsuki (Carp) 12 - Yūki Okabayashi (Dragons) 11 - Makoto Kadowaki (Giants) 11- Taiki Sekine (BayStars) 10 - Shinnosuke Shigenobu (Giants) 9 - Kotaro Yamasaki (Swallows) 8 - 3 players tied PITCHING ERA 1.75 - Shoki Murakami (Tigers) 1.98 - Katsuki Azuma (BayStars) 2.19 - Hiroki Tokoda (Carp) 2.38 - Shosei Togo (Giants) 2.39 - Masashi Itoh (Tigers) 2.44 - Yūya Yanagi (Dragons) 2.527 - Hiroto Takahashi (Dragons) 2.529 - Aren Kuri (Carp) 2.72 - Iori Yamasaki (Giants) 2.80 - Shota Imanaga (BayStars) WHIP 0.74 - Shoki Murakami (Tigers) 0.95 - Katsuki Azuma (BayStars) 0.96 - Masashi Itoh (Tigers) 0.97 - Iori Yamasaki (Giants) 1.05 - Shota Imanaga (BayStars) 1.06 - Shosei Togo (Giants) 1.090 - Yasuhiro Ogawa (Swallows) 1.092 - Yūya Yanagi (Dragons) 1.095 - Aren Kuri (Carp) 1.102 - Hiroki Tokoda (Carp) Innings pitched 174.1 - Aren Kuri (Carp) 172.1 - Katsuki Azuma (BayStars) 170.0 - Shosei Togo (Giants) 160.2 - Shinnosuke Ogasawara (Dragons) 158.1 - Yūya Yanagi (Dragons) 156.0 - Hiroki Tokoda (Carp) 149.0 - Iori Yamasaki (Giants) 148.0 - Shota Imanaga (BayStars) 146.2 - Masashi Itoh (Tigers) 146.0 - Hiroto Takahashi (Dragons) Strikeouts 174 - Shota Imanaga (BayStars) 145 - Hiroto Takahashi (Dragons) 141 - Shosei Togo (Giants) 137 - Shoki Murakami (Tigers) 134 - Shinnosuke Ogasawara (Dragons) 133 - Katsuki Azuma (BayStars) 130 - Trevor Bauer (BayStars) 129 - Aren Kuri (Carp) 115 - Foster Griffin (Giants) 107 - Hiroto Saiki (Tigers) Wins 16 - Katsuki Azuma (BayStars) 12 - Kotaro Ohtake (Tigers) 12 - Shosei Togo (Giants) 11 - Hiroki Tokoda (Carp) 10 - Shoki Murakami (Tigers) 10 - Masashi Itoh (Tigers) 10 - Iori Yamasaki (Giants) 10 - Trevor Bauer (BayStars) 10 - Yasuhiro Ogawa (Swallows) 9 - Masato Morishita (Carp) Holds 39 - Sotaro Shimauchi (Carp) 38 - Noboru Shimizu (Swallows) 33 - J. B. Wendelken (BayStars) 33 - Hiromu Ise (BayStars) 25 - Tatsuya Shimizu (Dragons) 24 - Yuta Iwasada (Tigers) 24 - Taichi Ishiyama (Swallows) 23 - Yuhei Takanashi (Giants) 22 - Nik Turley (Carp) 20 - 3 players tied Saves 35 - Suguru Iwazaki (Tigers) 33 - Kazuto Taguchi (Swallows) 32 - Raidel Martínez (Dragons) 24 - Takuya Yasaki (Carp) 20 - Yasuaki Yamasaki (BayStars) 18 - Ryoji Kuribayashi (Carp) 17 - Kohei Morihara (BayStars) 14 - Kota Nakagawa (Giants) 14 - Taisei Ota (Giants) 8 - Atsuki Yuasa (Tigers)
BATTING Average .307 - Yuma Tongu (Buffaloes) .303 - Kensuke Kondoh (Hawks) .299 - Yuki Yanagita (Hawks) .294 - Tomoya Mori (Buffaloes) .276 - Go Matsumoto (Fighters) .275 - Kotaro Kurebayashi (Buffaloes) .27397 - Akira Nakamura (Hawks) .27394 - Hideto Asamura (Eagles) .269 - Keita Nakagawa (Buffaloes) .265 - Chusei Mannami (Fighters) On-Base Percentage .431 - Kensuke Kondoh (Hawks) .385 - Tomoya Mori (Buffaloes) .3777 - Yuma Tongu (Buffaloes) .3776 - Yuki Yanagita (Hawks) .368 - Hideto Asamura (Eagles) .351 - Akira Nakamura (Hawks) .341 - Ryosuke Tatsumi (Eagles) .3380 - Shuta Tonosaki (Lions) .3378 - Ariel Martínez (Fighters) .334 - Keita Nakagawa (Buffaloes) OPS .959 - Kensuke Kondoh (Hawks) .893 - Tomoya Mori (Buffaloes) .862 - Yuma Tongu (Buffaloes) .861 - Yuki Yanagita (Hawks) .829 - Hideto Asamura (Eagles) .788 - Chusei Mannami (Fighters) .763 - Ariel Martínez (Fighters) .762 - Gregory Polanco (Marines) .751 - Keita Nakagawa (Buffaloes) .738 - Shuta Tonosaki (Lions) Home Runs 26 - Kensuke Kondoh (Hawks) 26 - Hideto Asamura (Eagles) 26 - Gregory Polanco (Marines) 25 - Chusei Mannami (Fighters) 22 - Yuki Yanagita (Hawks) 18 - Tomoya Mori (Buffaloes) 17 - Takeya Nakamura (Lions) 16 - Yuma Tongu (Buffaloes) 16 - Yutaro Sugimoto (Buffaloes) 15 - David MacKinnon (Lions) 15 - Ariel Martínez (Fighters) RBIs 87 - Kensuke Kondoh (Hawks) 85 - Yuki Yanagita (Hawks) 78 - Hideto Asamura (Eagles) 75 - Gregory Polanco (Marines) 74 - Chusei Mannami (Fighters) 66 - Ariel Martínez (Fighters) 64 - Tomoya Mori (Buffaloes) 57 - Koki Yamaguchi (Marines) 55 - Keita Nakagawa (Buffaloes) 54 - Yuki Nomura (Fighters) AVG with RISP .373 - Kensuke Kondoh (Hawks) .363 - Tomoya Mori (Buffaloes) .344 - Ariel Martínez (Fighters) .330 - Ryosuke Tatsumi (Eagles) .322 - Keita Nakagawa (Buffaloes) .302 - Hiroto Kobukata (Eagles) .299 - Hideto Asamura (Eagles) .294 - Koki Yamaguchi (Marines) .293 - Kenta Imamiya (Hawks) .2772 - Shuta Tonosaki (Lions) .2771 - Hisanori Yasuda (Marines) Stolen Bases 36 - Hiroto Kobukata (Eagles) 36 - Ukyo Shuto (Hawks) 26 - Shuta Tonosaki (Lions) 20 - Koshiro Wada (Marines) 17 - Ryota Isobata (Fighters) 15 - Hiromi Oka (Marines) 14 - Masaki Mimori (Hawks) 13 - Ryosuke Tatsumi (Eagles) 13 - Yuya Ogo (Eagles) 13 - Tsuyoshi Yamasaki (Eagles) PITCHING ERA 1.21 - Yoshinobu Yamamoto (Buffaloes) 2.21 - Kona Takahashi (Lions) 2.27 - Hiroya Miyagi (Buffaloes) 2.40 - Kaima Taira (Lions) 2.61 - Takahiro Norimoto (Eagles) 2.87 - Takayuki Kato (Fighters) 2.96 - Naoyuki Uwasawa (Fighters) 3.46 - Hiromi Itoh (Fighters) 3.47 - Kazuya Ojima (Marines) WHIP 0.88 - Yoshinobu Yamamoto (Buffaloes) 0.94 - Hiroya Miyagi (Buffaloes) 1.09 - Takayuki Kato (Fighters) 1.10 - Kona Takahashi (Lions) 1.13 - Kaima Taira (Lions) 1.14 - Naoyuki Uwasawa (Fighters) 1.15 - Takahiro Norimoto (Eagles) 1.23 - Hiromi Itoh (Fighters) 1.26 - Kazuya Ojima (Marines) Innings pitched 170.0 - Naoyuki Uwasawa (Fighters) 164.0 - Yoshinobu Yamamoto (Buffaloes) 163.1 - Takayuki Kato (Fighters) 158.1 - Kazuya Ojima (Marines) 155.0 - Kona Takahashi (Lions) 155.0 - Takahiro Norimoto (Eagles) 153.1 - Hiromi Itoh (Fighters) 150.0 - Kaima Taira (Lions) 146.2 - Hiroya Miyagi (Buffaloes) 139.1 - Masahiro Tanaka (Eagles) Strikeouts 169 - Yoshinobu Yamamoto (Buffaloes) 157 - Atsuki Taneichi (Marines) 153 - Kaima Taira (Lions) 135 - Roki Sasaki (Marines) 134 - Hiromi Itoh (Fighters) 130 - Tatsuya Imai (Lions) 128 - Chihiro Sumida (Lions) 124 - Naoyuki Uwasawa (Fighters) 122 - Hiroya Miyagi (Buffaloes) 120 - Kona Takahashi (Lions) Wins 16 - Yoshinobu Yamamoto (Buffaloes) 11 - Kaima Taira (Lions) 11 - Sachiya Yamasaki (Buffaloes) 10 - Kona Takahashi (Lions) 10 - Hiroya Miyagi (Buffaloes) 10 - Tatsuya Imai (Lions) 10 - Kohei Arihara (Hawks) 10 - Atsuki Taneichi (Marines) 10 - Kazuya Ojima (Marines) 9 - 4 players tied Holds 41 - Luis Perdomo (Marines) 28 - Katsunori Hirai (Lions) 27 - Soichiro Yamazaki (Buffaloes) 25 - Shota Watanabe (Eagles) 25 - Yuki Matsumoto (Hawks) 25 - Takahide Ikeda (Fighters) 22 - Sora Suzuki (Eagles) 22 - Yuki Tsumori (Hawks) 21 - Shota Abe (Buffaloes) 20 - 3 players tied Saves 39 - Yuki Matsui (Eagles) 36 - Naoya Masuda (Marines) 29 - Yoshihisa Hirano (Buffaloes) 26 - Roberto Osuna (Hawks) 25 - Seigi Tanaka (Fighters) 19 - Tatsushi Masuda (Lions) 9 - Soichiro Yamazaki (Buffaloes) 7 - Brooks Kriske (Lions) 5 - Liván Moinelo (Hawks) 3 - 4 players tied
Central League Climax Series, First Stage Mazda Zoom-Zoom Stadium in Hiroshima Hiroshima Carp vs Yokohama BayStars Tied games are declared after 12 innings. BayStars MUST win two games to advance. Regular season series: Carp 14-10-1 Games played in Hiroshima: Carp 7-5-1 Sat 14 Oct - Game 1, 13:00 Sun 15 Oct - Game 2, 13:00 Mon 16 Oct - Game 3, 18:00
Pacific League Climax Series, First Stage ZOZO Marine Stadium in Chiba Lotte Marines vs SoftBank Hawks Tied games are declared after 12 innings. Hawks MUST win two games to advance. Regular season series: tied 12-12-1 Games played in Chiba: Marines 8-4-1 Sat 14 Oct - Game 1, 18:00 Sun 15 Oct - Game 2, 18:00 Mon 16 Oct - Game 3, 18:00
Bauer pitching to Shugo Maki on Wednesday. On Wednesday Trevor Bauer continued his comeback from a hip injury with his second outing of live action. He threw 97 pitches over 5 innings, allowing 6 hits and 4 walks while also fanning 4. He topped out at 151 km/h (94 mph). BayStars manager Daisuke Miura said in interviews on Wednesday that Katsuki Azuma will start Game 1 while Shōta Imanaga will get Game 2. Although Miura has yet to discuss it, speculation is that if the series goes to a third game Bauer will get the start. Bauer following Wednesday's practice: "My ball control was better last time, but my condition was 100%. I'm ready to pitch. I'll just follow the coach's instructions. I don't know if Coach Miura will tell me to be a starter or a reliever, but I want to be involved. The most important thing is to win. Whether I'm a starter or a reliever, I'll do my best no matter when I'm told to go. Starting pitchers also need to think like relievers.They need to pitch with everything they have from the first inning and not give up the first run." Regarding his recent off-field legal issues Bauer said, "That barrier has been removed and I can concentrate on baseball even more. Right now, I'm concentrating on winning in the playoffs.'' Miura smiled, "Looking at the strength of his pitches and the way his breaking balls curved, he appears to have recovered well to this point. I was wondering whether he would make it on time for the post-season." The manager declined to say how and when Bauer would be used, saying, "We have to check how his body reacts the next few days."
Saturday 14 October Game 1 Probables CENTRAL LEAGUE 13:00 Carp : Hiroki Tokoda (11-7, 2.19) BayStars : Katsuki Azuma (16-3, 1.98) PACIFIC LEAGUE 18:00 Marines : Roki Sasaki (7-4, 1.78) Hawks : Carter Stewart Jr. (3-6, 3.38)
Seiya Suzuki was among the 31,000-plus crowd at Mazda Stadium as his former Hiroshima Carp teammates took Game 1 of the Central League CS with a 3-2 sayonara victory over the Yokohama BayStars. The game was scoreless until the sixth inning when Toshiro Miyazaki sent a two-run shot into the left-centerfield bleachers to put Yokohama up 2-0. Hiroshima immediately got one run back in the bottom of the frame when Ryosuke Kikuchi's sacrifice fly brought home Ryosuke Kikuchi. A big risk by Carp manager Takahiro Arai paid off in the eighth when pinch runner Ryutaro Hatsuki broke from third base and scored the tying run on Kikuchi's suicide squeeze to send the game into extra innings. Aren Kuri made a surprise appearance in the tenth and went 1-2/3 innings in relief, allowing a leadoff double to Kento Nakamura in the 11th before Nik Turley came on to end the BayStars threat. Earlier in the week Yokohama manager Daisuke Miura announced that J. B. Wendelken would be the team's closer and he sent on Wendelken on in the bottom of the 11th to try and give the BayStars one last chance at picking up a much needed win. But the Savannah, Georgia native ran into trouble immediately when he surrendered a lead off double to Shota Dobayashi. Kaito Kozono was then intentionally walked and three batters later Shogo Akiyama ended the proceedings with a double that landed just in front of the warning track to give the Carp a 1-0 series advantage. The game lasted 3 hours 52 minutes. The BayStars must now win on Sunday to have any hope of advancing to the Final Stage. A tie would be enough for the Carp to advance. And Yokohama will have their work cut out for them because there have only been six games that won a Climax Series Game 1 via a sayonara hit including Saturday's Carp win. And all five previous teams have gone on to the next round
ボビーと遭遇！！ pic.twitter.com/4H9uPAfwqB— 千葉ロッテを愛する会社社長 (@puAYwq5CQo74481) October 14, 2023 Bobby Valentine was in the house, a big cheer greeted retiring stadium announcer Emi Taniho as she read the lineups, Takashi Ogino led off with a home run and Roki Sasaki did his thing as the Lotte Marines took Game 1 of the Pacific League CS following their 8-2 win over the SoftBank Hawks. Despite struggling in his two comeback starts in mid-September, the Marines' fireballer Sasaki was handed the start for Game 1 and he did not disappoint although he only went three innings just as he had in his previous two appearances. But on this night he displayed what everyone was used to seeing with his three perfect innings that included four strikeouts over 41 pitches. He consistently hit 158-161 km/h in the first two innings but by the end of the third his tosses were in the low 130s, and after walking into the dugout at the end of the inning, the handshakes from the coaching staff signaled to everyone watching that his night was done. Lotte jumped out to a quick lead when Ogino homered off the second pitch thrown by SoftBank starter Carter Stewart Jr. At age 37, Ogino became the oldest player to hit a leadoff homer in NPB history. Gregory Polanco added to the lead with a titanic blast high into the right field bleachers to make it 2-0. The home team increased the score to 4-0 when a throwing error by SoftBank second baseman Masaki Mimori skipped by first baseman Akira Nakamura allowing Shogo Nakamura and Yudai Fujioka to cross home plate. Yuki Yanagita cut the lead in half with a two-run monster shot in the sixth that nearly matched Polanco's first inning blast. It was Yanagita's ninth home run in his playoff career and was also his 46th career playoff hit that ties him for second on the all-time list with the Giants' Hayato Sakamoto. But the Marines thwarted any comeback attempt from the Hawks by scoring three in the bottom of the sixth, capped by Kyota Fujiwara's two-run single making it 7-2. Lotte added another run in the eighth before Hirokazu Sawamura shut down the visitors in the ninth to give the Marines a 1-0 series lead and push the Hawks to the brink of elimination.
Sunday 15 October Game 2 Probables CENTRAL LEAGUE 13:00 Carp : Masato Morishita (9-6, 3.01) BayStars : Shota Imanaga (7-4, 2.80) PACIFIC LEAGUE 18:00 Marines : Kohei Arihara (10-5, 2.31) Hawks : Yuji Nishino (8-5, 2.69)
Prior to the start of Game 2 between the Hiroshima Carp and Yokohama BayStars it was announced that if Yokohama won on Sunday afternoon to force a third game in the Central League CS1, the starting pitchers for Monday's decider would be Aren Kuri - who threw 23 pitches in relief for the Carp in Game 1 - and Trevor Bauer, the BayStars high profile signing who was injured on August 30 and hoping for at least one last appearance before his one-year contract ended. Four-time home run king Koji Yamamoto, a Carp lifer as both an outfielder and manager who is nicknamed "Mr. Red Helmet" (ミスター赤ヘル), threw out the first pitch in a ceremony that included another Carp legend, current Chicago Cubs outfielder Seiya Suzuki, providing the obligitory swing-and-miss prior to the start of Game 2. Ryoma Nishikawa opened the scoring with a solo home run off Shota Imanaga to give the Carp a first inning lead. Shota Suekane extended the lead to 2-0 with another solo blast, this one in the sixth inning. Yokohama fought back to tie the score in the seventh. Taiki Sekine singled home Toshiro Miyazaki for the first run and Naoto Chino scored the tying run on Neftalí Soto's sacrifice fly with two outs. But Hiroshima stormed back in front as they produced four consecutive hits to start the bottom of the eighth with Kosuke Tanaka's liner to right scoring Ryosuke Kikuchi for the go ahead run. Shogo Akiyama added an insurance run when his deep fly to left allowed Takayoshi Noma to slide across home plate from third, and Ryoji Kuribayashi shut down Yokohama in the ninth to preserve the 4-2 victory and send the Carp to the Final Stage of of Climax Series for the first time since 2018. Their best-of-seven series at Koshien Stadium will begin on Wednesday with the Central League champion Hanshin Tigers handed an automatic 1 game lead. As the Carp prepare to face Hanshin for a place in the Nippon Series, the BayStars contemplate their off-season as they prepare to possibly lose two of their star pitchers to MLB. Shota Imanaga will most likely be gone when he is posted in December while Trevor Bauer will wait and see if any team is willing to offer him a contract at fair market value. Many in Japan will say that his one-year stay in NPB was a success but one has to believe he did not expect to end his time with the BayStars with an injury six weeks before Yokohama had played their final game of 2023. Stay tuned.
New York Mets pitcher Kodai Senga was on hand in Chiba to watch his former team, the SoftBank Hawks, force a Game 3 in the Pacific League CS1 following their 3-1 win over the Lotte Marines. Masaki Mimori had a 3-for-5 madasho and the heart of their batting order each drove in a run to lead the SoftBank offense while Kohei Arihara allowed just one run over six innings as the Hawks took early control of the contest and were able to hold on to level the series at 1-1. Kensuke Kondoh continued his outstanding season by driving in Hikaru Kawase with a two-out single to give the visitors a first inning lead, but the Marines tied it in the bottom of the frame when Gregory Polanco's sacrifice fly allowed Yudai Fujioka to cross home plate for Polanco's third RBI of the series. SoftBank took the lead for good in the third with two runs off Lotte starter Yuji Nishino. Yuki Yanagita re-established the Hawks lead by doubling home Mimori and was then brought home himself on Akira Nakamura's single to make it 3-1. The Marines collected just four hits from the third inning on while never getting into scoring position as Arihara along with three SoftBank relievers were able to contain a Lotte offense that had put up eight runs in Game 1 on Saturday. The Orix Buffaloes await the winner of Game 3 which will take place Monday evening at 6:00pm local Japan time. The Hawks must win in order to advance while a 12-inning tie would be enough for the Marines to move on to the Final Stage.
Monday 16 October Game 3 Probables PACIFIC LEAGUE 18:00 Marines : Kazuya Ojima (10-6, 3.47) Hawks : Tsuyoshi Wada (8-6, 3.24)
Congratulations to Imae Toshiaki for being named manager of the Rakuten Golden Eagles. Also congrats and good luck tonight to Yoshii Masato mgr of Lotte in game 3 of Pacific league playoffs Both men are players of mine that I loved.— Bobby Valentine (@BobbyValentine) October 16, 2023 A White out at ZoZoMarine Stadium for first round of playoffs. Great job Lotte Fans and Team. Good luck Vs SoftBank tonite. I ll be with you. pic.twitter.com/Ki9MCaLyPT— Bobby Valentine (@BobbyValentine) October 16, 2023
延長10回、#藤岡裕大 選手が土壇場で起死回生の一発！ファンの待つライトスタンドへ、同点3ラン！#chibalotte #パーソルCSパ #MarinesBaseball #MarinesHRs pic.twitter.com/EFQUzGegxm— 千葉ロッテマリーンズ (@chibalotte) October 16, 2023 劇的な幕切れ！#安田尚憲 選手が右中間へ鋭い打球を放つと #岡大海 選手が1塁から激走をみせホームイン！サヨナラ勝ちでCSファイナルステージへ進出を決めました！#chibalotte #パーソルCSパ #MarinesBaseball pic.twitter.com/2txxB38C1t— 千葉ロッテマリーンズ (@chibalotte) October 16, 2023 Monday 16 October Boxscore: http://hosted.stats.com/npb/scoreboard.asp?day=20231016
In one of the dramatic finishes to a post-season series, the SoftBank Hawks scored three runs in the top of the 10th only for the Chiba Lotte Marines to score four times in the bottom half of the inning to advance to the Final Stage of the Pacific League Climax Series. The game was scoreless after nine innings before all hell broke loose in the extra frame. The closest either team came to scoring was in the sixth when Yuki Yanagita attempted to score off the single by Kensuke Kondoh but was nailed at the plate by Takashi Ogino's perfect throw from right field. Marines reliever Hirokazu Sawamura came on in the tenth and was roughed up for three runs by the Hawks. With Tatsuru Yanagimachi standing on second base with two outs, Ukyo Shuto singled up the middle scoring Yanagimachi to open the scoring. Hikaru Kawase and Yanagita drove in two more runs to give SoftBank what appeared to be a safe 3-0 as Lotte came up with their season on the line and knowing a 12-inning tie would be enough to advance. Yuki Tsumori was the Hawks seventh pitcher used on the night and he struggled mightily. Katsuya Kakunaka and Ogino led off with consecutive singles bringing up Yudai Fujioka, who had just one home run over the past three seasons. But Fujioka delivered the first pitch deep and just over the right field wall to tie the game at 3-3. Tsumori had to be consoled as he fought back tears. Ryosuke Ohtsu became SoftBank's eighth pitcher of the night but after getting the next two batters to fly out, Hiromi Oka singled to left and, Hisanori Yasuda lined a 2-1 pitch into the right-center gap. Oka was waved around third as the Hawks fielders relayed the throw home and following a video review, the umpires confirmed Oka had beaten the tag from Hiroki Minei to send the home fans into ecstasy and the Marines onto the Climax Series Final against the Pacific League champion Orix Buffaloes. An incredible ending.
BayStars @ydb_yokohama Fans,Thank you for welcoming us into your city and your team with open arms. And to all the NPB Fans, thank you for making this country feel like home.Forever grateful for this season—Yokohama will always have a special place in my heart. pic.twitter.com/hbX228y14j— Rachel Luba (レイチェル・ルーバ) (@AgentRachelLuba) October 17, 2023
Central League Climax Series, Final Stage Koshien Stadium in Nishinomiya Hanshin Tigers vs Hiroshima Carp Tigers lead series 1-0 Carp MUST win four games to advance. Tied games are declared after 12 innings. Regular season series: Tigers 15-9-1 Games played at Koshien: Tigers 9-2-1 Wed 18 Oct, Game 1, 18:00 Thu 19 Oct, Game 2, 18:00 Fri 20 Oct, Game 3, 18:00 Sat 21 Oct, Game 4, 14:00 Sun, 22 Oct, Game 5, 14:00 Mon 23 Oct, Game 6, 18:00
Pacific League Climax Series, Final Stage Kyocera Dome in Osaka Orix Buffaloes vs Lotte Marines Buffaloes lead series 1-0 Marines MUST win four games to advance Tied games are declared after 12 innings. Regular season series: Buffaloes 15-8-2 Games played in Osaka: Buffaloes 9-3-1 Wed 18 Oct, Game 1, 18:00 Thu 19 Oct, Game 2, 18:00 Fri 20 Oct, Game 3, 18:00 Sat 21 Oct, Game 4, 14:00 Sun, 22 Oct, Game 5, 14:00 Mon 23 Oct, Game 6, 18:00