SimCentral.NET Forums - Blogs - Japanese-American Perspectives by Gwynar

SimCentral.NET Forums - Blogs - Japanese-American Perspectives by Gwynar http://forums.simcentral.net/blog.php?u=646 en Tue, 10 Nov 2009 14:10:23 GMT vBulletin 60 http://forums.simcentral.net/images/sc30/misc/rss.jpg SimCentral.NET Forums - Blogs - Japanese-American Perspectives by Gwynar http://forums.simcentral.net/blog.php?u=646 <![CDATA[[CONFIRMED] Yoshito Usui may be dead]]> http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/Japanese-AmericanPerspectives/~3/yhDyxKzC1bw/blog.php Sat, 19 Sep 2009 17:48:57 GMT A body was apparently found at the foot of some cliffs on a mountain trail *Yoshito Usui* may have been hiking. The body is set to be recovered on Sunday so an ID will be possible at that point in time. Potentially sad news for Crayon Shin-chan fans. === *Updated 9/21/2009 @ 4:50am JST* ... A body was apparently found at the foot of some cliffs on a mountain trail Yoshito Usui may have been hiking. The body is set to be recovered on Sunday so an ID will be possible at that point in time.

Potentially sad news for Crayon Shin-chan fans.

=== Updated 9/21/2009 @ 4:50am JST

Sadly, reports now indicate that the body police found yesterday and recovered on Sunday did indeed belong to Yoshito Usui.

]]> Gwynar http://forums.simcentral.net/blog.php?b=1764 http://forums.simcentral.net/blog.php?b=1764 Crayon Shin-chan author missing http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/Japanese-AmericanPerspectives/~3/udq-Y7iPOlQ/blog.php Wed, 16 Sep 2009 09:24:50 GMT For those of you who have seen Crayon Shin-chan, some potentially troubling news.

Quote:

Author of popular manga 'Crayon Shin-chan' goes missing
KASUKABE, Saitama -- Yoshito Usui, author of the popular manga "Crayon Shin-chan," has gone missing, prompting his family to file a search request with police, it has been learned.

Police said that Usui, 51, left his home in Kasukabe on the morning of Sept. 11, saying he was going to the mountains in Gunma Prefecture. However, he failed to return home the same evening as planned, prompting his wife to file a search request with Saitama Prefectural Police the following day. Usui's cell phone was ringing, but there was reportedly no response.

Mainichi Daily News

According to recent news reports on TV, the police were able to confirm that his mobile phone was receiving signals in the Nagano in Gumna area, but that they have not been able to reestablish a link to his phone since.

]]> Gwynar http://forums.simcentral.net/blog.php?b=1763 http://forums.simcentral.net/blog.php?b=1763 This blog, is moving... http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/Japanese-AmericanPerspectives/~3/qce9C2VUgFc/blog.php Mon, 31 Aug 2009 17:43:16 GMT Yep, that's right. The NPB portion of this blog is moving to a new location. And it has a brand-spanking new name to boot.

Yakyu Baka

So please, update your bookmarks and your RSS feed readers and point yourselves to the our new home.

NOTE: Even though I've converted all the data, the posts I have made at this blog about the NPB up until this one will remain here for the foreseeable future.

NOTE 2: This blog will revert back to being Japanese-American Perspectives and will continue to carry posts about Japan and Major (the anime).

]]> Gwynar http://forums.simcentral.net/blog.php?b=1762 http://forums.simcentral.net/blog.php?b=1762 The 80th Intercity Baseball Tournament: Day 10 http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/Japanese-AmericanPerspectives/~3/0s4D7Fqe76Q/blog.php Sun, 30 Aug 2009 16:23:02 GMT Here are the results from Day 10: Game 1 @ 8:58 Team|1|2|3|4|5|6|7|8|9||R|H|E Tokyo Gas|0|0|0|0|0|0|1|0|0||1|8|0 Toyota|0|2|0|2|0|0|0|0|x||4|6|2 Game 2 @ 12:20 Team|1|2|3|4|5|6|7|8|9||R|H|E Yamaha|0|0|0|0|0|0|0|0|0||0|10|0 Here are the results from Day 10:

Game 1 @ 8:58

Team	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9		R	H	E
Tokyo Gas	0	0	0	0	0	0	1	0	0		1	8	0
Toyota	0	2	0	2	0	0	0	0	x		4	6	2

Game 2 @ 12:20

Team	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9		R	H	E
Yamaha	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0		0	10	0
Nissan	0	0	2	1	0	0	0	2	x		5	7	0

Game 3 @ 16:10

Team	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9		R	H	E
Hitachi	0	0	0	1	0	0	0	0	0		1	7	0
NTT Higashi Nihon	0	0	0	3	0	0	0	1	x		4	5	1

Game 4 @ 19:29

Team	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9		R	H	E
Toshiba	0	0	0	0	1	0	0	1	0		2	6	0
Honda	1	1	0	0	0	2	0	0	x		4	7	1

Games for Day 11 (Semifinals):

14:00 - Toyota vs Nissan

18:00 - NTT Higashi Nihon vs Honda

]]> Gwynar http://forums.simcentral.net/blog.php?b=1761 http://forums.simcentral.net/blog.php?b=1761 Around the NPB Horn: Ramirez - 150+hits 8 season in a row, new NPB record http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/Japanese-AmericanPerspectives/~3/x7efsdH-mMQ/blog.php Sun, 30 Aug 2009 16:14:09 GMT *Nippon Ham Fighters*...*Masataka Nashida* is in the second year of a 2-year contract. It appears as though Nashida will get an extension (http://www.sanspo.com/baseball/news/090830/bsj0908302239005-n1.htm) and that an announcement could be made on Monday (8/31). ...*Eiichi Koyano* was struck... Nippon Ham Fighters

...Masataka Nashida is in the second year of a 2-year contract. It appears as though Nashida will get an extension and that an announcement could be made on Monday (8/31).

...Eiichi Koyano was struck in the area above his right eye in the top of the 8th on a throw from the center fielder. Koyano was taken out of the game and his status, moving forward, is not yet known.

Orix Buffaloes

...Tomotaka Sakaguchi picked up his 40th of the month. The last Buffaloes' player to hit 40+ was Ichiro Suzuki in April and May of 1994 and August of 1996.

Sakaguchi is also working on a 12-game hitting streak.

Yakult Swallows

...The Swallows take on the Tigers next and will likely go with Shohei Tateyama and Masanori Ishikawa for the first two games of the 3-game series.

...Ryota Igarashi was taken off the active roster on Sunday with acute lower back pains. He apparently tweaked the area while fielding a bunt in a game against the Chunichi Dragons on the 29th. The team doesn't expect him to be out any longer than the 10-day minimum.

Yomiuri Giants

...Alex Ramirez's single in the top of the 1st in Sunday's game against the Hanshin Tigers gave him 150+ hits in 8 consecutive seasons, breaking the old record of 7 straight seasons he held with former Seibu Lion Kazuo Matsui.

Ramirez will now turn his attention towards picking up 17 more RBIs to get to 100 on the season. If and when he does, it will give him 100+ RBIs in 7 straight seasons, a record held by Sadaharu Oh.

Other

...The NPB announced on the 30th that an error charged to Takumi Kuriyama in a game between the Orix Buffaloes and Seibu Lions on the 29th has been re-assigned to Yutaro Ohsaki. The error occurred in the 8th inning and allowed the runner at second, Fumihiro Suzuki, to advance to third.

]]> Gwynar http://forums.simcentral.net/blog.php?b=1760 http://forums.simcentral.net/blog.php?b=1760 NPB: Game Summaries for August 30th, 2009 http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/Japanese-AmericanPerspectives/~3/kALjXIZtEfY/blog.php Sun, 30 Aug 2009 15:40:10 GMT Chunich Dragons @ Yakult Swallows called after 2 innings. (Swallows lead series, 12-8-0) *Game Notes* The Dragons swept the series (2-0) and outscored the Swallows, 12-8. Jingu Attendance: n/a Time: n/a Chunich Dragons @ Yakult Swallows called after 2 innings.
(Swallows lead series, 12-8-0)

Game Notes
The Dragons swept the series (2-0) and outscored the Swallows, 12-8.

Jingu
Attendance: n/a
Time: n/a

---

Hiroshima Carp @ Yokohama Bay Stars called after 2 innings.
(Bay Stars lead series, 10-9-0)

Game Notes
The series ended in a tie and the Carp outscored the Bay Stars, 12-7.

Yokohama
Attendance: n/a
Time: n/a

---

	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9		R	H	E
Yomiuri Giants	0	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	0		1	7	0
Hanshin Tigers	1	0	0	0	1	0	0	1	X		3	7	1

(Giants lead series, 10-9-2)

The Tigers took a 1-0 lead in the bottom of the 1st on Takashi Toritani's (2-for-3, BB, 2B, HR, 2 R, RBI) 13th homer run of the year. A fielding error by Keiichi Hirano (2B) in the bottom of the 2nd allowed Giants' hitter Yoshitomo Tani (1-for-4, R) to reach first with no outs. A single by Abe Shinnosuke (1-for-4) moved Tani to third and a ground out by Ryota Wakiya (0-for-4, RBI) allowed him to cross the plate, tying the game at 1.

In the bottom of the 5th, the Tigers re-took the lead after Hirano (2-for-4, R) singled with 2 outs, stole second, and a walk later, scored on a single into center by Tomoaki Kanemoto (1-for-2, 2 BB, RBI). The Tigers scored their third run of the game in the bottom of the 8th on a sac fly by Takahiro Arai (0-for-3, RBI) with a runner on third and 1 out.

Kyuji Fujikawa entered the game in the top of the 9th and retired the Giants in order for his 17th save of the year.

Missed Opportunities
Giants: top of the 1st, runners on first and second, 2 out > Kamei grounded out; top of the 2nd, runner on second, 2 out > Sakamoto grounded out; top of the 5th, runners on first and second, 1 out > T. Kimura fouled out to right, runners on first and third, and Ogasawara struck out; top of the 6th, runners on first and second, 1 out > Abe flied out, runners on first and third, Wakiya struck out.

Tigers: bottom of the 2nd, runners on first and second, 2 out > Asai struck out; bottom of the 3rd, runners on first and second, 1 out > Arai GIDP; bottom of the 5th, runners on first and third, 2 out > Arai flied out; bottom of the 8th, bases loaded, 2 out > Hiyama flied out.

Game Notes
Both teams collected 7 hits. ... The Tigers won the series (2-1) and outscored the Giants 13-9. ... Ramirez's single in the first inning gave him 8 consecutive seasons of 150+ hits, a new NPB record.

Giants: 7 LOB, 0 DP
Tigers: 9 LOB, 1 DP

Yomiuri Giants

Player	G	W	L	IP	NP	BF	AB	H	HR	K	BB	R	ER	ERA
Takahashi, Hisanori L	20	5	6	6	104	26	22	5	1	5	4	2	2	3.210
Kimura, Shota	17	0	0	1 2/3	34	9	6	2	0	1	2	1	1	2.842
Fujita, Soichi	12	1	0	1/3	3	1	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	1.500

Hanshin Tigers

Player	G	W	L	Sv	IP	NP	BF	AB	H	K	BB	SHF	R	ERA
Shimoyanagi, Tsuyoshi W	19	7	8	0	6	95	26	24	7	5	1	1	1	3.522
Atchison, Scott H	56	5	2	0	2	21	6	6	0	1	0	0	0	1.791
Fujikawa, Kyuji S	36	4	3	17	1	13	3	3	0	2	0	0	0	1.549

Koshien
Attendance: 46,835
Time: 3h 6m

======

	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9		R	H	E
Softbank Hawks	0	0	0	1	0	0	0	2	0		3	10	1
Nippon Ham Fighters	0	0	0	2	0	0	0	0	0		2	8	1

(Hawks lead series 11-9-0)

For the first three innings, neither starting pitcher allowed a runner to get passed first. But that changed for both sides in the 4th.

The Hawks took a 1-0 lead in the top of the top of the 4th on an RBI single by Jose Ortiz (2-for-4, RBI) with a runner on third and 1 out. The Fighters quickly answered back in the bottom of the inning: Atsunori Inaba (2-for-5, 2B, R) led off the inning with a double; Shinji Takahashi (0-for-3, BB, R) walked to put runners on first and third; and Terrmel Sledge (2-for-4, 2B, 2 RBI) cleared the bases with a double that gave the Fighters a 2-0 lead. The Fighters could have done some more damage in this inning after Eiichi Koyano (2-for-2) followed with a single to left that put runners on first and third and no out, but the next three batters struck out to end the inning (Koyana also managed to steal second with 2 outs).

The Fighters also had the making of a big inning in the bottom of the 5th after Sledge singled and Koyano reach on an error, putting runners on first and second. But Tomohiro Nioka (0-for-4) was called out on offensive interference when he tried to lay down a sac bunt. That ruined the flow of the inning: Shinya Tsuruoka (0-for-3) flied out; M. Kaneko walked to load the bases, but with 2 outs, the inning ended with Kensuke Tanaka (1-for-3) flying out to third.

In the top of the 8th, the Hawks offense took the lead on two sac flies hit by Yuichi Honda (2-for-4, 2B, R, RBI) and Hitoshi Tamura (1-for-3, RBI). But the Hawks could have scored more in the inning. When Tamura hit his sac fly, the bases were juiced with only 1 out. The bases were re-loaded again after Yuya Hasegawa (1-for-4) followed Tamura's sac fly with an infield single, but Hidenori Tanoue (0-for-3) ended the inning by striking out.

Takahiro Mahara entered the game in the bottom of the 9th and retired the Fighters in order for his 27th save of the year.

Missed Opportunities
Hawks: top of the 5th, runners on first and second, 2 out > Honda grounded out; top of the 8th, bases loaded, 2 out > Tanoue struck out.

Fighters: bottom of the 4th, runners on first and third, no out > Nioka struck out, Tsuruoka struck out, and M. Kaneko struck out; bottom of the 6th, runners on first and second, no out > Nioka offensive interference on sac bunt, Tsuruoka flied out, M. Kaneko walked to load bases, Tanaka flied out; bottom of the 8th, runner on second, 2 out > M. Kaneko struck out. It was just the second time Nashida has ever been throw out of a game (including his career as a player).

Game Notes
Hawks outhit the Fighters, 10-8. ... The Fighters won the series (2-1) and outscored the Hawks, 10-7. ... Masataka Nashida was ejected from the game for delaying the game while arguing Nioka's offensive interference call. ... Koyano was taken out of the game in the top of the 8th after a throw from center hit him above the right eye. ... The Hawks ended a 4-game slide. ... The Fighters' 4-game winning streak came to an end.

Hawks: 7 LOB, 1 DP
Fighters: 10 LOB, 0 DP

Softbank Hawks

Player	G	W	L	Sv	IP	NP	BF	AB	H	K	BB	SHF	WP	R	ER	ERA
Sugiuchi, Toshiya W	21	13	3	0	7	113	32	29	7	10	2	1	1	2	2	2.449
Settsu, Tadashi H	56	4	2	0	1	18	4	4	1	3	0	0	0	0	0	1.597
Mahara, Takahiro S	41	3	1	27	1	13	3	3	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	2.061

Nippon Ham Fighters

Player	G	W	L	IP	NP	BF	AB	H	K	BB	SHF	R	ER	ERA
Yagi, Tomoya	15	8	2	6	83	22	19	5	3	2	1	1	1	2.810
Kikuchi, Kazumasa H	46	4	2	1	14	4	4	1	3	0	0	0	0	2.981
Miyanishi, Naoki L	44	7	1	1/3	9	3	2	2	0	0	0	2	2	2.150
Ejiri, Shintaro	32	2	1	2/3	23	5	3	2	1	1	0	0	0	3.582
Hayashi, Masanori	33	3	0	1	10	3	3	0	0	0	0	0	0	2.700

Sapporo Dome
Attendance: 28,483
Time: 3h 26m

---

Rakuten Eagles @ Chiba Lotte Marines cancelled due to rain.
(Marines lead series, 10-9-0)

Game Notes
The Eagles swept the series (2-0) and outscored the Marines, 7-5.

Chiba Marine
Attendance: n/a
Time: n/a

---

	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9		R	H	E
Seibu Lions	0	0	0	0	1	1	1	0	3		6	13	1
Orix Buffaloes	0	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	1		2	6	1

(Lions lead series, 13-8-0)

Takahiro Okada's (1-for-4, HR, R, RBI) solo homer to lead off the bottom of the 2nd gave the Buffaloes a 1-0 lead. And for a while, it appeared as though that lead might hold up -- the Lions had a couple of chances to score over the first 4 innings but kept coming up empty. But in the top of the 5th, the Lions finally came through with a run and tied the game on a sac fly by Taketoshi Goto (3-for-4, 2B, 2 RBI) with runners on first and third an no out.

The Lions took the lead in the top of the 6th on Hiram Bocachica's (1-for-4, BB, HR, R, RBI) 13th homer of the year. An RBI double by Goto in the top of the 7th with a runner on first and no out gave the Lions a 3-1 lead. And in the top of the 9th, Seibu scored 3 more runs on an RBI single by Goto with runners on first and third and 1 out, and a 2-run double by Yasuyuki Kataoka (2-for-4, BB, 2 2B, 2 RBI) with runners on first and third and 2 out.

The Buffaloes scored their second and final run in the bottom of the 9th on an RBI double by Hirotoshi Kitagawa (2-for-2, 2B, RBI) with a runner on first and 2 out. Tomotaka Sakaguchi (1-for-4, BB) struck out for the final out of the game.

Missed Opportunities
Lions: top of the 1st, runners on first and third, 2 out > Kuriyama grounded out; top of the 2nd, runner on second, 2 out > Ginjiro struck out; top of the 4th, runners on first and second > Kataoka flied out; Ginjiro walked to load the bases, Nakajima struck out; top of the 7th, runner on second, no out > Kuriyama grounded out, runner to third, Sato grounded out, runner on third tagged by catcher in run-down between home and third, Sato to second, wild pitch moved runner to third, and Bocachica flied out; bottom of the 8th, runner on second, 1 out > Rhodes grounded out, runner to third, pinch-hitter Ohmura flied out.

Buffaloes: bottom of the 3rd, runner on second, 1 out > Fernandez flied out, runner to third, Rhodes walked, Shimoyama walked, Hidaka struck out; bottom of the 5th, runners on first and second, 2 out > Fernandez grounded out; top of the 8th, runner on third, 1 out > Nakajima struck out and pinch-hitter Miura grounded out; bottom of the 8th, runner on second, 2 out > Sakaguchi struck out.

Game Notes
The Lions outhit the Buffaloes, 13-6. ... The Buffaloes won the series (2-1) and were outscored by the Lions, 8-6. ... The Lions stopped a 4-game losing streak.

Lions: 11 LOB, 1 DP
Buffaloes: 8 LOB, 0 DP

Seibu Lions

Player	G	W	L	Sv	IP	NP	BF	AB	H	HR	K	BB	SHF	R	ER	ERA
Nogami, Ryoma W	21	3	4	1	7	108	28	24	4	1	4	3	1	1	1	3.828
Nishiguchi, Fumiya H	20	3	3	0	1/3	6	2	2	1	0	1	0	0	0	0	6.043
Hoshino, Tomoki H	52	1	1	0	1/3	1	1	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	3.264
Bayliss, Jonah H	9	0	0	0	1/3	3	1	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	1.421
Ohnuma, Koji	42	3	5	1	1	15	5	5	1	0	1	0	0	1	0	2.194

Orix Buffaloes

Player	G	W	L	Sv	IP	NP	BF	AB	H	HR	K	BB	SHF	WP	R	ER	ERA
Komatsu, Satoshi	14	1	8	0	5	103	24	17	5	0	4	5	1	0	1	1	6.920
Nishikawa, Masato L	2	0	1	0	1	11	5	5	2	1	0	0	0	0	1	1	3.000
Kato, Daisuke	36	4	4	13	1	26	5	4	1	0	0	1	0	1	1	1	5.899
Ohkubo, Masanobu	43	2	1	1	2/3	13	3	2	1	0	1	0	1	0	0	0	3.079
Kikuchihara, Tsuyoshi	37	0	3	0	1 1/3	24	7	7	4	0	0	0	0	0	3	3	5.063

Kyocera Dome
Attendance: 22,384
Time: 3h 25m

]]> Gwynar http://forums.simcentral.net/blog.php?b=1759 http://forums.simcentral.net/blog.php?b=1759 Kansai Indepent League: Kobe to temporarily end player contracts at end of September http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/Japanese-AmericanPerspectives/~3/-ztwzabfQj4/blog.php Sun, 30 Aug 2009 09:31:26 GMT According to Sanspo (http://www.sanspo.com/baseball/news/090830/bsr0908301732004-n1.htm), it seems like Kobe will temporarily end all contracts with players at the end of September. There are a number of team events in October, along with the Championship tournament (forgot about that one), that... According to Sanspo, it seems like Kobe will temporarily end all contracts with players at the end of September.

There are a number of team events in October, along with the Championship tournament (forgot about that one), that may require the players to be under contract. Due to this reason, the club would like to sit down with the players and discuss what can be done in October.

]]> Gwynar http://forums.simcentral.net/blog.php?b=1758 http://forums.simcentral.net/blog.php?b=1758 54th Annual High School Rubber Baseball Tournament: Sakushin Gakuin Champs http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/Japanese-AmericanPerspectives/~3/Vx5Xdp4TV7E/blog.php Sun, 30 Aug 2009 08:26:57 GMT Sakushin Gakuin beat Meijodai behind their ace Yuki Kawashima (川島祐輝), 3-1. Kawashima struck out 11 batters and tossed a complete game. It was also Kawashima's 4th complete game in a row (he started all four games of the tournament for Sakushin Gakuin).

On the mound for Mejiodai was Yuta Kobayashi (小林雄太), the young man that tossed a perfect game against Hatsushiba Tondabayashi High School on the 26th during the first round.

Sakushin Gakuin has now the tournament 2 years in a row (a record 8 overall).

]]> Gwynar http://forums.simcentral.net/blog.php?b=1757 http://forums.simcentral.net/blog.php?b=1757 Around the NPB Horn: Yoshinobu Takahashi to have surgery on lower back? http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/Japanese-AmericanPerspectives/~3/eNie2dS4XwI/blog.php Sun, 30 Aug 2009 08:03:19 GMT *Hanshin Tigers*...*Tomoaki Kanemoto* collected his 394th career double (http://www.sanspo.com/baseball/news/090830/bsb0908301131012-n1.htm) on Saturday against the Yomiuri Giants and now has 30 doubles on the year. Kanemoto is now tied with *Yoshinori Hirose* and *Yukio Tanaka* for 11th place... Hanshin Tigers

...Tomoaki Kanemoto collected his 394th career double on Saturday against the Yomiuri Giants and now has 30 doubles on the year.

Kanemoto is now tied with Yoshinori Hirose and Yukio Tanaka for 11th place on the All-Time doubles list. He also moved into an 11th place tie with Katsuo Ohsugi on the All-Time total bases list with 4,030.

...Kyuji Fujikawa apparently wants Jeff Williams back.

"The FO hasn't made any final decisions yet," said Fujikawa. "Williams wants to keep pitching and I want him to do what he has to [while he's in America]."

...Craig Brazell's wife has apparently returned home after giving birth to their new son, Trot.

I have to hand it to Brazell: he's obviously committed to this Tigers team.

...Interesting: the Tigers complained about Daisuke Ochi's pitching motion during Saturday's game against the Yomiuri Giants, saying that he had a 2-stop motion.

Said chief umpire Kazuaki Nako, "The Tigers pointed out a problem with Ochi's form. And after paying attention to it, he's right on the border of it being a problem and I warned the Giants about it."

Ochi will now spend some time working on modifying his delivery. How that will affect him from here on out will be of some interest.

Rakuten Eagles

...Kazuo Fukumori shed a few tears and apologized to Katsuya Nomura and was allowed back on the team after "deserting" the Eagles for the Majors last season. And now he's giving the Eagles some major stability in their end-game: he has appeared in 21 out of a total 39 games since rejoining the team; is 5-0; has 7 saves and 3 holds; and has an ERA under 1 (0.93) in 29 innings of work.

Yokohama Bay Stars

...Bay Stars' worst nightmare? Dan Johnson left in the top of the 5th inning of yesterday's game after feeling some discomfort in his hips. His status for tonight's game is still unknown.

...After dropping Saturday's game against the Hiroshima Carp, 11-3, the Bay Stars are now completely out of the race and have no chance at putting together a winning season (they are 41-72 with 31 games remaining). The only thing they can do is play the role of spoiler to the Swallows, a team they own this season (12-4 with 8 games left).

...The Bay Stars increased security around the right field stands from 17 to 22 guards after a fan fell from the right field stands onto the playing field on the 27th and then later passed away.

Yomiuri Giants

...According to Sponichi, Yoshinobu Takahashi has decided to undergo surgery on his lower back and will likely go in for a check-up on Monday (8/31). If things move quickly, he could have the surgery sometime during the week.

Other

...Sadaharu Oh will be named an Honored Citizen of the Tokyo area in an upcoming ceremony in September.

]]> Gwynar http://forums.simcentral.net/blog.php?b=1756 http://forums.simcentral.net/blog.php?b=1756 NPB: Roster Changes for 8/30/2009 http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/Japanese-AmericanPerspectives/~3/CNdS_kf5CDE/blog.php Sun, 30 Aug 2009 06:31:19 GMT *Central League Roster Updates* *Added to the Active Roster **Yomiuri Giants * * Nakai, Daisuke INF *Yakult Swallows * * Yoshikawa, Masahiro P Central League Roster Updates

Added to the Active Roster

Yomiuri Giants

Nakai, Daisuke INF

Yakult Swallows

Yoshikawa, Masahiro P

Removed from the Active Roster

Yomiuri Giants

Takahashi, Yoshinobu OF

Yakult Swallows

Igarashi, Ryota P

Pacific League Roster Updates

Added to the Active Roster

Nippon Ham Fighters

Yagi, Tomoya P

Removed from the Active Roster

Nippon Ham Fighters

Tanimoto, Keisuke P

]]> Gwynar http://forums.simcentral.net/blog.php?b=1755 http://forums.simcentral.net/blog.php?b=1755 Kansai Independent League: More financial troubles for Kobe http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/Japanese-AmericanPerspectives/~3/JIRGycDXwqw/blog.php Sat, 29 Aug 2009 18:26:31 GMT Looks like things are so bad at the Kobe 9 Cruise right now that players won't be getting a pay check in October. The team has said it will, however, pay for August and September salaries. And it sounds like the Akashi Red Soldiers and the Kishu Rangers are thinking about defaulting on October salaries as well.

Players were originally told they would be paid 200,000yen per month between February and October, a period of 9 months. But ever since Stella announced it wouldn't be able to provide any funding and went under, the league has been struggling to stay afloat.

The Independent League schedule officially end in September and any games that take place after that will likely be practice games or exhibition match-ups.

This comes on the heals of an announcement made earlier this month that Osaka Gold Villicanes player salaries would be cut by 50% and Akashi Red Soldiers salaries cut by 30%.

]]> Gwynar http://forums.simcentral.net/blog.php?b=1754 http://forums.simcentral.net/blog.php?b=1754 Hideki Irabu: Second start with Kochi Fighting Dogs http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/Japanese-AmericanPerspectives/~3/W1kkZewfc6U/blog.php Sat, 29 Aug 2009 18:08:26 GMT *Hideki Irabu* started his second game (http://www.sanspo.com/baseball/news/090829/bsr0908292252005-n1.htm) with the Kochi Fighters Dogs against the Nagasaki Saints on Saturday. He gave up 5 runs on 6 hits (including a homer), 5 walks, and 3 strike outs over 5 innings of work. Despite the... Hideki Irabu started his second game with the Kochi Fighters Dogs against the Nagasaki Saints on Saturday.

He gave up 5 runs on 6 hits (including a homer), 5 walks, and 3 strike outs over 5 innings of work.

Despite the poor outing, Kochi still managed to beat the Nagasaki Saint, 6-5.

Irabu's final line:
5 IP, 25 BF, 90 NP, 6 H, 5 BB, 3 K, 1 BK, 5 R, 5 ER

2009 Totals

IP	BF	NP	H	BB	HBP	K	BK	R	ER
12	57	207	13	10	1	6	1	8	7

]]> Gwynar http://forums.simcentral.net/blog.php?b=1753 http://forums.simcentral.net/blog.php?b=1753 The 80th Intercity Baseball Tournament: Day 9 http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/Japanese-AmericanPerspectives/~3/JoffPaAx7V0/blog.php Sat, 29 Aug 2009 17:49:27 GMT Here are the results from Day 9: Game 1 @ 9:59 Team|1|2|3|4|5|6|7|8|9||R|H|E NTT Higashi Nihon|0|0|0|0|0|1|0|0|1||2|9|0 ENEOS|0|0|0|0|0|0|0|0|0||0|3|0 Game 2 @ 13:40 Team|1|2|3|4|5|6|7|8|9||R|H|E Toshiba|2|0|4|1|0|0|0|0|0||7|8|0 Honda Kumamoto|1|0|0|0|0|2|0|1|0||4|9|1 Here are the results from Day 9:

Game 1 @ 9:59

Team	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9		R	H	E
NTT Higashi Nihon	0	0	0	0	0	1	0	0	1		2	9	0
ENEOS	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0		0	3	0

Game 2 @ 13:40

Team	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9		R	H	E
Toshiba	2	0	4	1	0	0	0	0	0		7	8	0
Honda Kumamoto	1	0	0	0	0	2	0	1	0		4	9	1

Game 3 @ 17:10

Team	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9		R	H	E
Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Kobe	0	1	0	0	0	3	0	0	0		4	7	0
Honda	1	0	2	0	1	0	1	0	x		5	13	1

Games for Day 10 (Quarterfinals):

9:00 - Toyota vs Tokyo Gas

12:20 - Yamaha vs Nissan

15:40 - Hitachi vs NTT Higashi Nihon

19:00 - Toshiba vs. Honda

]]> Gwynar http://forums.simcentral.net/blog.php?b=1752 http://forums.simcentral.net/blog.php?b=1752 Around the NPB Horn: Fan that fell at Yokohama Stadium dies http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/Japanese-AmericanPerspectives/~3/2CuVG09iGo4/blog.php Sat, 29 Aug 2009 17:41:56 GMT *Hanshin Tigers *...The Tigers announced on Saturday (http://www.sanspo.com/baseball/news/090829/bsb0908292112012-n1.htm) that *Jeff Williams* will be heading to the US to get his left shoulder checked out. Depending on the results from his tests, he may also undergo surgery. Williams did say... Hanshin Tigers

...The Tigers announced on Saturday that Jeff Williams will be heading to the US to get his left shoulder checked out. Depending on the results from his tests, he may also undergo surgery.

Williams did say that he wanted to return to the Tigers next season in a mini press conference he held prior to heading off the States.

"My goal is to wear a Tigers uniform again," said Williams. "I will do whatever it takes to ensure I can come back in great shape. This isn't just about next year, but also the years after that. I want to play baseball for a long time. Retirement hasn't even crossed my mind."

Seibu Lions

...The Lions ended their scoreless innings streak at 29 when they managed to push a run across in Saturday's game agains the Orix Buffaloes in the top of the 3rd. They lost the game in extra innings, 3-2.

Yakult Swallows

...The Swallows activated Jamie D'Antona on Saturday despite not being 100%. The team will likely continue to take things slow with D'Antona until he's at 100%.

...Ryota Igarashi appeared in his 500th career game on Saturday against the Chunchi Dragons.

...Chang-Yong Lim appears to be struggling a bit and Sponichi wonders if he might be feeling tired. When the pitching coach, Daisuke Araki, was asked if he thought it might be from being tired, he simply replied, "There are no such things as closers who aren't tired."

...13 players (both youngsters and the veterans) took part in early batting practice on Saturday in an effort to try and turns things around for the start of next season. The Swallows are currently 7-18 this month.

Yokohama Bay Stars

...Seiichi Uchikawa was taken off the active roster on Saturday due to viral enteritis. The team is expecting Uchikawa to start feeling better within the next few days and will have Uchikawa work on regaining his strength at Ni-gun before calling him back up.

What a tough spot for the Bay Stars. First they lose Shuichi Murata and now Uchikwa.

Said Tomio Tashiro, "If Dan Johnson gets hurt, we're done."

...The prefectural police announced that the man (Yasuhiko Goto) that fell from the right field stands onto the field at Yokohama Stadium on Thursday passed away on Saturday.

...The Bay Stars hit the 1M fan mark in attendance during Saturday's game against the Hiroshima Carp. 21,826 fans were on hand at the game on Saturday, giving the team 1,010,825 on the year.

Yomiuri Giants

...The Giants announced that Yoshinobu Takahashi appears to be leaning towards getting surgery done on his lower back during the current season. That could mean that he'll be removed from the active roster as early as Sunday.

After making an appearance in a game on Friday night and striking out, he failed to show up at pre-game practice on Saturday. It appears his back is acting up again and surgery might very well be his best option.

]]> Gwynar http://forums.simcentral.net/blog.php?b=1750 http://forums.simcentral.net/blog.php?b=1750 NPB: Game Summaries for August 29th, 2009 http://feedproxy.google.com/~r/Japanese-AmericanPerspectives/~3/MbOA65Tg8AQ/blog.php Sat, 29 Aug 2009 17:26:11 GMT

	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10		R	H	E
Chunchi Dragons	0	0	0	3	0	0	0	0	0	2		5	7	0
Yakult Swallows	0	1	0	0	1	0	0	0	1	0		3	7	1

(Swallows lead series, 12-8-0)

Aaron Guiel's (1-for-3, HR, R, RBI) lead-off solo homer in the bottom of the 2nd gave the Swallows a 1-0 lead. But that lead would only last until the top of the 4th when the Dragons scored 3 runs: Masahiko Morino (0-for-4, BB, R) walked and Tony Blanco (2-for-5, HR, 2 R, RBI) reached on an error by Guiel (RF) that put runners on second and third; Kazuhiro Wada (1-for-5, 2B, R, RBI) scored a run on a ground out; Byung-Kyu Lee (0-for-4) grounded out; Atsushi Fujii (1-for-4, IBB, R, RBI) drove in the go-ahead run with a single into center; Motonobu Tanishige (1-for-3, 2 BB) walked and put runners on first and second; Takashi Ogasawara (1-for-1, BB, RBI) gave the Dragons a 3-1 lead with an RBI single into right; Hirokazu Ibata (1-for-3, 2 BB) walked to load the bases; and Masahiro Araki (0-for-5) ended the inning with a ground out.

Kazuhiro Hatakeyama's (1-for-4, HR, R, RBI) solo homer to lead off the bottom of the 5th brought the Swallows to within 1-run of tying the game. And in the bottom of the 9th, Norichika Aoki's (1-for-3, RBI) sac fly to center after a Kazuki Fukuchi (1-for-4, 3B, R) lead-off triple, tied the game and forced it into extra innings.

The Dragons broke through in the top of the 10th: Chang-Yong Lim struck out Morino to start the inning, but then surrendered Blanco's 35th home run of the year; Wada followed with a double into right and advanced to third on a fly ball to center by pinch-hitter Kazuyoshi Tatsunami; Fujii was intentionally walked to put runners on first and third; and a wild pitch allowed the second run of the inning to cross the plate. Lim finished out the 10th by getting Tanishige to fly out to center.

Daisuke Yamai gave up a 1-out single before retiring the next two batters in a row to end the game.

Missed Opportunities
Dragons: top of the 3rd, runners on first and second, 2 out > Araki lined out; top of the 4th, bases loaded, 2 out > Araki grounded out; top of the 9th, runner on second, 1 out > Ibata struck out and Araki struck out; top of the 10th, runner on second, 2 out > Tanishige flied out.

Swallows: bottom of the 4th, runners on first and second, no out > Guiel struck out and Miyamoto lined into double play; bottom of the 7th, runner on second, 2 out > Tanaka flied out.

Game Notes
Both team collected 7 hits. ... Iwase has now given up a run in each of his last 3 appearances. ... Igarashi appeared in his 500th career game.

Dragons: 9 LOB, 1 DP
Swallows: 3 LOB, 1 DP

Chunichi Dragons

Player	G	W	L	Sv	IP	NP	BF	AB	H	HR	K	BB	WP	R	ER	ERA
Ogasawara, Takashi	16	5	1	0	6 1/3	102	23	22	4	2	7	1	1	2	2	3.425
Kawahara, Junichi H	34	2	0	0	2/3	6	2	2	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	1.440
Asao, Takuya H	53	7	9	1	1	14	3	3	1	0	1	0	0	0	0	3.765
Iwase, Hitoki W	49	2	3	36	1	14	4	3	1	0	1	0	0	1	1	2.339
Yamai, Daisuke S	8	0	2	1	1	18	4	4	1	0	1	0	0	0	0	7.855

Yakult Swallows

Player	G	W	L	Sv	IP	NP	BF	AB	H	HR	K	BB	SHF	WP	R	ER	ERA
Sato, Yoshinori	17	5	7	0	8	119	34	27	4	0	3	6	1	0	3	0	3.265
Igarashi, Ryota	49	2	2	3	1/3	5	2	1	1	0	0	0	1	0	0	0	2.832
Oshimoto, Takehiko	39	1	4	0	2/3	12	2	2	0	0	2	0	0	0	0	0	2.634
Lim, Chang-Yong L	50	5	3	25	1	20	6	5	2	1	1	1	0	1	2	2	1.620

Jingu
Attendance: 23,532
Time: 3h 40m

---

	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9		R	H	E
Hiroshima Carp	1	0	0	0	3	6	0	1	0		11	15	1
Yokohama Bay Stars	0	0	0	0	2	0	0	0	1		3	5	0

(Bay Stars lead series, 10-9-0)

The Carp quickly took a 1-0 lead in the top of the 1st after Akihiro Higashide (3-for-4, 3B, R, RBI) led off with a triple and scored on Soichiro Amaya's (0-for-4, RBI) sac fly to center. A lead-off solo homer by Jun Hirose (2-for-5, HR, 2 R, 2 RBI) and a 2-run homer by Yoshiyuki Ishihara (2-for-3, BB, 2 HR, 2 R, 5 RBI) in the top of the 5th, gave the Carp a 4-0 lead.

The Bay Stars cut the lead in half in the bottom of the 5th on a 2-run double by pinch-hitter Yoshiyuki Kuwahara with runners on first and second and 2 out.

But then the Carp exploded for 6 runs in the top of the 6th to take a commanding 10-2 lead: Andy Phillips (2-for-4, 2B, R) led off with a double; Kenta Kurihara (1-for-5, R) singled and put runners on first and third; an RBI double by Scott McClain (3-for-5, 2B, R, RBI) put runners on second and third, 5-2; Hirose drove in a run with a single into center, 6-2; Kimiyasu Kudo relieved Tom Mastny; Takuro Ishii (2-for-3, HBP, 3 R, RBI) drove in another run with a single into left, 7-2; and Ishihara cleared the bases with his 8th home run of the year, 10-2. Pinch-hitter Scott Seabol finally made the first out of the inning and Amaya ended it by grounding into a 4-6-3 double play after Higashide hit a single into left.

Higashide's sac fly to left with runners on second and third with 1 out in the top of the 8th rounded out an 11-run attack by the Hiroshima Carp.

In the bottom of the 9th, Hayato Aoki gave up a solo homer to Yuta Naito (1-for-1, HR, R, RBI) after retiring the first two batters he faced on a strike out and a ground out. Aoki ended the game by retiring the fourth batter of the inning on a fly ball to left.

Missed Opportunities
Carp: top of the 8th, runner on second, 2 out > Amaya flied out.

Bay Stars: bottom of the 2nd, runner on second, 2 out > Ishikawa flied out; bottom of the 5th, runner on second, 2 out > Shimozono flied out; bottom of the 8th, runners on first and second, 2 out > Saeki grounded out.

Game Notes
The Carp outhit the Bay Stars, 15-5. ... Yuki Saito started Wednesday's game against the Swallows and was knocked out after tossing only 1 inning (29 pitches, 4 runs, 0 earned).

Carp: 4 LOB, 2 DP
Bay Stars: 6 LOB, 0 DP

Hiroshima Carp

Player	G	W	L	IP	NP	BF	AB	H	HR	K	BB	R	ER	ERA
Saito, Yuki W	21	8	8	5	85	19	18	3	0	3	1	2	2	3.752
Komatsu, Takeshi	20	4	3	2	26	8	7	0	0	2	1	0	0	4.689
Hayashi, Masaki	34	0	2	1	18	5	4	1	0	0	1	0	0	4.865
Aoki, Hayato	24	0	0	1	15	4	4	1	1	1	0	1	1	3.797

Yokohama Bay Stars

Player	G	W	L	Sv	IP	NP	BF	AB	H	HR	K	BB	HBP	R	ER	ERA
Glynn, Ryan L	18	3	12	0	5	78	20	19	6	2	5	0	0	4	4	4.893
Mastny, Tom	13	1	5	0	0/3	10	4	4	4	0	0	0	0	4	4	5.830
Kudo, Kimiyasu	34	2	2	0	1	15	5	5	3	1	0	0	0	2	2	7.138
Kuwahara, Kentaro	3	0	0	0	2	33	9	6	1	0	1	1	1	1	1	3.600
Takasaki, Kentaro	43	2	0	1	1	15	4	4	1	0	1	0	0	0	0	4.154

Yokohama
Attendance: 21,826
Time: 2h 59m

---

	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9		R	H	E
Yomiuri Giants	1	1	3	0	0	1	0	1	0		7	13	0
Hanshin Tigers	0	2	0	0	1	0	1	1	0		5	11	1

(Giants lead series, 10-8-2)

A sac fly by Alex Ramirez (2-for-4, HR, R, 3 RBI) in the top of the 1st with runners on first and third and 1 out gave the Giants a 1-0 lead. Shinnosuke Abe's (2-for-4, HR, 2 R, RBI) homer to lead-off the 2nd made it 2-0.

But the Tigers tied the game in the bottom of the 2nd: Tomoaki Kanemoto (1-for-4, BB, 2B, R) led off the inning with a double; Takahiro Arai (1-for-4, RBI) flied out; Craig Brazell (1-for-4, R) singled to put runners on first and third; Kodai Sakurai (2-for-4, HR, R, 2 RBI) scored Kanemoto from third on a single into left and put runners on first and second; Keisuke Kano (1-for-3, BB, R) flied out to right and the lead runner advanced to third; Kenta Abe (1-for-1, RBI) tied the game with a single into right; and Keiichi Hirano (0-for-3) fouled out to right, stranding runners on first and second.

In the top of the 3rd, the Giants re-took the lead on a 2-run homer by Ramirez with 1 out and an RBI triple by Ryuta Wakiya (3-for-4, 2B, 3B, 2 R, RBI) with a runner on second and 2 out.

The Tigers returned a run in the bottom of the 5th on an RBI single by Takashi Toritani (2-for-5, 2B, R, RBI) with runners on first and second and 2 out. And the Giants came right back and answered with a run in the top of the 6th on an RBI single by Hayato Sakamoto (2-for-4, BB, R, RBI) with runners on first and second and 1 out.

The two sides would exchange a few more runs in the later innings: the Tigers scored a run in the bottom of the 7th on an RBI single by Arai with a runner on third and 2 out; the Giants returned the run in the top of the 8th after Wakiya led off with a double, and a sac bunt later, scored on pinch-hitter Yoshitomo Tani's single into right; and with Daisuke Ochi on the mound, Sakurai led off the bottom of the 8th with his 9th home run of the year.

With the Giants holding on to a 7-5 lead, Marc Kroon entered the game in the bottom of the 9th and face the minimum for his 20th save of the year.

Missed Opportunities
Giants: top of the 3rd, runners on first and third, 2 out > Greisinger grounded out; top of the 6th, runners on first and third, 1 out > Matsumoto grounded out and Ogasawara grounded out; top of the 8th, runner on second, 2 out > pinch-hitter Ohmichi struck out.

Tigers: bottom of the 2nd, runners on first and second, 2 out > Hirano fouled out to right; bottom of the 5th, bases loaded, 2 out > Arai flied out; bottom of the 6th, runners on second third, 2 out > M. Takahashi grounded out.

Game Notes
The Giants outhit the Tigers, 13-11. ... Sakurai has a modest 7-game hitting streak going. ... Sakurai hit his 9th home run of the year, tying his previous seasonal high.

Giants: 7 LOB, 2 DP
Tigers: 8 LOB, 0 DP

Yomiuri Giants

Player	G	W	L	Sv	IP	NP	BF	AB	H	HR	K	BB	R	ER	ERA
Greisinger, Seth W	22	12	5	0	5 2/3	85	27	25	8	0	3	2	3	3	3.313
Yamaguchi, Tetsuya H	61	9	1	3	1 1/3	20	6	6	2	0	1	0	1	1	1.539
Ochi, Daisuke H	56	7	2	10	1	13	4	4	1	1	2	0	1	1	2.819
Kroon, Marc S	37	1	2	20	1	7	3	3	0	0	0	0	0	0	1.615

Hanshin Tigers

Player	G	W	L	IP	NP	BF	AB	H	HR	K	BB	SHF	R	ER	ERA
Abe, Kenta L	18	0	1	3	56	18	14	7	2	1	2	1	5	4	3.273
Egusa, Hirotaka	51	4	3	2	30	6	5	1	0	2	1	0	0	0	1.688
Kanemura, Satoru	10	0	1	1	24	6	6	3	0	1	0	0	1	1	3.661
Tsutsui, Kazuya	30	0	2	2	37	8	7	2	0	3	0	1	1	1	3.857
Atchison, Scott	55	5	2	1	10	3	3	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	1.847

Koshien
Attendance: 46,850
Time: 3h 17m

======

	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9		R	H	E
Softbank Hawks	0	0	0	0	2	1	0	0	0		3	10	0
Nippon Ham Fighters	0	0	0	3	0	0	2	0	X		5	8	1

(Hawks lead series 10-9-0)

The Fighters jumped out to a 3-0 lead in the bottom of the 1st when Terrmel Sledge (2-for-4, 2B, HR, R, 3 RBI) hit hit 18th homer of the year and Yoshio Itoi (1-for-3, BB, HR, R, 2 RBI) followed an Eichi Koyano (1-for-4, R) single later with his 12th home run of the year.

Jose Ortiz (2-for-5, 2 RBI) drove in 2 runs for the Hawks in the top of the 5th with a single into left with runners on second and third and 1 out. An error allowed Ortiz to advance to third, giving the Hawks a chance to tie the game. But neither Hiroko Kokubo (2-for-5) nor Hitoshi Tamura (0-for-5) could get the job done and left Ortiz stranded at third.

But the Hawks did manage to tie the game in the top of the 6th on a sac fly be Yuichi Honda (1-for-3, BB, R, RBI) with the bases loaded and 1 out. Munenori Kawasaki (1-for-3, 2B) grounded out to end the inning.

In the bottom of the 7th, with runners on first and second, Sledge gave the Fighters a 2-run lead with a double into center with 2 out.

Hisashi Takeda entered the game in the top of the 9th for the Fighters and retired the first two batters of the inning on a fly out and a ground out. Ortiz and Kokubo then followed with singles that put runners on first and second. But that would be as far as they'd get as Takeda retired Tamura on a fly out to center.

Missed Opportunities
Hawks: top of the 1st, runner on second, 1 out > Ortiz grounded out and Kokubo struck out; top of the 2nd, bases loaded, 1 out > Morimoto struck out and Honda grounded out; top of the 4th, runner on second, 1 out > M. Kaneko struck out, wild pitch moved runner to third; Tanaka grounded out; top of the 5th, runner on third, 1 out > Kokubo flied out and Tamura grounded out; top of the 6th, runners on first and second, 2 out > Kawasaki grounded out; top of the 7th, runner on second, 2 out > Koyano grounded out; top of the 9th, runners on first and second, 2 out > Tamura flied out.

Fighters: top of the 2nd, runner on second, 1 out > Koyano struck out, Itoi walked, and Tsuruoka grounded out; bottom of the 3rd, runner on second, 1 out > Itoi grounded out, runner to third, Inaba flied out.

Game Notes
Hawks outhit the Fighters, 10-8. ... The Hawks lost their 4th straight game in a row (most losses in a row for the current season).

Hawks: 11 LOB, 0 DP
Fighters: 8 LOB, 0 DP

Softbank Hawks

Player	G	W	L	IP	NP	BF	AB	H	HR	K	BB	HBP	SHF	WP	R	ER	ERA
Houlton, D.J.	20	9	6	6	119	27	24	6	2	8	2	1	0	1	3	3	2.860
Mise, Koji L	15	0	1	2/3	17	5	2	1	0	0	2	0	1	0	2	2	6.750
Mizuta, Akio	32	2	0	1/3	6	1	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	2.813
Katto, Keisuke	3	0	0	1	16	4	4	1	0	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	0.000

Nippon Ham Fighters

Player	G	W	L	Sv	IP	NP	BF	AB	H	K	BB	SHF	R	ER	ERA
Takeda, Masaru	18	6	7	0	5	84	23	19	7	4	2	2	2	2	3.743
Tanimoto, Keisuke	20	2	0	0	1/3	25	4	1	0	1	3	0	1	1	5.108
Miyanishi, Naoki	43	7	0	0	2/3	11	2	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	1.688
Kikuchi, Kazumasa W	45	4	2	0	2	20	7	7	1	2	0	0	0	0	3.040
Takeda, Hisashi S	44	1	0	28	1	18	5	5	2	0	0	0	0	0	1.400

Sapporo Dome
Attendance: 29,648
Time: 3h 34m

---

	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9		R	H	E
Rakuten Eagles	0	0	2	0	2	1	0	0	0		5	10	0
Chiba Lotte Marines	1	0	0	3	0	0	0	0	0		4	7	1

(Marines lead series, 10-9-0)

The Marines grabbed a 1-0 lead in the bottom of the 1st on an RBI double by Toshiaki Imae (1-for-3, BB, 2B, RBI) with a runner on second and 1 out. The Eagles answered back in the top of the 3rd: with 2 outs, Todd Linden (2-for-5, 2 R) singled and scored on a triple by Naoto Watanabe (2-for-5, 3B, 2 R, RBI); Teppei (1-for-3, BB, 2B, 2 RBI) put the Eagles up by a run with a double into right; and Takeshi Yamasaki (0-for-4, BB) grounded out to end the inning.

In the bottom of the 4th, an RBI double by Shoitsu Ohmatsu (1-for-3, BB, 2B, R, RBI) with a runner on first and no out tied the game at 2. A strike out later, pinch-hitter Kazuya Fukuura's (1-for-3, HR, R, 2 RBI) third home run of the year put the Marines out in front, 4-2.

But the Eagles would quickly tie the game in the top of the 5th: with 1 out, Linden and N. Watanabe hit back-to-back singles that put runners on first and third; Teppei hit a sac fly to make it 4-3; T. Yamasaki walked to put runners on first and second; Kenshi (3-for-4, RBI) tied the score with a single into center; and Daisuke Kusano (1-for-3, HBP) struck out to end the inning.

A fielding error by Naotaka Takehara (LF) on a fly ball hit into left by Linden with runners on second and third and 1 out allowed the Eagles to score the go-ahead run in the top of the 6th.

The Marines almost got something going in the bottom of the 8th when they put runners on first and second with 2 out on back-to-back walks (the first issued by Tsuyoshi Kawagishi and the second by Kanehisa Arime) to Tomoya Satozaki (1-for-3, BB, R) and Ohmatsu, but Kazuo Fukumori relieved Arime and got pinch-hitter Saburo to end the inning with a ground out.

Fukumori tossed a perfect 9th for his 7th save of the year.

Missed Opportunities
Eagles: top of the 3rd, runner on second, 2 out > T. Yamasaki flied out; top of the 5th, runners on first and second, 2 out > Kusano struck out; top of the 6th, runners on first and second, 1 out > N. Watanabe flied out and Teppei grounded out; top of the 7th, runners on first and second, 1 out > Takasu GIDP.

Marines: bottom of the 1st, runner on second, 1 out > Iguchi struck out and Agbayani grounded out; bottom of the 3rd, runners on first and second, 1 out > Iguchi fouled out to first and Agbayani flied out; bottom of the 8th, runners on first and second, 2 out > Saburo grounded out.

Game Notes
The Eagles outhit the Marines, 10-7. ... The triple Watanabe hit in the 3rd inning was a product of aggressive fielding. ... The Eagles have now won their last 6 series.

Eagles: 8 LOB, 2 DP
Marines: 7 LOB, 0 DP

Rakuten Eagles

Player	G	W	L	Sv	IP	NP	BF	AB	H	HR	K	BB	WP	R	ER	ERA
Hasebe, Kohei	20	5	8	0	3 0/3	50	16	14	5	0	2	2	2	3	3	4.983
Koyama, Shinichiro	46	1	3	2	1	19	5	5	2	1	1	0	0	1	1	3.240
Gwyn, Marcus W	43	3	4	4	2	28	6	6	0	0	1	0	0	0	0	3.738
Kawagishi, Tsuyoshi H	12	2	1	1	1 2/3	28	6	5	0	0	0	1	0	0	0	0.587
Arime, Kanehisa	43	0	2	2	0/3	5	1	0	0	0	0	1	0	0	0	4.339
Fukumori, Kazuo S	22	5	0	7	1 1/3	19	4	4	0	0	1	0	0	0	0	0.931

Chiba Lotte Marines

Player	G	W	L	Sv	IP	NP	BF	AB	H	K	BB	HBP	SHF	R	ER	ERA
Ono, Shingo	18	6	6	0	5	87	24	21	8	3	2	0	0	4	4	3.869
Ueno, Hiroki L	11	1	1	0	1/3	10	4	2	1	0	0	0	2	1	0	3.224
Ito, Yoshihiro	49	2	5	0	2 2/3	27	9	8	1	2	0	1	0	0	0	4.412
Ogino, Tadahiro	42	2	3	8	1	12	3	3	0	1	0	0	0	0	0	4.500

Chiba Marine
Attendance: 29,886
Time: 3h 21m

---

	1	2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10		R	H	E
Seibu Lions	0	0	1	0	1	0	0	0	0	0		2	11	1
Orix Buffaloes	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	1	0	1x		3	10	0

(Lions lead series, 12-8-0)

The Buffaloes took a 1-0 lead in the bottom of the 1st on an RBI single by Tuffy Rhodes (2-for-3, 2 IBB, RBI) with a runner on second and 2 out. The Lions tied it in the top of the 3rd on a sac fly by Takuya Hara (0-for-4, RBI) with runners on first and third and 1 out.

In the top of the 5th, the Lions took a 2-1 lead on a sac fly by Hiroyuki Nakajima (3-for-4, RBI) with runners on second and third and 1 out. And the Buffaloes ended up tying it in the bottom of the 8th on an RBI double by Jose Fernandez (1-for-4, IBB, 2B, RBI) with a runner on third and 2 outs.

The Lions almost retook the lead in the top of the 9th when Nakajima picked up a single with runners on first and second and 1 out, but the lead runner (pinch-runner Tomoaki Sato) was thrown out at the plate on a bullet thrown from the left fielder, Shintaro Yoshida. Hara flied out to right for the final out of the inning, stranding runners first and second.

The game was finally settled in the bottom of the 10th with Koji Ohnuma on the mound for Buffaloes. Tomotaka Sakaguchi (2-for-5, 2 R) led off the inning with a single and was bunted over to second; Fernandez was intentionally walked; Tomoki Hoshino relieved Ohnuma; a passed ball moved the runners up to second and third; Rhodes was intentionally walked to load the bases; Taiyo Fujita relieved Hoshino; and Shinji Shimoyama (1-for-4, RBI) drove in the game-winning run with a single into center.

Missed Opportunities
Lions: top of the 3rd, runner on second, 2 out > Y. Ishii grounded out; top of the 5th, runner on second, 2 out > Hara struck out; top of the 6th, runners on first and second, 2 out > Ohsaki struck out; top of the 9th, runners on first and second, 1 out > Nakajima single, lead runner thrown out at home, and Hara flied out; top of the 10th, runner on first and second, 2 out > Sato flied out.

Buffaloes: bottom of the 4th, runner on second, 1 out > Okada struck out and K. Yamasaki grounded out; bottom of the 7th, runner on second, 2 out > Yoshida grounded out; bottom of the 8th, runners on first and second, 2 out > Shimoyama lined out; bottom of the 9th, runner on 2nd, 2 out > Suzuki grounded out.

Game Notes
The Lions outhit the Buffaloes, 11-10. ... Kaneko entered the game with 2 consecutive complete game shut-outs in his last 2 starts. ... By scoring a run in the 3rd, the Lions managed to stop their scoreless innings streak at 29. ... The Lions have now lost 4 games in a row.

Lions: 11 LOB, 1 DP
Buffaloes: 10 LOB, 0 DP

Seibu Lions

Player	G	W	L	Sv	IP	NP	BF	AB	H	K	BB	SHF	R	ER	ERA
Kishi, Takayuki	21	12	2	0	9	138	36	33	8	4	1	2	2	2	3.013
Ohnuma, Koji L	41	3	5	1	1/3	8	3	1	1	0	1	1	1	1	2.236
Hoshino, Tomoki	51	1	1	0	0/3	4	1	0	0	0	1	0	0	0	3.300
Fujita, Taiyo	14	1	0	1	0/3	7	1	1	1	0	0	0	0	0	2.769

Orix Buffaloes

Player	G	W	L	IP	NP	BF	AB	H	K	BB	HBP	SHF	WP	R	ER	ERA
Kaneko, Chihiro	21	10	6	9	140	38	32	9	8	2	1	1	1	2	2	2.533
Kikuchihara, Tsuyoshi H	36	0	3	2/3	10	3	2	1	0	1	0	0	0	0	0	4.402
Katsuki, Ryota W	52	3	3	1/3	4	2	2	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	3.787

Kyocera Dome
Attendance: 23,322
Time: 3h 35m

]]> Gwynar http://forums.simcentral.net/blog.php?b=1751 http://forums.simcentral.net/blog.php?b=1751