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11/16/2002 Archived Entry: "NPB All Stars Get Fed to a Wolf 4-0"
Randy Wolf Buries NPB All Stars on One Hit
After having gotten beat up pretty good his last time out against the Japanese all stars, Phillies lefthander Randy Wolf came out Friday at Tokyo Dome and dazzled, throwing all of his pitches for strikes and allowing just a second inning single to center by DH Hiroki Kokubo in a six inning tour de force to grab a 4-0 victory for an MLB team that is attempting to re-establish some equilibrium in the wake of getting pummeled in the initial three contests.
Yakult Swallows southpaw Shugo Fujii didn't do too bad, either, permitting only three hits and striking out seven in six innings himself, but he was undone by a couple of errors in the field and ended up being charged with three runs, only one of which was earned, to absorb the loss.
Fujii had a no hitter going until the fourth, when shortstop Kazuo Matsui threw away a routine ground ball by catcher Paul LoDuca to begin the inning, the Dodgers backstop hustling to second on the play. Following a strikeout by DH Bernie Williams, leftfielder Barry Bonds flayed a slider on the outside corner to the wall in leftcenter for an RBI double and a 1-0 MLB lead.
An inning later, second baseman Junior Spivey got a hanging slider from Fujii and torqued a rocket into the rear of the first deck of the leftfield bleachers to double the MLB advantage to 2-0. One out later, shortstop David Eckstein grounded to Makoto Imaoka at second, who dropped it and the Angels sparkplug reached on the error. Rightfielder Ichiro Suzuki then laced a double into the rightcenter alley and Eckstein was off to the races and scored all the way from first to make it 3-0 big leaguers.
If you like popups, that was what Wolf was serving up, as the Japanese contingent couldn't do a thing with him. No doubt, they were relieved to see Mike Fetters, whose odd pre-pitch preparation brought laughter from Japanese fans not used to seeing it, take the hill in the seventh. And when he walked leadoff hitter Yoshitomo Tani, they must have thought they had a chance now. But no such luck. The ex-Dodger and Brewer induced a double play ball from third baseman Norihiro Nakamura and ultimately went on to throw two hitless frames.
In the bottom of the eighth and with Koji Mitsui on the mound, Ichiro spanked a single between first and second and into right to catalyze another brief MLB rally. NPB catcher Motonobu Tanishige committed a passed ball and Ichiro moved over to second. LoDuca then sacrificed him over to third, from where he scored on a sac fly to left by backup leftfielder Pat Burrell and it was 4-0 MLB.
J.C. Romero jogged in form the bullpen to close and leftfielder Takayuki Shimizu tapped out to first. Romero walked Tanishige, bringing up Kazuo Matsui, who hammered a shot deep to rightcenterfield. Torii Hunter turned his back to the plate and turned on the jets, running the ball down with an over the shoulder catch Willie Mays style in a sensational display of why he is, along with Andruw Jones and Mike Cameron, one of the elite centerfielders in baseball. Tani beat out a roller toward first to keep the inning going. However, Nakamura bounced to Romero, who flipped to first and this one was in the refrigerator.
The California-born Fetters told reporters after the game that he is a cousin of former quarter ton Sumo Ozeki Konishiki and that his wife Tanya has some Japanese blood in her, so he likes Japan. Fetters has suffered from bouts with asthma and his routine before he starts throwing his windup helps him focus and prevents him from suffering attacks. Or at least, that's what he's said in the past.
Now the major leaguers will endeavor to knot the series at three apiece when they meet tomorrow.
See related story at:Japan Times Article
Also, related story at:Yomiuri Shimbun Article
Pictures:
Pitching Lines:
NPB:
S. Fujii (L, 0-1) IP 6.0 PC 99 H 3 HR 1 K 7 BB 1 R 3 ER 1 ERA 1.29
Mitsui IP 2.0 PC 32 H 1 HR 0 K 1 BB 1 R 1 ER 0 ERA 0.00
MLB:
Wolf (W, 1-0) IP 6.0 PC 78 H 1 HR 0 K 3 BB 1 R 0 ER 0 ERA 2.89
Fetters IP 2.0 PC 27 H 0 HR 0 K 2 BB 1 R 0 ER 0 ERA 0.00
Romero IP 1.0 PC 22 H 1 HR 0 K 0 BB 0 R 0 ER 0 ERA 0.00
E: K. Matsui, Imaoka, N. Nakamura
2B: Bonds, I. Suzuki
HR: Spivey (1)
RBI: Bonds, Spivey, I. Suzuki, Burrell
SF: Burrell
PB: Tanishige
GIDP: Cabrera, N. Nakamura
LOB: NPB 3, MLB 5
Series Status: NPB 3, MLB 2
Game Time: 2:35
Attendance: 53,000
Umpires: Young (HP), Kamimoto (1B), Sederstrom (2B), Sakaemura (3B)
Lineups:
NPB:
SS K. Matsui (0-4, K .352)
CF Tani (1-3, BB .400)
3B N. Nakamura (0-4, K, .250)
RF H. Matsui (0-2, BB .105)
1B Cabrera (0-3, K .400)
DH Kokubo (1-2, .444)
(PH, DH) M. Ogasawara (0-1, .333)
LF K. Wada (0-2, .000)
(PH, 2B) T. Ishii (0-1, K .200)
2B Imaoka (0-2, .272)
(LF) T. Shimizu (0-1) .454
C Tanishige (0-2, K, BB .333)
MLB:
RF I. Suzuki (2-4, R, RBI .272)
C LoDuca (0-3, R, .545)
DH B. Williams (0-2, K, 2 BB .142)
LF Bonds (1-3, RBI, K .300)
(LF) Burrell (0-0, SF, RBI .000)
CF Hunter (0-4, K .416)
1B D. Lee (0-4, K .181)
2B Spivey (1-3, R, RBI .200)
3B Hinske (0-3, 3 K .400)
SS Eckstein (0-3, R, K .250)
Hot Shots....
Marc Valdes signed with the Chunichi Dragons earlier today....Tsuyoshi Shinjo's option for next season has not been picked up by San Francisco, so he is seeking a position with another MLB outfit....In a little bit of a surprise, Seibu has chosen to hang on to Scott McClain and let Tom Evans go. The way both men were left twisting in the wind by the Lions, though, is a shame....The Lions also sent outfielder Tetsuya Kakiuchi, 32, to Lotte for catcher Takumi Shigii, 31....While there has been no official statement from Hanshin, Sankei Sports says that the former Lotte righty coming to Osaka is a fait accompli. Watching the obstinant former Ranger and Yankee playing under the fiery Senichi Hoshino should be fun for those of us who loathe both men.... The Nippon Ham Fighters have indicated that they will use new aquisition Tomochika Tsuboi in the one hole in 2003. He will be paid $400,000 next season....The Seattle Mariners have responded to a letter sent to them as well as the other 29 MLB teams by Hideki Matsui, but wouldn't reveal the contents of their answer, according to Nikkan Sports.... Hiroshima Carp second baseman Eddie Diaz and the team couldn't get together on a salary for next season, so Diaz is now looking for another employer. Diaz wanted a pay boost from his 2002 salary of $525,000 to one million plus incentives for each of two years and that proved too rich for the Red Hell's blood.....He'll be a nice pickup for somebody. Also, the Carp have released reliever Erik Schullstrom ....Seibu owner Yoshiaki Tsutsumi, who is the honorary chairman of the Japanese olympic committee, has proposed that in order to perhaps get major league players involved in the Athens games, allow the olympic teams to change their rosters once they enter the championship round. However, Tony Bernazard, who works for the MLB players' association and who is in Japan right now, says that even if they make that change, it is unlikely that MLB would be willing to send players or interrupt its season due to the long schedule....Yankees GM Brian Cashman still insists that the purpose of his trip to Japan was to be part of the signing of a new working asgreement between his club and the Yomiuri Giants. On Hideki Matsui, he said, "no comment."
Bonds Beats Matsui in Homer Derby
See a very good Dan Sloan story at: Reuters Article
Also, related story at:Yomiuri Shimbun Article
And another related story at:Associated Press Article
Matsui: Heavy is the Head of He Who Almost Won a Triple Crown
This is a tremendous piece on Matsui's leaving Japan with some great biographical info (registration required; I know, it's a pain in the butt, so make sure you lie each step of the way): L.A. Times Article
Steinbrenner's Money Man in Japan
See story at: NY Post Article
Selig Following Matsui Money Situation
You'll have to scroll down a bit for the relevant bit: Associated Press Article
Another Nice Piece on Godzilla Matsui
Here's another one to choke your goat with on Godzilla: CNN/SI Article
Mets Holding Off on Nakamura
See story at:Japan Today Article
....But Maybe Nakamura is Interested in the Mets
See interesting story at:New Jersey.com Article
Kanemoto Reaches Agreement With Hanshin
See story at: Japan Times Article
Taiwan Beats Korea in Intercontinental Cup 4-2 in 12 Innings
See story at:Taipei Times Article
Baseball Obsessed Soldier Re-enlists at Cooperstown
See interesting story at: DC Military Article
Korean National Sports Hero Dies
When I was living in Korea, this guy was a subject that was brought up as an example of Korean pride during an eroa of domination by the Japanese. See story at:Korea Times Article
