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02/24/2003 Archived Entry: "Japanese Baseball News: Ichiro Seeking 6-8 Year Deal from M's"
Pesky Onishi, Rookie Sakurai Combine to Shoot Down Yakult
Leftfielder Takayuki Onishi and rookie centerfielder Yoshimi Sakurai each drove in a pair of runs and Onishi added a stolen base, as the Chunichi Dragons edged out the Yakult Swallows 6-4 Sunday. Yuya Kamada was roughed up for two runs on six hits in three innings to absorb the loss while Kenta Asakura scattered two hits in three scoreless frames to cadge the victory.
Todd Betts finally collected his first knock as a Swallow off of a forkball on the outer half of the plate in the first with a man on and one away, but Asakura struckout DH Alex Ramirez and induced a groundout from rightfielder Atsunori Inaba to wriggle out of the jam and then cruised.
The Dragons struck for a tally off in the second, as third baseman Kazuyoshi Tatsunami banged a single to right, first baseman Ivan Cruz did the same, Tatsunami motoring to third on the play and then scoring on a subsequent 5-4-3 double play ball off the bat of catcher Motonobu Tanishige.
Then in the third, Sakurai leadoff by clocking a slider to left for a single and advanced to second on a sac bunt. Onishi singled to left to convert Sakurai. Outfielder Koichi Sekikawa singled to left as well, but the threat ended when Tatsunami flied out to center and Cruz fanned to keep the Swallows in the game.
Yakult drew closer in the fourth when Inaba spanked one back up the middle for a hit with two outs and was doubled in when third baseman Ken Suzuki scorched a shot off the rightfield wall for an RBI double and it was 2-1 Dragons. Shortstop Noriyuki Shiroishi walked to keep the inning alive, but rookie leftfielder Satoshi Kubota flew out to terminate the rally.
However, Chunichi countered in the bottom portion, as Tanishige got aboard on an error by Suzuki. DH Mitsunobu Takahashi laced a single near the line in left. The ball got by Kubota and each runner moved up a base on the error. Hidenori Kuramoto was brought in to pinch run for Takahashi. One out later, Sakurai, who was trying to chop down on the ball in order to bounce it over the heads of the drawn in infield, singled between third and short ande into leftfield to plate Kuramoto and Tanishige for a 4-1 Dragons advantage.
Masato Hanada went to the center of the diamond for Yakult in the sixth and promptly threw a porkchop to Kuramoto, who fed it to the folks in the leftfield seats to make it 5-1 Dragons. One out later, centerfielder Tetsuya Iida dropped a fly ball from Sakai, who made it to second base before Iida got the ball back to the infield. Following a lineout by shortstop Hirokazu Ibata, Onishi singled to left to push Sakai across and now the Nagoya side was up 6-1.
Southpaw Kazuhiro Hiramatsu was toiling for Chunichi when Yakult attempted to make a game of it in the eighth. Second baseman Yoshiyuki Noguchi slapped a single to center and, one out later, substitute first baseman Hirobumi Watarai singled to right. Ramirez walked to jam the basepaths. Inaba grounded to Hiroyuki Watanabe, who was standing in for Tatsunami at third, and Watanabe booted it while Noguchi crossed. Reserve third baseman Kazuhiro Hatayama flied out to right and Watarai tagged and scored. Shiroishi was now the tying run and he singled to center to welcome Ramirez home and reduce the deficit to 6-4. But rookie outfielder Satoshi Kashibushi struckout and Shigetoshi Yamakita tossed a perfect ninth to preserve the victory for the Dragons.
Kosuke Fukudome was supposed to start in right in this one, but he experienced some discomfort in his elbow during pregame drills and was sat down as a precaution.
For Yakult, Betts was 2-3 and is at .333. Ramirez was 0-3 with a walk and is at .167.
For Chunichi, Cruz was 1-3 and is at .333.
Pitching Lines:
Yakult:
Kamada (L, 0-1) IP 3.0 BF 14 PC 46 H 6 HR 0 K 1 BB 0 R 2 ER 2 ERA 6.00
H. Sato IP 2.0 BF 10 PC 32 H 3 HR 0 K 0 BB 1 R 2 ER 0 ERA 0.00
Hanada IP 2.0 BF 9 PC 41 H 3 HR 1 K 0 BB 0 R 2 ER 1 ERA 4.50
Hiramoto IP 1.0 BF 3 PC 13 H 0 HR 0 K 1 BB 0 R 0 ER 0 ERA 0.00
Chunichi:
Asakura (W, 1-0) IP 3.0 BF 11 PC 39 H 2 HR 0 K 2 BB 0 R 0 ER 0 ERA 0.00
Hirai IP 3.0 BF 13 PC 32 H 3 HR 0 K 0 BB 1 R 1 ER 1 ERA 3.00
Hiramatsu IP 2.0 BF 11 PC 36 H 3 HR 0 K 2 BB 1 R 3 ER 0 ERA 0.00
Yamakita (S, 1) IP 1.0 BF 3 PC 14 H 0 HR 0 K 2 BB 0 R 0 ER 0 ERA 0.00
E: Iida, Hatayama, S. Kubota, H.Y. Watanabe
SB: Onishi
2B: K. Suzuki
HR: Kuramoto (2)
RBI: Onishi 2, Y. Sakurai 2, Kuramoto, K. Suzuki, Hatayama, Shiroishi
SF: Hatayama
GIDP: Tanishige, Onishi, Tsutsui
LOB: Yakult 7, Chunichi 6
Season Series: Yakult 0, Chunichi 1
Game Time: 2:47
Attendance: 8500
Umpires: Fukatani (HP), Mori (1B), ? (2B), Watada (3B)
Arai Homer in Ninth Nets Lotte a 2-2 Tie
Hiroshima Carp third baseman Takahiro Arai belted a solo homer in the bottom of the ninth with one out to tie their faceoff with the Chiba Lotte Marines Sunday 2-2. By agreement between the two sides, no extra innings were played.
Lotte rookie Yoshihide Kanda was hanging his outpitch, a forkball, in the bullpen before the game, so he stuck to a formula of throwing his fastball in and then putting hitters away with his slider and held the Red Hell to two hits and no runs over three innings to solidify his bid for a roster spot with the club. The starting rotation is pretty much set, so Kanda, who was clocked at 88mph, will likely be slotted into a middle relief role.
But even better was Hiroshima southpaw Takaya Kawauchi, who spun four perfect innings with three strikeouts, displaying the ability to consistently throw his breaking balls for strikes.
So it was a goose egg fest until the bottom of the fourth, when Hiroshima broke through against reliever Yasuhiko Yabuta. Rightfielder Kazuki Fukuchi leadoff with a single to right and was wild pitched to second. DH Kazuyoshi Kimura, endeavoring to prove that his stellar 2002 campaign was no fluke, roped a shot down the leftfield line and Fukuchi hustled in for a 1-0 Carp advantage.
That was where it remained until.the seventh, when, with 20 year old righthander Kenta Tamayama pitching, centerfielder Toshio Haru walked and moved to second on a groundout to first from Jun Inoue. One out later, first baseman Kazuya Fukuura found some vacant real estate in center and Haru went round the diamond to knot it at 1-1.
The Carp attempted to break that deadlock in the bottom of the eighth when leftfielder Shigenobu Shima walked and was sacrificed to second. Second baseman Akihiro Higashide singled to center. While Shima made the turn for the dish, centerfielder Takashi Tachikawa gobbled the ball up and fired it homeward. Backstop Tasuku Hashimoto snagged the relay and Shima was rung up for the second out. Fukuchi then rolled out to third to kill any further scoring attempts.
No doubt pumped up by participating in that defensive exhibition, Hashimoto checked into the batter's box to commence the ninth and got real gone to right for a 2-1 Lotte lead. Now it would be up to Junji Kuroki to nail it down.
The first hitter of the bottom of the ninth, Jun Hirose, grounded out to second. But Kuroki then tried to spot a first pitch fastball on the outside corner to Arai and bit off more of the plate than he was looking to. Arai thumped it real good to the opposite field and it was a tie ballgame at 2-2. But the Carp weren't done. Centerfielder Shigeru Morikasa burned a Kuroki delivery into the rightcenter gap for a double. Now the fish were finished, as two popouts to first put it in the books.
For Lotte, third baseman Rick Short was 1-2 with a walk and is at .500.
Pitching Lines:
Lotte:
Kanda IP 3.0 BF 10 PC 43 H 2 HR 0 K 1 BB 0 R 0 ER 0 ERA 0.00
Yabuta IP 2.0 BF 8 PC 34 H 3 HR 0 K 0 BB 0 R 1 ER 1 ERA 4.50
S. Watanabe IP 2.0 BF 7 PC 32 H 1 HR 0 K 4 BB 0 R 0 ER 0 ERA 0.00
Funaki IP 1.0 BF 4 PC 13 H 1 HR 0 K 0 BB 1 R 0 ER 0 ERA 0.00
J. Kuroki IP 1.0 BF 5 PC 16 H 2 HR 1 K 0 BB 0 R 1 ER 1 ERA 9.00
Hiroshima:
Kawauchi IP 4.0 BF 12 PC 44 H 0 HR 0 K 3 BB 0 R 0 ER 0 ERA 0.00
Hayashi IP 2.0 BF 6 PC 26 H 1 HR 0 K 1 BB 0 R 0 ER 0 ERA 0.00
Tamayama IP 1.0 BF 4 PC 22 H 1 HR 0 K 0 BB 1 R 1 ER 1 ERA 9.00
Sakai IP 1.0 BF 3 PC 13 H 0 HR 0 K 0 BB 1 R 0 ER 0 ERA 0.00
Kawano IP 1.0 BF 4 PC 17 H 1 HR 1 K 1 BB 1 R 1 ER 1 ERA 9.00
SB: Fukuchi
2B: K. Kimura, Morigasa
HR: Hashimoto (1), T. Arai (1)
RBI: K. Kimura, T. Arai, Fukuchi, Hashimoto
WP: Yabuta
HBP: Asayama (Yabuta)
GIDP: Kurihara, Hatsushiba, Nishioka
LOB: Lotte 0, Hiroshima 5
Season Series: Lotte 0, Hiroshima 1
Game Time: 2:34
Attendance: 4000
Umpires: Hamano (HP), Kaneko (1B), Nishimoto (2B), Hayashi (3B)
Kintetsu Overwhelmed by Yomiuri 13-3
Last season, the Yomiuri Giants went on an offesive rampage in their first exhibition game of the year, as they collected 18 hits and 13 runs. The results were similar in the kyojin 2003 pre-season opener, as everybody in the starting lineup rapped out at least one hit as part of a 21 hit attack in a 13-3 drowning of the Buffaloes Sunday at Miyazaki Prefectural Stadium. Roberto Petagine went yard in his first at bat for the Tokyo squad, though that was surpassed by two big flies from Kintetsu's erstwhile insurance salesman, Shinji Shimoyama, in his pro league debut in a losing effort.
But in the midst of laying waste to their Osaka opposition, Yomiuri also lost starter Yusaku Iriki for a month with a hamstring pull that he suffered in the fourth inning. Up until that point, Iriki wasn't doing that well anyway, as he was ultimately charged with two runs on five hits, including one of the Shimoyama bombs, in 3.1 innings. The Giants are packed with good young arms, so his loss will prove to just be a minor bump in the road.
Buffs starter Hisashi Iwakuma, like he did in the NPB-MLB all star series last November, got dismantled, on this day for seven runs (six earned) on seven hits, to accept the kuroboshi.
Kintetsu got off to a shortlived edge in the first when centerfielder Naoyuki Omura doubled against the centerfield wall to open things and then cruised in when leftfielder Tuffy Rhodes sliced a single to left for the RBI and it was 1-0. He was pinch run for by Shimoyama.
Iwakuma managed to blow two men away in the bottom of the frame, but then in the second, he made a big mistake. Yomiuri Rightfielder Roberto Petagine got a 2-2 slider on the inner half of the plate after swinging and missing on a slider the previous pitch and torqued a rocket 440 feet into the rightcenterfield bleachers to even it at 1-1. DH Akira Etoh doubled lined one into the leftcenter alley for a two bagger and moved to third on an ensuing groundout. One out later, Buffs shortstop Masahiro Abe bobbled a grounder from third baseman Takayuki Saito and Etoh trotted in to put the Giants up 2-1.
Shimoyama, who was drafted out of Nihon Seimei (Japan Life Insurance) on the eighth round this past November, applied some strategic force to a two out 3-2 fastball and deposited it in the centerfield bleachers to tie it at 2-2.
The Giants then started swinging like Tarzan. Shortstop Tomohiro Nioka catalyzed it with a leadoff single to left and catcher Shinnosuke Abe felt the kiss of horsehide against skin to create a two on, nobody out situation. Centerfielder Yoshinobu Takahashi singled to left to exploit Nioka and Etoh earned a free pass one out later to load the bases. First baseman Daisuke Motoki singled to right to convert Abe and Takahashi and second baseman Toshihisa Nishi did likewise to take in Etoh, Takatomi Sogawa, who had been inserted to pinch run for Motoki and stole second, moved to third on the play. Saito flew to center and Sogawa tagged and strode to the plate and Yomiuri was in the driver's seat at 7-2.
Kintetsu got two walks in the fourth, but those were between three strikeouts and that chance vaporized.
Rookie southpaw Kanehisa Arime ascended the hill for Kintetsu in the fourth and is no doubt now headed to the minors. Why? He got through his first inning unscathed, but in the fifth, Etoh played a rendition of "Long Stick Goes Boom" to the folks in the leftfield bleachers. Substitute first baseman Koji Goto singled to left. One out later, Saito singled to center and so did leftfielder Takayuki Shimizu for the ninth run, both men moving up on the relay home. Rookie outfielder Kenji Yano pinch ran for Shimizu. Nioka went the opposite way to right for a pair of RBIs and it was 11-2 Yomiuri.
Hard throwing Daisuke Miyamoto was the next victim. In the seventh and with one away, backup catcher Yoshinori Murata cleaned and jerked one over the leftfield fence. Takahashi steamed a double down the rightfield line and was pinch run for by Takahiro Suzuki. One out later, backup DH Masahiro Kawai singled to center to make it 13-2.
Shimoyama leadoff in the eighth with a drive into the rightfield stands, but that was a meaningless gesture and that is how it ended, 13-3.
Rookie infielder Masahiro Nagata became the first rookie right out of high school since Hideki Matsui to appear in an exhibition game for Yomiuri, spelling Nishi at second. He singled in two at bats.
Shimoyama, 27 and 5'9" 165 pounds, is the first rookie since 1970 to homer twice in his first exhibtion game. He is a former batting champ at Ritsumeikan University and.tied a Kansai University League record with five homers in season in the fall of his senior year. He took home two MVPs in industrial league tournaments.
For Yomiuri, Petagine was 1-3 with an RBI and is at .333.
For Kintetsu, Rhodes was 1-1 with an RBI.
Pitching Lines:
Kintetsu:
Iwakuma (L, 0-1) IP 3.0 BF 20 PC 64 H 7 HR 1 K 3 BB 3 R 7 ER 6 ERA 18.00
Arime IP 2.0 BF 11 PC 49 H 6 HR 1 K 3 BB 0 R 4 ER 2 ERA 9.00
D. Miyamoto IP 2.0 BF 13 PC 34 H 6 HR 1 K 2 BB 1 R 2 ER 2 ERA 9.00
T. Matsumoto IP 1.0 BF 6 PC 30 H 2 HR 0 K 3 BB 1 R 0 ER 0 ERA 0.00
Yomiuri:
Iriki (W, 1-0) IP 3.1 BF 16 PC 65 H 5 HR 1 K 3 BB 2 R 2 ER 2 ERA 5.40
Kashiwada IP 1.2 BF 6 PC 19 H 1 HR 0 K 3 BB 0 R 0 ER 0 ERA 0.00
K. Nishiyama IP 1.0 BF 4 PC 15 H 1 HR 0 K 0 BB 0 R 0 ER 0 ERA 0.00
Kawamoto IP 2.0 BF 7 PC 26 H 1 HR 1 K 2 BB 0 R 1 ER 1 ERA 4.50
J. Sakai IP 1.0 BF 4 PC 17 H 1 HR 0 K 0 BB 0 R 0 ER 0 ERA 0.00
E: Moritani, M. Abe
SB: Sogawa
2B: N. Omura, Etoh, Shimoyama
HR: Petagine (1), Shimoyama 2 (2), Etoh (1), Y. Murata (1)
RBI: Rhodes, Shimoyama 2, Nioka 2, Y. Murata, Y. Takahashi, Petagine, Etoh, M. Kawai, Motoki 2, Nishi, Takayuki Saito
SF: Takayuki Saito
HBP: S. Abe (Iwakuma)
WP: Iriki
GIDP: N. Nakamura
LOB: Kintetsu 7, Yomiuri 13
Season Series: Kintetsu 0, Yomiuri 1
Game Time: 3:24
Attendance: 30,000
Umpires: K. Kobayashi (HP), Yamamura (1B), Arisumi (2B), Yoshikawa (3B)
Furuki Continues Homer Binge to Edge Nippon Ham 6-5
Yokohama Bay Stars third baseman Katsuaki Furuki has homered again, his second in two days, and his team is now 2-2 on the exhibition season with a 6-5 mastering of the Nippon Ham Fighters Sunday at Urazoe. Righthander Tsutomu Iwamoto started for Trey Hillman's crew as he continues his comeback attempt and he got hurt for four runs on four hits in three innings to get hung with the loss. Ryuichi Kawahara, who is normally a reliever, started for the Stars and came up with two perfect innings to claim the victory.
Iwamoto got the side out in order in the first, but the first batter he confronted in the second, Furuki, went with a 1-0 fastball on the outer half of the plate and did an Eric Chavez imitation, putting it over the leftfield fence for a 1-0 lead. Rightfielder Tyrone Woods also took it the opposite way and he tucked it well into the rightfield bleachers for back to back jacks and a 2-0 score in Yokohama's favor. First baseman Hirofumi Ogawa lashed a double to leftcenter and, one out later, DH Hitoshi Taneda socked an Iwamoto delivery into the leftfield seats and it was 4-0 Stars.
Nippon Ham had a bases loaded, tow out chance in the top of the third, but DH D.T. Cromer grounded to second to snuff that uprising.
The Fighters did chip off a bit of the disparity in the fourth, as first baseman Katsuhiro Nishiura singled to left and, one out later, rightfielder Hichori Morimoto singled to left. Following a flyout by leftfielder Yoshinori Ueda, catcher Shinji Takahashi singled to left to send Nishiura in to make it 4-1 Yokohama.
In the fifth, Nippon Ham put another run on the big board when centerfielder Tsutomu Ishimoto walked and shortstop Shigeyuki Furuki singled to left on a hit and run play to get Ishimoto to third. Nishiura flew out to center and Ishimoto tagged up and loped to the plate to reduce the Yokohama advanatge to 4-2.
It became a one run affair in the sixth, as Morimoto walked with one down and, one out later, Takahashi zapped one to the leftcenterfield wall for an RBI double to make it 4-3 Yokohama.
Two errors then did Nippon Ham in in the seventh. With one away, catcher Kazunari Tsuruoka grounded to second baseman Ken Tanaka, who misplayed it for an error. Shortstop Takuro Ishii grounded a double play ball to Yuji Iiyama, who booted it. Both runners moved up on a grounder to first. Leftfielder Takanori Suzuki singled to right and Tsuruoka and Ishii were back in the dugout with two big insurance runs and a 6-3 lead.
Those loomed large because Nippon Ham put together a rally in the eighth. Nishiura singled to right. One out later, Tomochika backup rightfielder Tsuboi singled to right. Substitute leftfielder Angel Echevarria grounded to Ishii, who went to second for the force, but Tsuboi beat the throw and the sacks were packed. Reserve catcher Watanabe singled to left to bring Nishiura in. Tanaka grounded out to second and Tsuboi crossed. Ishimoto, with the tying run on third, flew to right and that ended the inning.
Masahiro Tazaki retired three of the four hitters he faced in the ninth to pocket the W for Yokohama.
One of the Japanese sports dailies had some interesting stats on Katsuaki Furuki. Last season, Furuki hit better than .500 when he swung at the first two pitches and .444 when he went after the third. And of his 32 hits last year, 25 were during the first three pitches. With two strikes on him, he hit just .143.
For Nippon Ham, Cromer was 1-5 and is at .286. Echevarria was 0-2 and is at .000.
For Yokohama, Woods was 1-4 with an RBI and is at .286.
Pitching Lines:
Nippon Ham:
Iwamoto (L, 0-1) IP 3.0 BF 13 PC 52 H 4 HR 3 K 0 BB 0 R 4 ER 4 ERA 12.00
Yoshizaki IP 3.0 BF 12 PC 52 H 2 HR 0 K 1 BB 1 R 0 ER 0 ERA 0.00
Shibakusa IP 1.0 BF 7 PC 29 H 1 HR 0 K 1 BB 1 R 2 ER 0 ERA 0.00
Tateishi IP 1.0 BF 4 PC 24 H 0 HR 0 K 2 BB 1 R 0 ER 0 ERA 0.00
Yokohama:
R. Kawahara (W, 1-0) IP 2.0 BF 6 PC 29 H 0 HR 0 K 0 BB 0 R 0 ER 0 ERA 0.00
Holt IP 1.0 BF 6 PC 24 H 2 HR 0 K 1 BB 1 R 0 ER 0 ERA 0.00
Nakanowatari IP 2.0 BF 10 PC 44 H 4 HR 0 K 2 BB 1 R 2 ER 2 ERA 9.00
Inamine IP 2.0 BF 8 PC 51 H 1 HR 0 K 5 BB 1 R 1 ER 1 ERA 4.50
Tazaki (S, 1) IP 2.0 BF 11 PC 40 H 4 HR 0 K 1 BB 0 R 2 ER 2 ERA 9.00
E: Iiyama 2, Ken Tanaka
SB: K.N. Tanaka
2B: Ogawa, S. Takahashi 2,
HR: Furuki (2), Woods (1), Taneda (1)
RBI: Nishiura, S. Takahashi 2, Watanabe, Ken Tanaka, T. Suzuki 2, T. Woods, S. Furuki, Taneda 2
SF: Nishiura
WP: Yoshizaki
GIDP: S. Murata
LOB: Nippon Ham 9, Yokohama 6
Season Series: Nippon Ham 0, Yokohama 1
Game Time: 3:03
Attendance: 6000
Umpires: Shimada (HP), Sakaemura (1B), Sasaki (2B), Tachibana (3B)
Kamisaka Solo Shot the Difference as Hanshin Beats Seibu 3-2
A solo longball from second baseman Taichiro Kamisaka in the seventh inning proved to be the decisive blow, as the Hanshin Tigers fended off a late Seibu Lions comeback to seize the day 3-2. Hsu Ming-chieh started for the Tokorozawa contingent and floundered somewhat, going three innings and permitting five hits and two runs to accept responsibility for the defeat. Tigers righthander Yuya Ando worked four strong innings of three hit shutout ball to earn the triumph.
The Lions got the first two men that came up in the game on on singles, but one of them, centerfielder Shogo Akada, was gunned down attempting to steal by catcher Akihiro Yano. Hanshin then took a bite out of Hsu during their ups. With one out, shortstop Atsushi Fujimoto singled to center. One out later, leftfielder Osamu Hamanaka drilled a 1-2 slider to the rightcenterfield wall for a triple and a 1-0 lead. First baseman George Arias singled to center to see Hamanaka in and it was 2-0 Hanshin.
Then in the seventh, Kamisaka found something exceedingly hittable from righty Koji Onuma and landed it in the leftcenterfield seats to widen it to 3-0 Tigers.
In the top of the eighth, the Lions finally made some noise. Takehito Kanazawa plunked Keisuke Mizuta. Shortstop Hiroyuki Nakajima, a converted pitcher who they hope will be the next Kazuo Matsui, tied into a high fastball on the outer half of the plate and went yard to leftcenter to shrink the Tigers hegemony to 3-2. Catcher Kosuke Noda singled to center, but then Kanazawa put the next six hitters away on two popups and four ground balls to secure the win.
Hanshin rookie Yasuhiro Nakamura was clocked at 88mph and he was able to get inside with his fastball and then finished hitters off with his slider for a perfect inning where he struckout two.
For Hanshin, Arias was 1-2 with an RBI and is at .500.
Pitching Lines:
Seibu:
Hsu (L, 0-1) IP 3.0 BF 14 PC 38 H 5 HR 0 K 1 BB 0 R 2 ER 2 ERA 6.00
Maeda IP 1.0 BF 4 PC 13 H 1 HR 0 K 2 BB 0 R 0 ER 0 ERA 0.00
Hoashi IP 2.0 BF 7 PC 31 H 1 HR 0 K 1 BB 0 R 0 ER 0 ERA 0.00
Onuma IP 1.0 BF 5 PC 15 H 2 HR 1 K 1 BB 1 R 1 ER 1 ERA 9.00
Toriyabe IP 1.0 BF 4 PC 19 H 1 HR 0 K 1 BB 0 R 0 ER 0 ERA 0.00
Hanshin:
Ando (W, 1-0) IP 4.0 BF 13 PC 46 H 3 HR 0 K 3 BB 1 R 0 ER 0 ERA 0.00
Y.H. Nakamura IP 1.0 BF 3 PC 13 H 0 HR 0 K 2 BB 0 R 0 ER 0 ERA 0.00
Yoshino IP 2.0 BF 7 PC 29 H 0 HR 0 K 2 BB 1 R 0 ER 0 ERA 0.00
Kanazawa (S, 1) IP 2.0 BF 9 PC 35 H 2 HR 1 K 0 BB 1 R 2 ER 2 ERA 9.00
SB: Akahoshi, Sekimoto
2B: Akahoshi
3B: Hamanaka
HR: Kamisaka (1), H.Y. Nakajima (1)
RBI: H.Y. Nakajima 2, Kamisaka, Hamanaka, Arias
HBP: Ozeki (Ando), Inubushi (Yoshino), K. Mizuta (Kanazawa)
GIDP Akada, H. Oshima
LOB: Seibu 3, Hanshin 7
Season Series: Seibu 0, Hanshin 1
Game Time: 2:29
Attendance: 6000
Umpires: Nemoto (HP), Yanagida (1B), Kasahara (2B), Sato (3B)
Team Reports
Yakult Rookie Yuhei Takai threw 50 pitches in the bullpen today, mostly fastballs. It has been five days since he last did that. He said that he isn't experiencing any pain, so he was able to throw comfortably....Outfielder Satoshi Kubota was sent down to the minors after today's game....Manager Tsutomu Wakamatsu says that Todd Betts hasn't been agressive enough in intrasquad games at the plate, but it turns out that Betts had heard that Japanese pitchers throw a lot of breaking balls. So he's been looking for and was taking fastballs because of it. Clearly, his adjustment process is still ongoing.
Daiei Catcher Kenji Johjima racked up three hits and six RBIs in an intrasquad game Sunday, including a big three run jack to left in his third at bat. If he can stay healthy, Johjima, who is still young, could have an absolute epic season.... Hayato Terahara had problems in that game, as he walked three and surrendered five hits and four runs in three innings. All of a sudden, Terahara has gone from possibly being the opening day starter to beginning the season in the minors....Terahara wasn't the only one to have a rough outing. Keisaburo Tanoue was rocked for four runs while Akichika Yamada saw three of his pitches during his one inning of work go over the hills and far away. Yamada started last season with several strong performances and then was nearly useless before going on the shelf with injury. The question now is, how useful will he be in 2003?
Kintetsu Team president Mitsuru Nagai said today that recalcitrant closer Akinori Otsuka won't be traded or released.
Nippon Ham Itsuki Shoda threw 45 pitches in the bullpen today and said he felt good.
Orix Roosevelt Brown had a hit in three at bats Sunday in an intrasquad game. Brown has had some discomfort in his groin muscle, but appeared as a DH and batted fifth anyway. "I'm at about 85%" he told the press.
Hideki Matsui Ben Rivera, a former Hanshin Tiger, will face Hideki Matsui for the first time in five years Tuesday during an intrasquad game. Against Rivera, Matsui was 0-2 in Japan. Rivera says that he is looking forward to playing with Matsui because he's a good hitter....A restaurant in Tampa called Sushiharu has created what they call a "Godzilla Roll" in honor of Matsui, according to Sports Nippon. One serving is $8.55 and has avocado, cream cheese, and eel that has been fried tempura style. Chef Mineo Shimada says that he would like Matsui to try it....Niigata-based Sato Foods, to both support Hideki Matsui's first major league campaign and get itself some free publicity, is sending a shipment of its products to Matsui in Tampa. Another outfit, Nagatanien, is dispatching a shipment of Miso soup to the outfielder and will send more of its line to him later on....Matsui's dad Masao and his coach at Seiryo High School, Satoshi Yamashita, will be visiting the Yankees camp beginning March 3rd....Don Mattingly worked with Matsui today and offered the following comment to Sankei Sports: "he can sure hit. Until he gets to know the pitchers, he'll maybe struggle for a bit, but [opposing pitchers] don't know him either"....After workouts, Derek Jeter invited Matsui over to his place to watch the Mike Tyson fight.
Miscellaneous Yankees hurler David Wells, who admits to having been "a flatliner" for two minutes at a Fort Lauderdale Hospital a few years ago thanks to ephedra, made the following asinine statement to the Hartford Courant on banning the substance: "We have a good union," Wells said. "It's not illegal. If they do that, they should ban coffee." For that David, you get the Moron of the Day Award.... Mariners closer Kazuhiro Sasaki says that he would like to clear 200 career saves in both Japan and in MLB. He needs another 81 to do that stateside. Sasaki's Japan career saves record will be eclipsed this season by Yakult closer Shingo Takatsu.... Dodgers southpaw Kazuhisa Ishii has said that he doesn't want to accompany the team on its trip to Mexico, instead favoring remaining in Vero Beach to work on getting in shape for the regular season. Ishii threw 64 pitches in the bullpen today, with 20 of those being the cutter and the changeup he is endeavoring to add to his arsenal.... Barry Bonds had his first batting practice session Wednesday and unloaded a real bomb, one that struck a moving car outside the ballpark....Tomo Ohka threw 30 pitches in batting practice today....Hideo Nomo will start the Dodgers' first exhibition game on the 27th....Ichiro Suzuki was asked by Hochi Sports if he felt that the burden of continuing his consecutive batting streak was lifted after losing it last season: "No. I was never conscious of defending [the streak]. So there was no hardship. I just take the attitude of trying to do my best every year."
Ichiro Looking for Longterm Deal
Sports Nippon is quoting Mariners CEO Howard Lincoln as saying that while he can't discuss when he might sit down with Ichiro Suzuki to discuss a new contract, he wants Ichiro to "play for us for a long time." There has already been some preliminary "dickering" between Lincoln and Tony Attanascio, Ichiro's agent. Attanascio has reportedly declared that Ichiro will use arbitration if that is what it takes to get the amount he is looking for for 2004. Lincoln stated that, "we have his rights for six years, but we would like [Ichiro] to be here not just for the next three years, but way beyond that."
In addition, the Japanese sports daily is quoting unnamed sources as revealing that Suzuki is looking for a 6-8 year deal at more than $10 million a season. And while Attanascio may resort to arbitration should it come to that, Ichiro would like to avoid it if he can. Consequently, Sports Nippon seems to think something will get done by mid-summer.
Today's Pictures
Roberto Petagine Sends Out a Souvenir
Shinji Shimoyama Gets Leverage in the Eighth Inning
Ichiro Feels at Home in Seattle
See story at: Seattle Times Article
Tuffy Rhodes on His Japanese Career
Note that there are two factual misrepresentations in this piece: one, Koichi Tabuchi is the chief batting instructor for the Hanshin Tigers. Secondly, most new foreign players, except for those with goot MLB track records (Kevin Millar, Bob Horner), only make about $250-300 thousand their first season in Japan. Anyway, on to the piece: Houston Chronicle Article
Replies: 1 Comment
You do a great job with this website. As a fan of Japanese baseball, I find it to be a great resource.
With regard to today's (2-24) translation of the Lotte-Hiroshima game recap, I wanted to comment on the "Red Hell" reference to the Carp. Having lived for a while in Hiroshima, I know the Japanese term "akaheru" is often used to refer to the club. It is my understanding that this reference is short for "Red Helmet" (which makes sense, given the uniform colors), not "Red Hell" (which may be where fans of the Carp have resided in recent years, based on the team's position in the standings).
Keep up the great work.
Posted by Yakyu Fan in NC @ 02/25/2003 02:07 PM EST
