Japanese Baseball: Hokkaido Nippon Ham Fighters Team Preview |
@ | By Glenn Davies,Tokyo. Manager Trey Hillman wasn't able to recreate the magic of 2004 last season as the Fighters slumped back to 5th place. In four years in charge he has been unable to make much ground and a repeat of 2005 may signal the end for Hillman. The only highlight of last year came in seeing the highly touted rookie Yu Darvish take the mound and get his career started. If Darvish can progress further in 2006 the fighters may finally have the ace they have been looking for. A return to the playoffs looks unlikely unless pitching does improve dramatically over its performance last season. |
Probable Lineup |
| 2005 Stats |
| | Pos. | Name | Avg. | HR | RBI | SB | | 1. | CF | Shinjo | .239 | 20 | 57 | 5 | | 2. | 2B | Kuniyuki Kimoto | .281 | 18 | 73 | 4 | | 3. | 3B | Michihiro Ogasawara | .282 | 37 | 92 | 2 | | 4. | DH | Fernando Seguinol | .288 | 31 | 86 | 1 | | 5. | RF | Atsunori Inaba | .271 | 15 | 54 | 3 | | | 6. | 1B | Jose Marcias | .254 | 1 | 13 | 4 | | 7. | LF | Tomochika Tsuboi | .309 | 2 | 19 | 5 | | 8. | C | Shinji Takahashi | .226 | 5 | 27 | 1 | | 9. | SS | Yukio Tanaka | .237 | 5 | 22 | 0 | Shinjo starts things off for the Fighters and many will be wondering why? His average continues to plummet and he still looks like he's trying to hit the long ball every at bat rather than get on base. Kimoto provided unexpected power last season and anything close to that this season will be welcome. Ogasawara the 'King of full Swing' as he's called in Japan continues to ravage opposition pitching and with Seguinol will provide the power threat in the middle order. Marcias arrives from the MLB Cubs and may make thelineup even more formidable. Tsuboi continues to hit well for average and provide solid defense in the outfield. The Fighters have no problem with power, hitting 165 HRs in '05 but must improve their dismal .254 average. |
| Probable Rotation |
| 2005 Stats |
| | Name | Games | W | L | Sv | ERA | | SP | Satoru Kanemura | 25 | 13 | 10 | 0 | 3.62 | | SP | Yu Darvish | 14 | 5 | 5 | 0 | 3.53 | | SP | Felix Diaz | 21 | 6 | 8 | 0 | 6.75 | | SP | Shintaro Eijiri | 17 | 6 | 4 | 0 | 5.79 | | SP | Itsuki Shoda | 12 | 2 | 6 | 0 | 6.27 | | SU | Bradley Thomas | 38 | 1 | 5 | 1 | 4.66 | | CP | Yukiya Yokoyama | 48 | 1 | 4 | 12 | 4.47 | Kanemura continues in the role of team ace in 2006 and looks likely to have a 5th winning season in a row. Kanemura matched his career high in wins last season with 13 and if Darvish can develop the Fighters will have a very respectable 1-2 in the rotation. Darvish handled all the hoopla regarding his rookie season well and went 5-5, the first time a Fighters rookie has won five games in 39 years. Diaz arrives form the MLB White Sox and has overpowering stuff - look for his strike out total to soar. Eijiri started well last season but was fatigued quickly and faded, he should perform better in '06. Shoda couldn't keep the ball out of the stands and a poor start may see him replaced by Corey Lee (9gms 3-4 3.42 in 2005). Australian Thomas performed well in relief and Yokoyama will be looking to get back to 2004 form when he saved 28. |
2005 Standings |
| Central | W | L | T | Pct% | GB | Pacific | W | L | T | Pct% | GB | | Hanshin Tigers | 87 | 54 | 5 | .617 | - | Chiba Lotte Marines | 84 | 49 | 3 | .632 | - | | Chunichi Dragons | 79 | 66 | 1 | .545 | 10.0 | Softbank Hawks | 89 | 45 | 2 | .664 | 4.5 | | Yokohama Bay Stars | 69 | 70 | 7 | .496 | 17.0 | Seibu Lions | 67 | 69 | 0 | .493 | 23.0 | | Yakult Swallows | 71 | 73 | 2 | .493 | 17.5 | Orix Buffaloes | 62 | 70 | 4 | .470 | 26.0 | | Yomiuri Giants | 62 | 80 | 4 | .437 | 25.5 | Nippon Ham Fighters | 62 | 71 | 3 | .466 | 26.5 | | Hiroshima Carp | 58 | 84 | 4 | .408 | 29.5 | Rakuten Eagles | 38 | 97 | 1 | .281 | 51.5 | |
