Forgive me if this sounds completely ridiculous – and believe me, I think it does, too – but despite giving up 3 HRs to the worst team in the Central League at home, Naruse Yoshihisa was really, really damn good in tonight’s 4-1 loss to Yokohama. How can that be? Let’s look at the way …
Month: May 2009
Interleague Game 1: Return of the Baby-Faced Killer
Yokohama cruised up the Shuto B today to visit Chiba Marine Stadium for the opening game of the 2009 Interleague season. Looking every bit like an escapee from one of the many school groups visiting tonight who jumped the fence, grabbed a uniform, and took the mound – 19-year old Karakawa Yuki mowed down batter …
Game Report: Seibu vs Lotte, 5/17
Lotte entered today’s game with Seibu needing a win to decidedly wipe the stink of Friday’s game off the weekend. With high winds in the area and rain threatening to interrupt the game the Marines put away the Lions 8-5 to take the series 2 games to 1. With this win Lotte has also won …
Game Report: Seibu vs Lotte, 5/16
Friday’s first game in the Seibu-Lotte series was a washout (though for some reason various publications reported the score as ‘Seibu 18, Lotte 0’, which is a really odd thing to report for a rainout. I guess we’ll just look past it as if it never happened) so Saturday Lotte was looking to recover their …
Game Report: Seibu vs Lotte, 5/15
Lotte returned home on Friday to try to shake the bad taste of Thursday night’s collapse at the hands of Softbank. Mission accomplished! The bats came to life in a huge way tonight – 18 runs on 17 hits, a total destruction of all that is decent and good – as Lotte crushed the hopes …
Game Report: Lotte vs Softbank, 5/14
Ugh. It’s not my fault, I couldn’t have jinxed them. No really, I couldn’t have — I was watching the game recorded, not live. No, it can’t possibly be my fault, even though I started to write this post – with victory in mind, searching for pictures of brooms to represent ‘sweep’ – before the …
Game Report: Lotte vs Softbank, 5/13
Tonight the 3-game set with Softbank shifted from the Yahoo Dome to just down the road in Kitakyushu. Looking to build on last night’s tense 2-1 win, Lotte put on quite a show, pummeling the Hawks on their own turf 7-0. It was a multi-pronged attack, helped in great part by the new rule change …
Game Report: Lotte vs Softbank, 5/12
Break out the tasty beer – Lotte is no longer in the cellar (exclusively)! With a tight 2-1 victory over the Hawks tonight and a very weak Pa-league, the Marines have moved into a tie for 5th. A victory tomorrow and they could be in 3rd. How strange is that? On the heels of Karakawa’s …
Hail Karakawa!
I missed the game report from yesterday’s 6-2 loss to Rakuten, but I will include some notes/commentary in this post. I sat in front of the TV this afternoon with the game on, ready to write some about the last game and I just couldn’t. Why? Budding ace Karakawa was on the hill, and he’s …
Game Report: Rakuten vs Lotte, 5/8
Chiba Marine Stadium was awash with downpours tonight as Rakuten rolled into Makuhari for the first of a 3-game weekend set with Lotte. Tonight’s starting pitchers have had as dramatically different fortunes this year as their respective teams. Lotte starter Shimizu Naoyuki comes in with an 0-2 record and a 6.26 ERA, while young Rakuten …