October 2nd Kubo v Chen - Running for cover

Bringing back a struggling pitcher as a tactic might not be said to be very wise. But this is what Mayumi attempted and it backfired. Kubo though didn't do as badly as expected after the first innings but that latter innings really did live down to expectations. Sakai-owner was at the game and left after it finished in rather a hurry. He was heckled by fans as he left - one thing that can be said with certainty is that the fans hate Mayumi and want him out. Sakai-owner can be under no illusions about this anymore. Gen over at Yakyu Baka has some interesting figures from a Sanspo survey. Scores

         1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 R H E
Dragons  4 0 0 0 2 0 1 0 0 7 9 0
Tigers   0 0 0 0 0 0 0 2 0 2 8 0

Starting lineups

Dragons
1. Araki (Short)
2. Ibata (Second)
3. Morino (Third)
4. Blanco (First)
5. Tanishige (Catcher)
6. Wada (Left)
7. Hirata (Right)
8. Ohshima (Centre)
9. Chen (Pitcher)

Tigers
1. Hirano (Centre)
2. Yamato (Second)
3. Toritani (Short)
4. Arai (Third)
5. Murton (Right)
6. Sekimoto (First)
7. Shunsuke (Left)
8. Komiyama (Catcher)
9. Kubo (Pitcher)

The game was over in the first innings - if it had been the BayStars grabbing a four run lead, one would expect them to squander it. However, this was the Dragons with Chen pitching. Chen hasn't been particularly hot this year but four of his eight victories have come against the Tigers. So it wasn't likely that he would lose. For some reason Kubo had problems with the third out. He got Araki to fly out and Ibata to ground out but then he walked Morino. Blanco singled to set up runners on first and second. Then Kubo walked Tanishige to load the bases. This wasn't particularly good pitching or even calling - this kind of situation shouldn't have been allowed to develop. It got worse - Wada singled to left bringing in two runs 2-0 Dragons, runners on first and second. Then Hirata also hit to left - a two base which brought in the two runners on base 4-0 Dragons, runner on second. Ohshima was deliberately walked to get at Chen who flew out to centre and end the innings. Tigers could of course hope that Chen would pitch poorly and indeed he did look shaky in the first innings. With two out Toritani hit to short where Araki has been having a forgettable series. Arai hit to centre to set up runners on first and third. Brazell was being rested which meant that Chen faced Murton. He grounded out to third and the innings and chance was gone. Kubo stayed on for Dragons second and did rather better having gotten the wildness out of his system. This innings he allowed no one on base. Chen did exactly the same in Tigers second also retiring the batters in order. In Dragons third Wada earned a two out walk but Hirata was unable to do anything and flew out to right to end the innings. Tigers third was quiet with a fly out to Tanishige being sandwiched between two watching strike outs. One was Kubo but the other was Yamato who should have known better.

Dragons fourth started with a walk to Ohshima - even though Kubo wasn't giving up runs he wasn't pitching well. He was bunted to second by Chen but both Araki and Ibata were having off days and Ohshima stayed on second as the innings ended. Tigers fourth saw their clean up clinically eliminated and no one reached base. Morino drove his first pitch to left for a single to lead off Dragons fifth. Blanco flew out to Komiyama and the next batter was Tanishige. He hit his first pitch high to left for a two run home run 6-0 Dragons. No wonder Tigers fans were angry. Wada hit left and then Hirata hit into a double play to end the innings. With the cushion of a six run lead Chen then unaccountably wobbled. Sekimoto had flown out to right but both Shunsuke and Komiyama hit into left field setting up runners on first and second. Uemoto (pinch hitting for Kubo) flew out to centre which moved Shunsuke round to third but then Hirano flew out to short in what has become a standard shot for him to end the innings. Several Tigers batters do swing far too early and fly out to the infield, another indication perhaps of poor batting coaching. Fujihara took over for Dragons sixth and walked Ohshima. Once again Chen bunted him to second and once again both Araki and Ibata failed to move him round and the innings was scoreless. Yamato led off Tigers sixth with a single. Toritani flew out to right and then Arai hit into a double play to end the innings. It was that kind of game.

Surprisingly Fujihara pitched Dragons seventh as well. This was clearly a mistake - another pitcher should have taken over. With one out Blanco walked and made second on Tanishige's ground out to the pitcher. Then Wada hit powerfully into right centre and Blanco was home 7-0 Dragons runner on second. Hirata struck out swinging to end the innings. Chen's last innings was the Tigers seventh and he was in control retiring the batters in order. A disappointing batting show by the Tigers. Tsutsui (who probably should have pitched the Dragons seventh) took over for their eighth. He got the first two outs but then gave up a hit to Araki who had decided to wake up. Ibata though was still in sleep mode and flew out to right to end the innings. Mise took over for Tigers eighth and gave them their first glimmer of light. Komiyama grounded out but Shimizu (pinch hitter) hit to centre. HIrano grounded out to third forcing out Shimizu but no double play resulted. Yamato hit a three base into the left centre sweet spot and Hirano made home 7-1 Dragons, runner on third. Toritani then hit to centre bringing in Yamato 7-2 Dragons. This brought a pitching change and Suzuki took the mound. He got Arai to ground out to short and end the innings. It had been a brief glimmer of hope and rapidly faded. Nishimura pitched Dragons ninth and retired the batters in order. Thus Tigers had a five run lead to overturn in their ninth. They couldn't do it though they started well with Murton hitting to left. The thing about Murton is that he has this long hitting streak but he isn't hitting that often with runners on. He should really be No. 1 leading off. Sekimoto walked and Tigers had runners on first and second with no outs. Ochiai switched pitchers and brought on Kobayashi. He got Shibata (pinch hitter) to ground out to short. This moved the other two round to second and third but the Dragons had runs to play with and weren't too worried. Brazell (pinch hitter) struck out swinging for the second out. Finally, Shimizu who was the replacement catcher flew out to centre to end the game. Dragons victory.

Tigers have a rest day and then a stretch of 13 games in a row followed by a one day rest and another seven games in a row. This is a result of some rotten weather and the imbecilic decision to delay the start of the season. Realistically they can only hope for a third place finish though this would be more than their current level. Changes do need to happen and Mayumi does need to go. Wholesale changes in the coaching team need to be made and Kanoh restored to catching duties. If Tigers are to recover I would envisage the entire first team coaching team being replaced - the taint of failure hangs over them too much.