Can the Tigers Do It?

If the Dragons are extremely charitable, yes, it's possible. The pennant is the Dragons' to lose not the Tigers' to win.

Agreed. And with the way the Dragons have been playing lately, you can see why I'm a bigger fan of Hanshin's opponent right now.

I don't know why, and I'm never a person to think these things will happen, but I actually think Hiroshima will help the Drags out tonight. That's based on completely nothing, and it will probably end up blowing up in my face, but that's what I've been feeling all day.

LOL, what bad timing - it's already 2-0 Tigers, and the Carp haven't even gotten up yet. So much for that. Now let's hope Powell implodes.

Keep up the faith Tigers fans. I believe!

And the Tigers roll into Nagoya Dome Friday!

Monday was an off day for the CL, Nakata went the distance for the Drags yesterday, today's game will probably be rained out, and Thursday's an off day, so their whole staff should be fresh. The Tigers will be in about the same shape, especially if they're rained out Thursday as well as today - which is looking likely right now. Should be a fun weekend.

The rain out actually helps the Dragons. Martinez and Satoh have been pitching poorly, so Martinez can get skipped this time around and Satoh will probably get pushed back to the Yokohama series. If they pitch poorly again, it's less of a big deal. Kawakami-Asakura-Yamamoto and let's roll!

And why do these rain outs always seem to help Hanshin? It seems like it's either the Tigers get rained out and Chunichi loses, or the Dragons get rained out and the Tigers win.

I blew half of that call, expecting a rain cancellation for all three CL games! The Tigers played and beat the Carp, using Igawa and five other pitchers in the win. So much for the rested Tigers bullpen idea.

Kawakami-Asakura-Yamamoto sounds good, but Kawakami didn't look good at all his last time out. Too many pitches up and way away from right-handed batters - I think that was the cutter, which was supposed to plop back into the strike zone, but it wasn't working.

Minoru Satoh was sent to the ni-gun, so he's out. Ryota Satoh and Kazuki Yoshimi have been called up, but they're both unknown quantities. Ochiai likes to put guys into games as soon as they're called up, but will he use these guys in pressure situations in a series of this magnitude?

By ni-gun, that's the equivalent of "minor leagues," right? Dang, I didn't think they'd demote Satoh, as bad as he had been pitching. (And for what it's worth, he has pitched better than Kawakami lately.)

Friday will decide the entire season, I think. There is no way the Dragons can afford to lose 4 straight games that Kawakami started - it would be like if Johan Santana lost 4 straight.

On Hanshin's side, who is going? I assume they're going to do everything they can to use Fukuhara in this series; he has pitched extremely well lately. Every clinching scenario that goes through my head has the Dragons and Tigers going 3-3 in their remaining head-to-head match ups.

And I hope the two guys they called up are saved for the Yokohama series. Better to put those guys to work against a team that's already mathematically out (Yokohama will be by the end of this weekend) than your only true threat to the title.

Yeah, the Satoh news was odd. I didn't see any word of injuries, so maybe it's just a breather. But now?

Don't put it all on Friday! Even if the Drags drop the first game, their pitchers are still fresh, while the Tigers used six pitchers again last night. Maybe that will come back to haunt them.

I think they brought Yoshimi up as a spot starter for the Sendai game against the Giants, which was then rained out.

Seems like the Drags always have to face Shimoyanagi, and I think Fukuhara and Andoh are likely rotation-wise. Just guessing, though.

Nikkan Sports, in today's newspaper (September 15 - paper version), predicts these match ups for the upcoming series:

15th: Shimoyanagi vs. Kawakami
16th: Fukuhara vs. Asakura
17th: Andoh vs. Yamamoto

Neither team has to go by this rotation, but that's what the "experts" think will happen.

Anyone! Just as long as it's not Igawa.

Fukuhara has to pitch this weekend. He's been their best pitcher by far.

And how about Inoue?! Both him and Ibata have answered the call for the Dragons. Now all the pressure is on Hanshin tomorrow. They have to win or face ending the series further behind than they were going in. Still, Hanshin has the guy best equipped to handle it on the mound. Should be a phenomenal game; one I'm going to be at.

Tonight's win would mark the first time since August 22 that the lead between Chunichi and Hanshin has widened!

Saturday is Fukuhara and then Andoh on Sunday. Both have been pitching very well of late.

- Both have been pitching very well of late.

Yes, but it's tough to beat a no-hitter. The Dragons have it in the bag. They just seem to lift their game against Hanshin. Especially at Nagoya Dome, which has become somewhat of a Tiger graveyard.

I was there!

Don't give up, Tigers fans. IMO, it's not over, but if the Dragons win tomorrow, then the Dragons can afford to get swept at Koshien in a couple weeks. But yeah, things look rough for the Tigers right now. No matter what happens tomorrow, they need to sweep the Dragons at Koshien.

I am planning to attend all three Tigers-Dragons games at Koshien next weekend. I will cheer with all of my might in the hopes that it will fire them up. I will be the crazy American in the first base Alps cheering like there's no tomorrow. I can't wait - it's going to be a total blast!

OK, VIR has the first base alps covered. I'll be the crazy American in the 3rd base alps with the Kanemoto jersey. Between the two of us hopefully we can give the Tigers enough encouragement. As long as they can go into the series still within 3-4 games, things could get very interesting. But I think anything less than a sweep will finish their season.

And I'll be the Dragons fan - sitting at home because the game will be sold out. (Actually, I'm going to Kyoto that weekend - I picked a bad weekend, didn't I?)

But as I see it, the Dragons want to give Hanshin the CL title. (Case in point: losing 2 of 3 to Yokohama.) The question is, will Hanshin take it?

(Note: Yes, I'm trying to reverse jinx the Dragons by saying they already lost tonight. It worked on another message board when I posted last week about how much Kawakami stinks - then he pitches a gem against Hanshin.)

Ticket shops and scalpers, my friend, always work out. I need tickets for the Saturday and Sunday games. I just won't wear my Dragons gear when buying them!

Same pitchers as last weekend I think. Will soon be watching Masa at Jingu tonight - Back to back no-hitters anyone?

And I'll be the crazy British guy in the 3rd base alps in the Dragons jersey - at least on Friday - I shouldn't be tricky to spot! See you there!

The Tigers are only 4 games back now. This will only make the games next weekend more exciting. There are definitely places to get tickets, still. When I was there last time, I used the ticket shops in Umeda, the basement of the Dai-ichi, Dai-ni, and Dai-san buildings. There are tons of shops, and you can get tickets from as low as 1,500 yen. I paid 2,500-3,500 per ticket for decent seats in the first base Alps back in July.