Pro Yakyu Game of the Week: 5/30
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Re: Pro Yakyu Game of the Week: 5/30
[ Author: westbaystars | Posted: May 30, 2004 9:50 PM
| YBS Fan
]
Well, not a close one this week. The Giants did what they do best, hit home runs. Kiyohara, with a pair of home runs this evening, bring his hit total on the season to 13, his home run total to 7, and his career hit total to 1,995 was just one of the big stars of the night. Read on for the details.
Note: Transcript posted as is, with no corrections for spelling, typos, or grammar.
TRANSCRIPT generated on: 2004/05/30 21:41
CHATROOM: Game of the Week/Yokohama vs. Yomiuri
MODERATORS: westbaystars
17:26: westbaystars- Welcome to the last Game of the Week for May. We've got the Giants hosting the BayStars at Tokyo Dome this evening.
17:27: westbaystars- The day has been beautiful and hot, but rain is expected this evening.
17:27: westbaystars- But it won't effect the game.
17:28: westbaystars- As we wait for game time, I've got laundry to take in (as the skies are turning from blue to gray) and dinner to eat.
17:28: westbaystars- I'll be back in a little bit.
17:55: westbaystars- OK, I'm back.
17:56: westbaystars- One person asked about Abe on the forum earlier today.
18:00: westbaystars- They're showing that he's leading 2 of the 3 Triple Crown categories.
18:00: westbaystars- ---
18:00: westbaystars- Top of First
18:00: westbaystars- ---
18:01: westbaystars- Kubo is throwing for the Giants.
18:01: westbaystars- His first pitch is taken for strike one.
18:02: westbaystars- Ishii Takuro, after working the count full, takes inside and low, ball four.
18:02: westbaystars- The BayStars' first batter of the game is on.
18:02: westbaystars- Uchikawa comes up next.
18:03: westbaystars- He grounds Kubo's first pitch to second.
18:03: westbaystars- The shovel to second gets Ishii.
18:03: westbaystars- The relay to first is over Kiyohara's head!
18:04: westbaystars- Uchikawa takes second on the error.
18:04: westbaystars- Next, Saeki wastes no time in hitting a line drive to right, moving Uchikawa to third.
18:05: westbaystars- That brings up Woods.
18:07: westbaystars- Woods goes down swinging for the second out of the inning.
18:07: westbaystars- Runners still at the corners.
18:07: westbaystars- Tamura is swinging at the first pitch, but fouls the ball off.
18:09: westbaystars- With two strikes (and a ball) on him, Tamura fouls off a couple.
18:09: westbaystars- Well, this should make Kubo work a little.
18:09: westbaystars- But he then takes strike three on the outside corner to retire the side.
18:09: westbaystars- Yokohama got a runner as far as third, but failed to score.
18:09: westbaystars- ---
18:10: westbaystars- Bottom of First
18:10: westbaystars- ---
18:11: westbaystars- Yoshimura's first pitch of the game is hit into the left field seats by Nishi.
18:12: westbaystars- Sorry, Yoshimi's first pitch.
18:12: westbaystars- The Giants take a 1-0 lead on one pitch.
18:13: westbaystars- Shimizu lifts Yoshimi's first offering to him up to left, but higher than deep.
18:13: westbaystars- Saeki in left has it easy for the first out.
18:13: westbaystars- That brings up Rhodes.
18:13: westbaystars- He's swinging at the first pitch.
18:14: westbaystars- But grounds right at Uchikawa at second, who throws to first.
18:14: westbaystars- Two down.
18:14: westbaystars- That brings up number four batting Takahashi Yoshinobu.
18:14: westbaystars- And he takes the first pitch for a strike.
18:15: westbaystars- The next pitch is taken, ball two.
18:15: westbaystars- I guess he wants Yoshimi to work a little.
18:15: westbaystars- The third pitch to Takahashi is grounded to Woods on the line just behind first bast.
18:15: westbaystars- He shovels to Yoshimi, and the side is retired on six pitches.
18:15: westbaystars- But the first pitch did all the damage as the Giants take a quick 1-0 lead.
18:16: westbaystars- ---
18:16: westbaystars- Top of Second
18:16: westbaystars- ---
18:17: westbaystars- Kinjyo leads off the second inning.
18:18: westbaystars- He grounds the ball up the middle.
18:18: westbaystars- Kubo missed his stab at the ball, but Nishi got it.
18:18: westbaystars- Throws to first, and we have one out.
18:18: westbaystars- Taneda comes up, and fakes a bunt while taking ball one.
18:19: westbaystars- The next pitch is called strike one, without the squaring to bunt.
18:20: westbaystars- After fouling one off to the right side, Taneda lines the next pitch right at Shimizu in left.
18:20: westbaystars- Two down.
18:20: westbaystars- Next up is Nakamura, getting catching duty this evening.
18:21: westbaystars- And he lifts a high fly to Shimizu in left to have the BayStars go down in order.
18:21: westbaystars- Going to the bottom of the second, Yokohama trails by a run.
18:21: westbaystars- ---
18:21: westbaystars- Bottom of Second
18:21: westbaystars- ---
18:22: westbaystars- Kiyohara leads off the second, with "7 to Go" boards all over the stands.
18:23: westbaystars- He's got 7 hits to go to reach the bit 2,000 and enter the Meikyu-Kai.
18:24: westbaystars- But he swings out on four pitches, the last being up high.
18:24: westbaystars- Still has 7 to go.
18:24: westbaystars- That brings up Kokubo.
18:25: westbaystars- Yoshimi then proceeds to throw four consecutive balls to Kokubo to walk him.
18:26: westbaystars- That's not good.
18:26: westbaystars- Walks have a tendency to hurt the 'Stars - too often followed with a home run.
18:26: westbaystars- And Abe certainly presents such a threat.
18:27: westbaystars- Unless, of course, Yoshimi hits him on the elbow pad, which he does.
18:27: westbaystars- That puts runners at first and second with one out and Nioka coming up.
18:29: westbaystars- Nioka ripped a 1-1 line drive up the first base side, but just foul. That would have been extra bases had it
18:29: westbaystars- touched down a little earlier.
18:29: westbaystars- The next pitch is watched, strike three.
18:30: westbaystars- That'll bring up the pitcher, Kubo.
18:30: westbaystars- They flashed a stat showing that Yoshimi has given up two home runs to opposing pitchers (this year?)
18:31: westbaystars- Kubo, though, is 1 for 12 so far this season.
18:32: westbaystars- But Yoshimi can't find the strike zone, going 1 strike, 3 balls to Kubo.
18:32: westbaystars- The next pitch, down the middle, called strike two. The count is full.
18:33: westbaystars- After a pick-off attempt at second, Yoshimi got Kubo swinging at a low-inside pitch for the final out.
18:34: westbaystars- Yoshimi had some control problems, but got out of the inning unscathed.
18:34: westbaystars- At the end of two complete, the Giants continue to lead 1-0.
18:34: westbaystars- ---
18:34: westbaystars- Top of Third
18:34: westbaystars- ---
18:35: westbaystars- Yoshimi leads off the third for Yokohama, and grounds a come-backer right back to Kubo.
18:35: westbaystars- He fields the ball cleanly, throws to first, and we have our first out.
18:36: westbaystars- Back to the top of the order in Ishii.
18:37: westbaystars- He grounds the ball to Kiyohara at first, who makes the play himself.
18:37: westbaystars- Two down.
18:38: westbaystars- Uchikawa grounds the ball to the left side.
18:38: westbaystars- Kokubo comes in to field the ball, throws to first, and the side is retired in order again.
18:39: westbaystars- That's two perfect innings in a row for Kubo.
18:39: westbaystars- ---
18:39: westbaystars- Bottom of Third
18:39: westbaystars- ---
18:40: westbaystars- The Giants start the third at the top of the order in Nishi.
18:41: westbaystars- This time Nishi takes the first pitch for a ball.
18:42: westbaystars- This time Nishi lines a 2-2 pitch up the middle for a base hit.
18:42: westbaystars- He's a tough out.
18:42: westbaystars- So, the Giants get their lead-off runner on.
18:42: westbaystars- That brings up Shimizu.
18:43: westbaystars- Shimizu hit two home runs back to back on Saturday.
18:46: westbaystars- And Yoshimi gets Shimizu swinging at a change-up that short bounds Nakamura for the first out.
18:46: westbaystars- Rhodes gives Yoshimi's first offering a ride, but foul.
18:46: westbaystars- No doubt about the distance on that line drive to the back wall of Tokyo Dome.
18:47: westbaystars- The next pitch is a line drive to right.
18:47: westbaystars- As the ball aproaches the wall, Nishi grounds second and heads to third.
18:47: westbaystars- He thought about home, but held up as the ball was returned.
18:48: westbaystars- Rhodes has a stand up double.
18:48: westbaystars- That puts runners at second and third with one out and Takahashi-kun coming to the plate.
18:48: westbaystars- First and third are playing in, short and second are playing their normal positions.
18:51: westbaystars- On his 1 strike, 3 ball pitch, Yoshimi throws the ball in the dirt, and it goes through Nakamura's legs.
18:51: westbaystars- Nishi comes in to score as Takahashi waves him in before taking first.
18:51: westbaystars- The Giants score their second run on the wild pitch.
18:51: westbaystars- That brings up Kiyohara.
18:52: westbaystars- Checking the stats page for the Giants, I see that 5 of his 11 hits this season are home runs.
18:52: westbaystars- As mentioned earlier, he has 7 to go to reach 2,000 career hits.
18:53: westbaystars- And he rockets a pitch to left-center.
18:54: westbaystars- Saeki and Tamura both turn and watch the ball sail into the left-center stands.
18:54: westbaystars- Home run!
18:54: westbaystars- That makes 6 of 12 hits this season as home runs.
18:54: westbaystars- And the three run shot puts the Giants up 5-0.
18:54: westbaystars- Kokubo comes up next.
18:56: westbaystars- Kokubo lines a full count pitch to left. Saeki comes in and makes a sliding catch for the second out of the inning.
18:56: westbaystars- Whew.
18:56: westbaystars- That brings up Abe.
18:57: westbaystars- He reaches out and lifts a fly ball to right-center.
18:57: westbaystars- Tamura has a long run, and just reaches out and grabs the ball for the final out of the inning.
18:58: westbaystars- But not before a wild pitch and Kiyohara's 1,994th career hit, a 3 run home run,
18:58: westbaystars- put the Giants up to a commanding 5-0 lead.
18:58: westbaystars- ---
18:58: westbaystars- Top of Fourth
18:58: westbaystars- ---
19:00: westbaystars- Saeki leads off the fourth fouling out to Kokubo running out to left.
19:00: westbaystars- It was a long run.
19:00: westbaystars- And Kokubo is down!
19:00: westbaystars- It looks like his knee gave out after catching the ball.
19:01: westbaystars- The trainer has gone out. And Ueda-coach lifts Kokubo onto his back and is carrying him back to the dugout.
19:01: westbaystars- He looks like he's in a great deal of pain.
19:02: westbaystars- Etoh takes a ball, throws a little bit, and will take over at third.
19:03: westbaystars- That brings up Woods.
19:05: westbaystars- Woods hits a come-backer that Kubo back hands.
19:05: westbaystars- He turns, and has Woods out half way up the line.
19:05: westbaystars- Two down.
19:05: westbaystars- Tamura is next.
19:06: westbaystars- Tamura grounds the ball to Etoh at third. Etoh, who just came in, one bounds the ball to Kiyohara at first.
19:06: westbaystars- Kiyo digs the tough hop out of the third, and the BayStars are retired in order yet again.
19:06: westbaystars- After that pinch in the first inning, Kubo's been flawless.
19:07: westbaystars- ---
19:07: westbaystars- Bottom of Fourth
19:07: westbaystars- ---
19:08: westbaystars- Nioka leads off the fourth for the Giants, Yoshimi still on the mound for Yokohama.
19:09: westbaystars- He lifts the ball high to the right side.
19:10: westbaystars- Uchikawa back peddals into shallow right field, then takes the ball in just in front of Kinjyoh for the out.
19:10: westbaystars- That brings up Kubo.
19:10: westbaystars- Yoshimi didn't mess around with him this time, offering up three straight pitches.
19:10: westbaystars- The third one was hit to Ishii Takuro at short, who fires to first, and we have two quick outs.
19:11: westbaystars- Next up in the ever illusive Nishi.
19:12: westbaystars- Yet, Yoshimi finally gets him, looking at strike three, to retire the side.
19:12: westbaystars- Three up, three down for the Giants this inning.
19:13: westbaystars- But the Giants continue to lead, 5-0.
19:13: westbaystars- ---
19:13: westbaystars- Top of Fifth
19:13: westbaystars- ---
19:14: westbaystars- Kinjyoh hopes to get something going for Yokohama in the fifth.
19:15: westbaystars- News on Kokubo: It was his right ancle, not knee, that was hurt.
19:15: westbaystars- And in the mean time, Kinjyoh gets a base hit up the middle to become the first 'Star runner since the first inning.
19:16: westbaystars- That brings up Taneda.
19:16: westbaystars- The color commentator says that he saw the replays a number of times and doesn't belive the news on Kokubo.
19:17: westbaystars- Something was wrong with his knee, according to him.
19:18: westbaystars- Taneda swings and misses a pitch outside in the dirt to go down on strikes.
19:18: westbaystars- One out, runner still at first.
19:18: westbaystars- Nakamura stands in.
19:19: westbaystars- Nakamura grounds the ball weakly up the first base side.
19:19: westbaystars- Kiyohara comes in and toward the mound to play the ball.
19:19: westbaystars- Kubo crosses by him to cover first.
19:20: westbaystars- First is the only place for a play, and they get the veteran catcher by a couple steps.
19:20: westbaystars- Two outs, runner now at first.
19:20: westbaystars- And pitcher Yoshimi comes up to the plate.
19:21: westbaystars- After two quick strikes, Kubo throws a fork ball that almost hit Yoshimi's feet, then went to the backstop.
19:21: westbaystars- Kinjyoh moves to third on the wild pitch.
19:21: westbaystars- The next pitch is grounded through the right side of the infield! Base hit!
19:22: westbaystars- Kinjyoh trots home for the BayStars' first run of the game.
19:22: westbaystars- Yoshimi helps himself, but still trails 1-5.
19:22: westbaystars- Ishii Takuro lays down the first offering from Kubo in a safety bunt attempt, but it's foul.
19:23: westbaystars- After taking ball one, Ishii grounds the ball to Nishi at second.
19:23: westbaystars- The throw to first is in time, and the side is retired.
19:23: westbaystars- But not before Yoshimi drove in a run to put Yokohama on the board, down 1-5.
19:23: westbaystars- ---
19:23: westbaystars- Bottom of Fifth
19:24: westbaystars- ---
19:26: westbaystars- Shimizu leads off for the Giants.
19:27: westbaystars- Shimizu grounds the ball back to Yoshima on one bound.
19:27: westbaystars- Yoshimi plays the ball well, throws to first, and Shimizu is out before he gets too far out of the box.
19:28: westbaystars- That brings up Rhodes, swinging at the first pitch yet again.
19:28: westbaystars- This time it's to center, but well within Tamura's range.
19:28: westbaystars- A few steps toward right, and we have two outs.
19:28: westbaystars- Takahashi comes up to the plate.
19:30: westbaystars- Kinjyoh had a long run to get to Takahashi's fly ball to foul territory in right.
19:31: westbaystars- But the ball hung up there a looooong time, giving the speedy Kinjyoh the opportunity to make the catch without a slide.
19:31: westbaystars- The Giants go down in order.
19:31: westbaystars- And at the end of five complete, the Giants continue to lead 5-1.
19:31: westbaystars- ---
19:31: westbaystars- Top of Sixth
19:31: westbaystars- ---
19:34: westbaystars- Uchikawa leads off the fifth for Yokohama.
19:35: westbaystars- He takes Kubo's full count offering for a ball, and the lead-off runner is on.
19:35: westbaystars- Time for a big inning!
19:35: westbaystars- Ikegaya-pitching coach heads out to have a talk with Kubo.
19:35: westbaystars- Kubo does a lod of positive head shaking, wanting to stay in.
19:36: westbaystars- But Idegaya-pitching coach isn't going away.
19:36: westbaystars- After a little more convicning that he's fine, Kubo gets Ikegawa to return to the dugout.
19:37: westbaystars- His first pitch to Saeki is called strike one. That should make Ikegaya feel better.
19:37: westbaystars- The next pitch, is called strike two.
19:37: westbaystars- Saeki wasn't sure about that, but...
19:38: westbaystars- Kokubo report: Kokubo isn't going to the hospital. He's just icing his leg.
19:38: westbaystars- Kubo then misses with two pitches to bring the count to 2-2.
19:39: westbaystars- The next pitch, inside, is called strike three as Saeki fails to hold up.
19:39: westbaystars- That's the first out of the inning, bringing up Woods.
19:40: westbaystars- Leading over the Giants' dugout railing, Abe makes a difficult catch for the second out of the inning.
19:41: westbaystars- That brings up Tamura (who I'm sure I've called Murata a number of times).
19:41: westbaystars- Kubo gets two quick strikes on Tamura, and the third pitch is swing on and missed, strike three.
19:42: westbaystars- Well, I like to see pitchers challenge batters on three pitches, but I'd have liked it more if Tamura had
19:42: westbaystars- made contact.
19:42: westbaystars- Oh well.
19:42: westbaystars- The BayStars got their lead-off runner on, but drew a blank after that.
19:42: westbaystars- ---
19:42: westbaystars- Bottom of Sixth
19:42: westbaystars- ---
19:43: westbaystars- Kiyohara comes up, with the number signs reduced to "6."
19:44: westbaystars- Kiyohara swings at the first pitch. Going, going, haittaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa!
19:44: westbaystars- Back to back home runs by Kiyohara put the Giants up 6-1 and reduce his count-down to 5 for 2,000 hits.
19:45: westbaystars- How many of his seven home runs this season have been hit against Yokohama? It sure seems like a good sized fraction.
19:46: westbaystars- He's also gone over 50% of his hits being home runs, 7 of 13 hits.
19:46: westbaystars- Etoh grounds out to short. One out.
19:46: westbaystars- Abe comes up next.
19:49: westbaystars- He fouls off a number of pitches and works the count full.
19:50: westbaystars- Yoshimi's 10th pitch to Abe is swung on and missed. Two outs.
19:50: westbaystars- Nioka follows.
19:51: westbaystars- He hits a blooping ball just right of center.
19:52: westbaystars- Tamura charges in, and just gets to the ball for the final out of the inning.
19:52: westbaystars- But it comes after Kiyohara's 1,995th career hit, his 7th home run of the season.
19:52: westbaystars- The Giants now lead 6-1.
19:52: westbaystars- ---
19:53: westbaystars- Top of Seventh
19:53: westbaystars- ---
19:53: westbaystars- Kinjyoh leads off for Yokohama.
19:54: westbaystars- Kubo is still on the mound for the Giants.
19:56: westbaystars- Kinjyoh pulls the ball up the first base line to Kiyohara.
19:56: westbaystars- It hits Kiyo's chest, bounces around a bit,
19:56: westbaystars- Kiyo finally gets a handle on the ball and takes it to the bag just before Kinjyoh.
19:56: westbaystars- One out.
19:56: westbaystars- That brings up Taneda.
19:58: westbaystars- He works the count full, then hits a one bounder back to Kubo.
19:58: westbaystars- Kubo back hands the ball, throws to first, and Taneda is out.
19:58: westbaystars- Two down.
19:59: westbaystars- That brings up Murata. Yes, it is Murata this time, pinch hitting for catcher Nakamura.
19:59: westbaystars- Yoshimi isn't even going to the on-deck circle.
19:59: westbaystars- But Murata gounds the ball to Kiyohara.
20:00: westbaystars- He plays the ball heading toward third, shovels to Kubo, and the side is retired in order yet again.
20:00: westbaystars- ---
20:00: westbaystars- Bottom of Seventh
20:00: westbaystars- ---
20:02: westbaystars- Denney comes in to pitch for the BayStars. Aikawa comes in to catch, and someone takes the place of Taneda at third.
20:03: westbaystars- Kubo stands way to the back of the batter's box, and takes three strikes in a row for the first out.
20:03: westbaystars- Kubo make it pretty clear that he had no plans on swinging.
20:03: westbaystars- First out recieved as a gift.
20:03: westbaystars- Nishi, though, lifts Denny's first pitch deep to left.
20:04: westbaystars- Saeki runs over, jumps, haitta.
20:04: westbaystars- The ball just clears the wall and goes into the BayStars' side of the outfield stands.
20:04: westbaystars- That's Nishi's second home run of the game, putting the Giants up 7-1.
20:05: westbaystars- That brings up Shimizu, who had two home runs yesterday.
20:05: westbaystars- And he takes a pitch just above his right elbow.
20:05: westbaystars- Shimizu waves off the trainer coming out to look at him and takes first base.
20:06: westbaystars- That brings up Rhodes, who is swinging on the first pitch again.
20:06: westbaystars- This time, though, he misses the ball and it's strike one.
20:06: westbaystars- The second pitch, the upper swing, whiffed. Strike two.
20:07: westbaystars- The third offering to Rhodes is fouled off to the left side.
20:08: westbaystars- After taking ball one, Rhodes grounds the ball through the hole on the right side.
20:08: westbaystars- Or it looked like it was through. Uchikawa grabs the ball way over on the right side.
20:09: westbaystars- He throws to first and gets the force.
20:09: westbaystars- Shimizu moves to second on the play.
20:09: westbaystars- Takahashi comes up next.
20:12: westbaystars- And Denny gets him swinging at a change-up outside.
20:12: westbaystars- That retires the side.
20:12: westbaystars- But not before Nishi hit his second home run of the game to put the Giants up 7-1.
20:12: westbaystars- ---
20:12: westbaystars- Top of Eighth
20:12: westbaystars- ---
20:14: westbaystars- Kubo is still on the mound.
20:14: westbaystars- He faces pinch hitter Tanaka.
20:14: westbaystars- He's small, but speedy. Tanaka usually enters games as a pinch runner.
20:15: westbaystars- But he gets his first hit of the season, a come-backer that whizzes by Kubo's ear.
20:16: westbaystars- Oooo. On the replay it looks like the ball might have slightly deflected off his left arm. But nobody seems concerned.
20:16: westbaystars- That brings us to the top of the order in Ishii Takuro.
20:17: westbaystars- *** Hanshin 0 - 0 Chunichi at Nagoya Dome after six complete.
20:17: westbaystars- Ishii grounds the ball through the right side and into right field.
20:18: westbaystars- BayStars now have runners at first and second with nobody out.
20:18: westbaystars- This is our biggest chance since the first.
20:18: westbaystars- Uchikawa comes up.
20:19: westbaystars- Action is up in the Giants' bullpen.
20:22: westbaystars- After being in the hole two strikes, no balls, Uchikawa works the count full.
20:22: westbaystars- The nineth pitch to Uchikawa is lined into right, base hit!
20:23: westbaystars- The ball gets to Takahashi too fast for the speedy Tanaka to score, so we've got bases loaded.
20:23: westbaystars- And nobody out.
20:23: westbaystars- That brings Ikegaya-pitching coach out to the mound for the second time this game.
20:23: westbaystars- He just has a couple of words to say, then goes back.
20:24: westbaystars- Saeki takes his place in the left handed batter's box, and takes strike one.
20:24: westbaystars- The next pitch is taken outside, 1-1.
20:25: westbaystars- The third pitch is lifted to the left side and high.
20:25: westbaystars- Foul? Fair? Etoh camps in foul territory, then moves accross the line to take the ball in fair,
20:25: westbaystars- a few meters behind the third base bag.
20:26: westbaystars- Infield fly rule, batter's out.
20:26: westbaystars- Woods swings and misses big at a 108 kph change up.
20:26: westbaystars- The next pitch is a cut ball, taken on the lower part of down the middle, strike one.
20:26: westbaystars- Sorry, strike two.
20:27: westbaystars- The third pitchi is high, ball one.
20:27: westbaystars- The fourth pitch is down low, 2-2.
20:27: westbaystars- The radio color commentator says that Woods has trouble with the cut ball.
20:28: westbaystars- But what ever Kubo just through, Woods got good wood on it and ripped it up the middle for a base hit.
20:28: westbaystars- Tanaka scores from third, and Ishii is in right behind him from second.
20:28: westbaystars- Two run base hit to center.
20:29: westbaystars- That knocks the Giants' lead down to four, 7-3.
20:29: westbaystars- Tamura steps in with one out and runners at first and second.
20:29: westbaystars- I've been impressed with Woods hitting in the clutch this year.
20:29: westbaystars- Tamura lifts the ball to center.
20:29: westbaystars- Rhodes comes in and just get the ball for the second out.
20:30: westbaystars- Ah.
20:30: westbaystars- That'll bring up Kinjyoh.
20:32: habs- greetings.
20:32: westbaystars- Kinjyoh lifts a high fly to center.
20:32: westbaystars- Rhodes has a long run, but it hangs up there long enough that it wasn't a problem.
20:32: westbaystars- The side is retired.
20:32: westbaystars- But not before the BayStars score a pair of runs to come to within four.
20:33: westbaystars- Going to the bottom of the Eighth, they trail 3-7.
20:33: westbaystars- ---
20:33: westbaystars- Bottom of Eighth
20:33: westbaystars- ---
20:33: westbaystars- Hi, Habs-san. Hope you're having a good morning.
20:33: westbaystars- This game, as you can tell, has been all Giants.
20:34: westbaystars- Nishi led off the Giants' half of the first with a first pitch home run. That set the pace.
20:34: westbaystars- He hit another solo shot in the 7th, and Kiyohara hit a 3-run shot in the 3rd and a solo shot in the 6th.
20:35: westbaystars- A past ball (just before Kiyohara came to bat) accounted for the other Giant run.
20:35: westbaystars- Yamada takes the mound for Yokohama this inning, and faces Kiyohara.
20:35: westbaystars- The "5" boards are out.
20:35: westbaystars- And Kiyohara pulls the fans out of their seats again!
20:36: habs- I see Pete pitched yesterday and took the lost also.
20:36: westbaystars- The ball is lifted to left, but not far enough this time.
20:36: westbaystars- Kiyohara smiles as he aproches second. Three home runs in a row would be too much to ask for.
20:37: westbaystars- Yea, as I said, I don't understand why he was pulled after four for a pinch hitter when Yamashita-kantoku
20:37: westbaystars- waited too long to pull Mullan the day before.
20:37: westbaystars- Actually, that might have been the reason - to make up for his miss the day before.
20:37: westbaystars- Etoh goes down on strikes, two out.
20:38: westbaystars- I didn't get to watch the game yesterday, though, as I was at Yokosuka Stadium watch the SeaRex (Yokohama's
20:38: westbaystars- farm team).
20:38: westbaystars- Abe come up to bat.
20:39: westbaystars- At least we won that one, a sayonara victory in the 10th inning against the Lions.
20:40: westbaystars- Abe lines the ball toward right.
20:40: westbaystars- But Uchikawa makes a great jump to pull the ball in for the final out of the inning.
20:40: habs- Do you get a chance to go to any baystar games or is Searex stadium close to you.
20:41: westbaystars- So, we've finished eighth complete, and the Giants lead 7-3.
20:41: westbaystars- ---
20:41: westbaystars- Top of Nineth
20:41: westbaystars- ---
20:41: basebill- Westbay-san, do they use the DH in ni-gun?
20:42: westbaystars- Not at Yokosuka Stadium, since it's a Central League child park.
20:43: westbaystars- Aikawa comes up to bat for the first time this game.
20:43: westbaystars- Randell takes the mound for the Giants.
20:43: westbaystars- Sorry, that's Randel.
20:43: basebill- so, they alternate, depending on the home team...
20:44: habs- This game seems to be moving right along.
20:44: westbaystars- That's right.
20:44: basebill- thank you
20:44: westbaystars- Randel gets Aikawa swinging, strike three.
20:44: westbaystars- The pitch was down the middle.
20:45: westbaystars- Murata, who pitch hit for starting catcher Nakamura earlier and stayed in at third comes up.
20:46: westbaystars- But Murata fouls out to Abe behind home plate just in front of the backstop.
20:46: westbaystars- The 'Stars are down to their final out.
20:47: westbaystars- * Note: That's right to the best of my knowledge. I've only watched SeaRex farm games.
20:47: habs- A lot happens with 2 outs.
20:47: westbaystars- * As it's a short walk from home.
20:47: westbaystars- Randel gets two quick strikes before missing for ball one.
20:47: westbaystars- He's challenging them.
20:47: westbaystars- Ah, but Habs-san has it right!
20:48: westbaystars- Tanaka gets his second hit of the evening, the ball lining over Nishi's jumping glove.
20:48: westbaystars- The top of the order in Ishii comes up.
20:48: basebill- it makes sense, they do it that way for inter-league play here in the states
20:49: westbaystars- Home field rules, desho.
20:50: westbaystars- The pitch evens up at 2-2.
20:50: westbaystars- The next pitch, taken ball three. Full count.
20:50: westbaystars- The payoff pitch, is swung on and missed, strike threer!
20:51: westbaystars- The game is over.
20:51: westbaystars- The Giants win 7-3.
20:51: westbaystars- Kiyohara hit two home runs, bringing his career hit count to 1,995.
20:52: westbaystars- Kubo and Kiyohara are announced as the heros of the game.
20:52: westbaystars- Along with Nishi, who also hit a pair of home runs.
20:53: westbaystars- It was Nishi's first pitch home run in the first that pretty much set the mood for the game.
20:53: habs- Giants seem to be hitting a lot of home runs, why is that.
20:53: westbaystars- They've got a all-number-four batting lineup.
20:54: westbaystars- Other than Takahashi, Abe, and Nishi, their lineup is a collection of number four batters who came to the Giants as
20:54: habs- Did the giants hit any home runs yesterday?
20:54: westbaystars- free agents (or given away as in Kokubo's case).
20:54: basebill- unless their pitching goes completely flat, I don't see how they can lose..
20:55: westbaystars- Four. Three against Pets, if I recall correctly.
20:55: westbaystars- Sorry, Pets should be Pete. Typing getting bad.
20:56: westbaystars- The Giants were expected to run away with the Central League with this lineup.
20:56: westbaystars- At one point they were on pace for a last place finish with 300+ home runs.
20:58: westbaystars- Have a look at http://www.geocities.com/s_borisov/jb2004/clstandings.html
20:58: basebill- they shouldwin it all, if they don't some people won't be happy
20:58: basebill- I will not be among those people however..
20:58: westbaystars- It shows that the Giants had 99 home runs going into the game, giving up 71
20:59: westbaystars- I was sure that Yokohama had given up more. It sure seems like everyone is teeing off of the 'Stars.
20:59: westbaystars-
21:00: basebill- the Swallows pitching has been pretty shaky as well
21:01: westbaystars- Looks like they've given up the most home runs. That surprised me.
21:01: habs- SEEMS LIKE IT
21:01: westbaystars- I've always though Yakult's staff was pretty solid.
21:02: basebill- I had some hope for the Swallows this spring but it doesn't look too good now
21:03: westbaystars- Still, they're only 3.5 games out in last place.
21:03: basebill- I am pleased to see my all-time favorite NPB player, Furuta-san, is swinging the bat well
21:04: westbaystars- Furuta seems to go through ups and down. He's on the up swing.
21:04: westbaystars- Just when I think maybe it's time for him to retire, he starts doing very well.
21:04: westbaystars- I'm expecting him to take over the team as manager any year now.
21:04: basebill- At his age, catching so many games, he is amazing
21:05: westbaystars- It is. And when he's heathy, the Swallows are healthy.
21:06: westbaystars- If you look at the years that Yakult won the pennant, Furuta played pretty much every game.
21:06: westbaystars- Those that they finished in B-Class, Furuta missed some big chunks of the season.
21:06: basebill- Yes, but I don't see anyone topping the Giants this year
21:07: westbaystars- Hara showed that he can take a team with the best talent money can buy and not win.
21:07: basebill- Any one of those hitters can carry a team for a week or so, but it always does come down to pitching...
21:07: westbaystars- And when Horiuchi was announced as the new manager, his entire staff quit.
21:07: westbaystars- That doesn't instill confidence.
21:08: westbaystars- And handling the pitchers. That's what Furuta is the best at.
21:08: basebill- That is true
21:08: westbaystars- Any why Yakult stuggles when Furuta is down.
21:08: habs- MARLINS OVER HERE LAST YEAR SHOWED PITCHING WINS GAMES
21:09: westbaystars- Was the catcher given any credit to that?
21:09: basebill- absolutely
21:09: westbaystars- Was it a single catcher the whole year, or a variety of catcher?
21:10: habs- NO> HE BECAME A FREE AGENT AND WAS NOT RESIGNED
21:10: basebill- Ivan Rodriguez handled the staff
21:10: westbaystars- And I understand that the pitching isn't as good this season.
21:10: basebill- he left for Deyroit in the off-season
21:11: westbaystars- How is Detroit doing pitching wise?
21:12: basebill- a lot of younger guys, but they are doing much better this year than last
21:12: westbaystars- The Giants' Abe, while being praised for his bat, has been taking a lot of knocks for how he calls games.
21:13: westbaystars- See, just as with Yakult, a team's pitching staff can be made or broken with the catcher.
21:14: westbaystars- That's what I've learned watching Furuta over the years.
21:14: basebill- I believe it completely
21:15: basebill- Furuta has always struck me as a very intelligent ballplayer
21:15: basebill- I believe he will be an excellant manager
21:16: westbaystars- Nomura-kantoku groomed him to be so.
21:17: basebill- Ex-catchers have had a lot of success as managers
21:18: westbaystars- Soon it'll be Furuta's turn to pass on that knowledge. But not if he keeps having such good seasons.
21:18: westbaystars- Nomura and Mori are the two who come to mind right away.
21:18: westbaystars- I'd looked it up for someone once in the "Ask the Commish" section, I think.
21:19: basebill- There have been many in MLB over the decades
21:20: westbaystars- If I remember correctly, someone had wanted to proove that catchers made bad managers, based
21:20: westbaystars- on one in MLB.
21:20: westbaystars- I told the person that that wasn't what the data showed in Japan.
21:21: basebill- I saw that, however mgrs. w/l pct are skewed by the fact Connie Mack managed for 50 yrs. with some pretty awful teams
21:22: westbaystars- Well, look who Nomura managed. Nobody, including Yakult's own president, expected Yakult to win.
21:22: basebill- Joe Torre, Ralph Houk, Al Lopez, Jim Leyland all had great success
21:23: westbaystars- (It's been published quite often that Yakult's president, at the time, was a huge Giant fan.)
21:23: basebill- the '90s were a great decade for the Swallows
21:23: westbaystars- They were, especially under Nomura.
21:24: basebill- Did Nomura-san get any credit for the Tigers resurgence, even though he was no longer at the helm?
21:24: westbaystars- However, my main complaint with Nomura was that he killed his pitchers one year, making them require a year off.
21:24: westbaystars- None that I'd heard of. Hoshino-kantoku got all the credit.
21:25: westbaystars- Personally, I didn't think Nomura-kantoku really deserved any credit.
21:25: westbaystars- He seemed to be burnt out when he accepted the job.
21:25: westbaystars- Then didn't appear to have his heart in it.
21:25: basebill- The Tigers were pretty BAD under him
21:26: westbaystars- I know, no real evidence to my statements. That's just my impressions from what I'd seen of him in
21:26: westbaystars- press conferences and in the dugout.
21:27: basebill- Considering everything I read, I believe your opinion to be accurate
21:28: westbaystars- When he started working as manager for, what is it, the ammeter team he's now managing?
21:28: westbaystars- Well, when he took over there, he seemed to have gotten his second wind.
21:29: westbaystars- I think he's enjoying his job more now then when he was with Hanshin.
21:30: basebill- Maybe the oppurtunity to instruct has given him new life
21:30: westbaystars- I think it has. He took making Yakult into a winning team as a personal challenge, and enjoyed it.
21:31: westbaystars- He didn't seem to take the Hanshin job with the same enthusiasm.
21:31: westbaystars- He still had to prove himself in the Central League with Yakult.
21:31: westbaystars- With Hanshin, he was expected to be a miricle worker.
21:32: westbaystars- Expectations were too high. And he'd already done all the proving he needed to.
21:32: basebill- If you don't have the talent to start with there can be no miracles..
21:33: westbaystars- I think the main problem was with the front office and fans with high expectations.
21:33: westbaystars- How to deal with Shinjo was another touchy point.
21:34: basebill- I don't think it hurt the Tigers when Shinjo left
21:34: westbaystars- I'd like to see some of the Kansai crowd join in on this one. I've only got the viewpoint from the Tokyo area.
21:35: westbaystars- Definately not. His taking the MLB job surprised me. And he's really impressed me in a number of ways since then.
21:36: westbaystars- But at the time, Shinjo had to go before Hanshin would be able to morph into something else.
21:36: westbaystars- Anything else.
21:36: basebill- he's a unique individual, that is for sure
21:37: westbaystars- Hi, guest. Game ended about an hour ago. Giants won 7-3.
21:37: basebill- Well, I've got to go, thank you so much Westbay-san, you do us all a great service
21:37: basebill- and I for one really appreciate it
21:37: westbaystars- Glad you could join in before the end of the game this time.
21:38: westbaystars- I saw you just minutes before signing off last week.
21:38: westbaystars- And speaking of signing off, if there aren't any further questions, it's about that time.
21:39: basebill- Yes I had stayed up late watching the Yahoo stream of the Lions-Hawks game
21:39: basebill- Saito was really saharp that night
21:40: westbaystars- Ah. I really don't pay enough attention to the Pacific League.
21:40: habs- I ENJOYED TODAY CONVERSATION> SEE YOU NEXT WEEK
21:40: westbaystars- I'll try to do a Pa-League game the first time one's on a Sunday evening.
21:40: basebill- I love all the leagues, every where!!
21:40: westbaystars- Enjoyed having you.
21:40: westbaystars- Until next week.
21:40: westbaystars- Take care all.
21:41: habs- YOU DID A GOOD JOB WESTBAYSTAR
21:41: basebill- Take care Michael, domo
Note: Transcript posted as is, with no corrections for spelling, typos, or grammar.
TRANSCRIPT generated on: 2004/05/30 21:41
CHATROOM: Game of the Week/Yokohama vs. Yomiuri
MODERATORS: westbaystars
17:26: westbaystars- Welcome to the last Game of the Week for May. We've got the Giants hosting the BayStars at Tokyo Dome this evening.
17:27: westbaystars- The day has been beautiful and hot, but rain is expected this evening.
17:27: westbaystars- But it won't effect the game.
17:28: westbaystars- As we wait for game time, I've got laundry to take in (as the skies are turning from blue to gray) and dinner to eat.
17:28: westbaystars- I'll be back in a little bit.
17:55: westbaystars- OK, I'm back.
17:56: westbaystars- One person asked about Abe on the forum earlier today.
18:00: westbaystars- They're showing that he's leading 2 of the 3 Triple Crown categories.
18:00: westbaystars- ---
18:00: westbaystars- Top of First
18:00: westbaystars- ---
18:01: westbaystars- Kubo is throwing for the Giants.
18:01: westbaystars- His first pitch is taken for strike one.
18:02: westbaystars- Ishii Takuro, after working the count full, takes inside and low, ball four.
18:02: westbaystars- The BayStars' first batter of the game is on.
18:02: westbaystars- Uchikawa comes up next.
18:03: westbaystars- He grounds Kubo's first pitch to second.
18:03: westbaystars- The shovel to second gets Ishii.
18:03: westbaystars- The relay to first is over Kiyohara's head!
18:04: westbaystars- Uchikawa takes second on the error.
18:04: westbaystars- Next, Saeki wastes no time in hitting a line drive to right, moving Uchikawa to third.
18:05: westbaystars- That brings up Woods.
18:07: westbaystars- Woods goes down swinging for the second out of the inning.
18:07: westbaystars- Runners still at the corners.
18:07: westbaystars- Tamura is swinging at the first pitch, but fouls the ball off.
18:09: westbaystars- With two strikes (and a ball) on him, Tamura fouls off a couple.
18:09: westbaystars- Well, this should make Kubo work a little.
18:09: westbaystars- But he then takes strike three on the outside corner to retire the side.
18:09: westbaystars- Yokohama got a runner as far as third, but failed to score.
18:09: westbaystars- ---
18:10: westbaystars- Bottom of First
18:10: westbaystars- ---
18:11: westbaystars- Yoshimura's first pitch of the game is hit into the left field seats by Nishi.
18:12: westbaystars- Sorry, Yoshimi's first pitch.
18:12: westbaystars- The Giants take a 1-0 lead on one pitch.
18:13: westbaystars- Shimizu lifts Yoshimi's first offering to him up to left, but higher than deep.
18:13: westbaystars- Saeki in left has it easy for the first out.
18:13: westbaystars- That brings up Rhodes.
18:13: westbaystars- He's swinging at the first pitch.
18:14: westbaystars- But grounds right at Uchikawa at second, who throws to first.
18:14: westbaystars- Two down.
18:14: westbaystars- That brings up number four batting Takahashi Yoshinobu.
18:14: westbaystars- And he takes the first pitch for a strike.
18:15: westbaystars- The next pitch is taken, ball two.
18:15: westbaystars- I guess he wants Yoshimi to work a little.
18:15: westbaystars- The third pitch to Takahashi is grounded to Woods on the line just behind first bast.
18:15: westbaystars- He shovels to Yoshimi, and the side is retired on six pitches.
18:15: westbaystars- But the first pitch did all the damage as the Giants take a quick 1-0 lead.
18:16: westbaystars- ---
18:16: westbaystars- Top of Second
18:16: westbaystars- ---
18:17: westbaystars- Kinjyo leads off the second inning.
18:18: westbaystars- He grounds the ball up the middle.
18:18: westbaystars- Kubo missed his stab at the ball, but Nishi got it.
18:18: westbaystars- Throws to first, and we have one out.
18:18: westbaystars- Taneda comes up, and fakes a bunt while taking ball one.
18:19: westbaystars- The next pitch is called strike one, without the squaring to bunt.
18:20: westbaystars- After fouling one off to the right side, Taneda lines the next pitch right at Shimizu in left.
18:20: westbaystars- Two down.
18:20: westbaystars- Next up is Nakamura, getting catching duty this evening.
18:21: westbaystars- And he lifts a high fly to Shimizu in left to have the BayStars go down in order.
18:21: westbaystars- Going to the bottom of the second, Yokohama trails by a run.
18:21: westbaystars- ---
18:21: westbaystars- Bottom of Second
18:21: westbaystars- ---
18:22: westbaystars- Kiyohara leads off the second, with "7 to Go" boards all over the stands.
18:23: westbaystars- He's got 7 hits to go to reach the bit 2,000 and enter the Meikyu-Kai.
18:24: westbaystars- But he swings out on four pitches, the last being up high.
18:24: westbaystars- Still has 7 to go.
18:24: westbaystars- That brings up Kokubo.
18:25: westbaystars- Yoshimi then proceeds to throw four consecutive balls to Kokubo to walk him.
18:26: westbaystars- That's not good.
18:26: westbaystars- Walks have a tendency to hurt the 'Stars - too often followed with a home run.
18:26: westbaystars- And Abe certainly presents such a threat.
18:27: westbaystars- Unless, of course, Yoshimi hits him on the elbow pad, which he does.
18:27: westbaystars- That puts runners at first and second with one out and Nioka coming up.
18:29: westbaystars- Nioka ripped a 1-1 line drive up the first base side, but just foul. That would have been extra bases had it
18:29: westbaystars- touched down a little earlier.
18:29: westbaystars- The next pitch is watched, strike three.
18:30: westbaystars- That'll bring up the pitcher, Kubo.
18:30: westbaystars- They flashed a stat showing that Yoshimi has given up two home runs to opposing pitchers (this year?)
18:31: westbaystars- Kubo, though, is 1 for 12 so far this season.
18:32: westbaystars- But Yoshimi can't find the strike zone, going 1 strike, 3 balls to Kubo.
18:32: westbaystars- The next pitch, down the middle, called strike two. The count is full.
18:33: westbaystars- After a pick-off attempt at second, Yoshimi got Kubo swinging at a low-inside pitch for the final out.
18:34: westbaystars- Yoshimi had some control problems, but got out of the inning unscathed.
18:34: westbaystars- At the end of two complete, the Giants continue to lead 1-0.
18:34: westbaystars- ---
18:34: westbaystars- Top of Third
18:34: westbaystars- ---
18:35: westbaystars- Yoshimi leads off the third for Yokohama, and grounds a come-backer right back to Kubo.
18:35: westbaystars- He fields the ball cleanly, throws to first, and we have our first out.
18:36: westbaystars- Back to the top of the order in Ishii.
18:37: westbaystars- He grounds the ball to Kiyohara at first, who makes the play himself.
18:37: westbaystars- Two down.
18:38: westbaystars- Uchikawa grounds the ball to the left side.
18:38: westbaystars- Kokubo comes in to field the ball, throws to first, and the side is retired in order again.
18:39: westbaystars- That's two perfect innings in a row for Kubo.
18:39: westbaystars- ---
18:39: westbaystars- Bottom of Third
18:39: westbaystars- ---
18:40: westbaystars- The Giants start the third at the top of the order in Nishi.
18:41: westbaystars- This time Nishi takes the first pitch for a ball.
18:42: westbaystars- This time Nishi lines a 2-2 pitch up the middle for a base hit.
18:42: westbaystars- He's a tough out.
18:42: westbaystars- So, the Giants get their lead-off runner on.
18:42: westbaystars- That brings up Shimizu.
18:43: westbaystars- Shimizu hit two home runs back to back on Saturday.
18:46: westbaystars- And Yoshimi gets Shimizu swinging at a change-up that short bounds Nakamura for the first out.
18:46: westbaystars- Rhodes gives Yoshimi's first offering a ride, but foul.
18:46: westbaystars- No doubt about the distance on that line drive to the back wall of Tokyo Dome.
18:47: westbaystars- The next pitch is a line drive to right.
18:47: westbaystars- As the ball aproaches the wall, Nishi grounds second and heads to third.
18:47: westbaystars- He thought about home, but held up as the ball was returned.
18:48: westbaystars- Rhodes has a stand up double.
18:48: westbaystars- That puts runners at second and third with one out and Takahashi-kun coming to the plate.
18:48: westbaystars- First and third are playing in, short and second are playing their normal positions.
18:51: westbaystars- On his 1 strike, 3 ball pitch, Yoshimi throws the ball in the dirt, and it goes through Nakamura's legs.
18:51: westbaystars- Nishi comes in to score as Takahashi waves him in before taking first.
18:51: westbaystars- The Giants score their second run on the wild pitch.
18:51: westbaystars- That brings up Kiyohara.
18:52: westbaystars- Checking the stats page for the Giants, I see that 5 of his 11 hits this season are home runs.
18:52: westbaystars- As mentioned earlier, he has 7 to go to reach 2,000 career hits.
18:53: westbaystars- And he rockets a pitch to left-center.
18:54: westbaystars- Saeki and Tamura both turn and watch the ball sail into the left-center stands.
18:54: westbaystars- Home run!
18:54: westbaystars- That makes 6 of 12 hits this season as home runs.
18:54: westbaystars- And the three run shot puts the Giants up 5-0.
18:54: westbaystars- Kokubo comes up next.
18:56: westbaystars- Kokubo lines a full count pitch to left. Saeki comes in and makes a sliding catch for the second out of the inning.
18:56: westbaystars- Whew.
18:56: westbaystars- That brings up Abe.
18:57: westbaystars- He reaches out and lifts a fly ball to right-center.
18:57: westbaystars- Tamura has a long run, and just reaches out and grabs the ball for the final out of the inning.
18:58: westbaystars- But not before a wild pitch and Kiyohara's 1,994th career hit, a 3 run home run,
18:58: westbaystars- put the Giants up to a commanding 5-0 lead.
18:58: westbaystars- ---
18:58: westbaystars- Top of Fourth
18:58: westbaystars- ---
19:00: westbaystars- Saeki leads off the fourth fouling out to Kokubo running out to left.
19:00: westbaystars- It was a long run.
19:00: westbaystars- And Kokubo is down!
19:00: westbaystars- It looks like his knee gave out after catching the ball.
19:01: westbaystars- The trainer has gone out. And Ueda-coach lifts Kokubo onto his back and is carrying him back to the dugout.
19:01: westbaystars- He looks like he's in a great deal of pain.
19:02: westbaystars- Etoh takes a ball, throws a little bit, and will take over at third.
19:03: westbaystars- That brings up Woods.
19:05: westbaystars- Woods hits a come-backer that Kubo back hands.
19:05: westbaystars- He turns, and has Woods out half way up the line.
19:05: westbaystars- Two down.
19:05: westbaystars- Tamura is next.
19:06: westbaystars- Tamura grounds the ball to Etoh at third. Etoh, who just came in, one bounds the ball to Kiyohara at first.
19:06: westbaystars- Kiyo digs the tough hop out of the third, and the BayStars are retired in order yet again.
19:06: westbaystars- After that pinch in the first inning, Kubo's been flawless.
19:07: westbaystars- ---
19:07: westbaystars- Bottom of Fourth
19:07: westbaystars- ---
19:08: westbaystars- Nioka leads off the fourth for the Giants, Yoshimi still on the mound for Yokohama.
19:09: westbaystars- He lifts the ball high to the right side.
19:10: westbaystars- Uchikawa back peddals into shallow right field, then takes the ball in just in front of Kinjyoh for the out.
19:10: westbaystars- That brings up Kubo.
19:10: westbaystars- Yoshimi didn't mess around with him this time, offering up three straight pitches.
19:10: westbaystars- The third one was hit to Ishii Takuro at short, who fires to first, and we have two quick outs.
19:11: westbaystars- Next up in the ever illusive Nishi.
19:12: westbaystars- Yet, Yoshimi finally gets him, looking at strike three, to retire the side.
19:12: westbaystars- Three up, three down for the Giants this inning.
19:13: westbaystars- But the Giants continue to lead, 5-0.
19:13: westbaystars- ---
19:13: westbaystars- Top of Fifth
19:13: westbaystars- ---
19:14: westbaystars- Kinjyoh hopes to get something going for Yokohama in the fifth.
19:15: westbaystars- News on Kokubo: It was his right ancle, not knee, that was hurt.
19:15: westbaystars- And in the mean time, Kinjyoh gets a base hit up the middle to become the first 'Star runner since the first inning.
19:16: westbaystars- That brings up Taneda.
19:16: westbaystars- The color commentator says that he saw the replays a number of times and doesn't belive the news on Kokubo.
19:17: westbaystars- Something was wrong with his knee, according to him.
19:18: westbaystars- Taneda swings and misses a pitch outside in the dirt to go down on strikes.
19:18: westbaystars- One out, runner still at first.
19:18: westbaystars- Nakamura stands in.
19:19: westbaystars- Nakamura grounds the ball weakly up the first base side.
19:19: westbaystars- Kiyohara comes in and toward the mound to play the ball.
19:19: westbaystars- Kubo crosses by him to cover first.
19:20: westbaystars- First is the only place for a play, and they get the veteran catcher by a couple steps.
19:20: westbaystars- Two outs, runner now at first.
19:20: westbaystars- And pitcher Yoshimi comes up to the plate.
19:21: westbaystars- After two quick strikes, Kubo throws a fork ball that almost hit Yoshimi's feet, then went to the backstop.
19:21: westbaystars- Kinjyoh moves to third on the wild pitch.
19:21: westbaystars- The next pitch is grounded through the right side of the infield! Base hit!
19:22: westbaystars- Kinjyoh trots home for the BayStars' first run of the game.
19:22: westbaystars- Yoshimi helps himself, but still trails 1-5.
19:22: westbaystars- Ishii Takuro lays down the first offering from Kubo in a safety bunt attempt, but it's foul.
19:23: westbaystars- After taking ball one, Ishii grounds the ball to Nishi at second.
19:23: westbaystars- The throw to first is in time, and the side is retired.
19:23: westbaystars- But not before Yoshimi drove in a run to put Yokohama on the board, down 1-5.
19:23: westbaystars- ---
19:23: westbaystars- Bottom of Fifth
19:24: westbaystars- ---
19:26: westbaystars- Shimizu leads off for the Giants.
19:27: westbaystars- Shimizu grounds the ball back to Yoshima on one bound.
19:27: westbaystars- Yoshimi plays the ball well, throws to first, and Shimizu is out before he gets too far out of the box.
19:28: westbaystars- That brings up Rhodes, swinging at the first pitch yet again.
19:28: westbaystars- This time it's to center, but well within Tamura's range.
19:28: westbaystars- A few steps toward right, and we have two outs.
19:28: westbaystars- Takahashi comes up to the plate.
19:30: westbaystars- Kinjyoh had a long run to get to Takahashi's fly ball to foul territory in right.
19:31: westbaystars- But the ball hung up there a looooong time, giving the speedy Kinjyoh the opportunity to make the catch without a slide.
19:31: westbaystars- The Giants go down in order.
19:31: westbaystars- And at the end of five complete, the Giants continue to lead 5-1.
19:31: westbaystars- ---
19:31: westbaystars- Top of Sixth
19:31: westbaystars- ---
19:34: westbaystars- Uchikawa leads off the fifth for Yokohama.
19:35: westbaystars- He takes Kubo's full count offering for a ball, and the lead-off runner is on.
19:35: westbaystars- Time for a big inning!
19:35: westbaystars- Ikegaya-pitching coach heads out to have a talk with Kubo.
19:35: westbaystars- Kubo does a lod of positive head shaking, wanting to stay in.
19:36: westbaystars- But Idegaya-pitching coach isn't going away.
19:36: westbaystars- After a little more convicning that he's fine, Kubo gets Ikegawa to return to the dugout.
19:37: westbaystars- His first pitch to Saeki is called strike one. That should make Ikegaya feel better.
19:37: westbaystars- The next pitch, is called strike two.
19:37: westbaystars- Saeki wasn't sure about that, but...
19:38: westbaystars- Kokubo report: Kokubo isn't going to the hospital. He's just icing his leg.
19:38: westbaystars- Kubo then misses with two pitches to bring the count to 2-2.
19:39: westbaystars- The next pitch, inside, is called strike three as Saeki fails to hold up.
19:39: westbaystars- That's the first out of the inning, bringing up Woods.
19:40: westbaystars- Leading over the Giants' dugout railing, Abe makes a difficult catch for the second out of the inning.
19:41: westbaystars- That brings up Tamura (who I'm sure I've called Murata a number of times).
19:41: westbaystars- Kubo gets two quick strikes on Tamura, and the third pitch is swing on and missed, strike three.
19:42: westbaystars- Well, I like to see pitchers challenge batters on three pitches, but I'd have liked it more if Tamura had
19:42: westbaystars- made contact.
19:42: westbaystars- Oh well.
19:42: westbaystars- The BayStars got their lead-off runner on, but drew a blank after that.
19:42: westbaystars- ---
19:42: westbaystars- Bottom of Sixth
19:42: westbaystars- ---
19:43: westbaystars- Kiyohara comes up, with the number signs reduced to "6."
19:44: westbaystars- Kiyohara swings at the first pitch. Going, going, haittaaaaaaaaaaaaaaa!
19:44: westbaystars- Back to back home runs by Kiyohara put the Giants up 6-1 and reduce his count-down to 5 for 2,000 hits.
19:45: westbaystars- How many of his seven home runs this season have been hit against Yokohama? It sure seems like a good sized fraction.
19:46: westbaystars- He's also gone over 50% of his hits being home runs, 7 of 13 hits.
19:46: westbaystars- Etoh grounds out to short. One out.
19:46: westbaystars- Abe comes up next.
19:49: westbaystars- He fouls off a number of pitches and works the count full.
19:50: westbaystars- Yoshimi's 10th pitch to Abe is swung on and missed. Two outs.
19:50: westbaystars- Nioka follows.
19:51: westbaystars- He hits a blooping ball just right of center.
19:52: westbaystars- Tamura charges in, and just gets to the ball for the final out of the inning.
19:52: westbaystars- But it comes after Kiyohara's 1,995th career hit, his 7th home run of the season.
19:52: westbaystars- The Giants now lead 6-1.
19:52: westbaystars- ---
19:53: westbaystars- Top of Seventh
19:53: westbaystars- ---
19:53: westbaystars- Kinjyoh leads off for Yokohama.
19:54: westbaystars- Kubo is still on the mound for the Giants.
19:56: westbaystars- Kinjyoh pulls the ball up the first base line to Kiyohara.
19:56: westbaystars- It hits Kiyo's chest, bounces around a bit,
19:56: westbaystars- Kiyo finally gets a handle on the ball and takes it to the bag just before Kinjyoh.
19:56: westbaystars- One out.
19:56: westbaystars- That brings up Taneda.
19:58: westbaystars- He works the count full, then hits a one bounder back to Kubo.
19:58: westbaystars- Kubo back hands the ball, throws to first, and Taneda is out.
19:58: westbaystars- Two down.
19:59: westbaystars- That brings up Murata. Yes, it is Murata this time, pinch hitting for catcher Nakamura.
19:59: westbaystars- Yoshimi isn't even going to the on-deck circle.
19:59: westbaystars- But Murata gounds the ball to Kiyohara.
20:00: westbaystars- He plays the ball heading toward third, shovels to Kubo, and the side is retired in order yet again.
20:00: westbaystars- ---
20:00: westbaystars- Bottom of Seventh
20:00: westbaystars- ---
20:02: westbaystars- Denney comes in to pitch for the BayStars. Aikawa comes in to catch, and someone takes the place of Taneda at third.
20:03: westbaystars- Kubo stands way to the back of the batter's box, and takes three strikes in a row for the first out.
20:03: westbaystars- Kubo make it pretty clear that he had no plans on swinging.
20:03: westbaystars- First out recieved as a gift.
20:03: westbaystars- Nishi, though, lifts Denny's first pitch deep to left.
20:04: westbaystars- Saeki runs over, jumps, haitta.
20:04: westbaystars- The ball just clears the wall and goes into the BayStars' side of the outfield stands.
20:04: westbaystars- That's Nishi's second home run of the game, putting the Giants up 7-1.
20:05: westbaystars- That brings up Shimizu, who had two home runs yesterday.
20:05: westbaystars- And he takes a pitch just above his right elbow.
20:05: westbaystars- Shimizu waves off the trainer coming out to look at him and takes first base.
20:06: westbaystars- That brings up Rhodes, who is swinging on the first pitch again.
20:06: westbaystars- This time, though, he misses the ball and it's strike one.
20:06: westbaystars- The second pitch, the upper swing, whiffed. Strike two.
20:07: westbaystars- The third offering to Rhodes is fouled off to the left side.
20:08: westbaystars- After taking ball one, Rhodes grounds the ball through the hole on the right side.
20:08: westbaystars- Or it looked like it was through. Uchikawa grabs the ball way over on the right side.
20:09: westbaystars- He throws to first and gets the force.
20:09: westbaystars- Shimizu moves to second on the play.
20:09: westbaystars- Takahashi comes up next.
20:12: westbaystars- And Denny gets him swinging at a change-up outside.
20:12: westbaystars- That retires the side.
20:12: westbaystars- But not before Nishi hit his second home run of the game to put the Giants up 7-1.
20:12: westbaystars- ---
20:12: westbaystars- Top of Eighth
20:12: westbaystars- ---
20:14: westbaystars- Kubo is still on the mound.
20:14: westbaystars- He faces pinch hitter Tanaka.
20:14: westbaystars- He's small, but speedy. Tanaka usually enters games as a pinch runner.
20:15: westbaystars- But he gets his first hit of the season, a come-backer that whizzes by Kubo's ear.
20:16: westbaystars- Oooo. On the replay it looks like the ball might have slightly deflected off his left arm. But nobody seems concerned.
20:16: westbaystars- That brings us to the top of the order in Ishii Takuro.
20:17: westbaystars- *** Hanshin 0 - 0 Chunichi at Nagoya Dome after six complete.
20:17: westbaystars- Ishii grounds the ball through the right side and into right field.
20:18: westbaystars- BayStars now have runners at first and second with nobody out.
20:18: westbaystars- This is our biggest chance since the first.
20:18: westbaystars- Uchikawa comes up.
20:19: westbaystars- Action is up in the Giants' bullpen.
20:22: westbaystars- After being in the hole two strikes, no balls, Uchikawa works the count full.
20:22: westbaystars- The nineth pitch to Uchikawa is lined into right, base hit!
20:23: westbaystars- The ball gets to Takahashi too fast for the speedy Tanaka to score, so we've got bases loaded.
20:23: westbaystars- And nobody out.
20:23: westbaystars- That brings Ikegaya-pitching coach out to the mound for the second time this game.
20:23: westbaystars- He just has a couple of words to say, then goes back.
20:24: westbaystars- Saeki takes his place in the left handed batter's box, and takes strike one.
20:24: westbaystars- The next pitch is taken outside, 1-1.
20:25: westbaystars- The third pitch is lifted to the left side and high.
20:25: westbaystars- Foul? Fair? Etoh camps in foul territory, then moves accross the line to take the ball in fair,
20:25: westbaystars- a few meters behind the third base bag.
20:26: westbaystars- Infield fly rule, batter's out.
20:26: westbaystars- Woods swings and misses big at a 108 kph change up.
20:26: westbaystars- The next pitch is a cut ball, taken on the lower part of down the middle, strike one.
20:26: westbaystars- Sorry, strike two.
20:27: westbaystars- The third pitchi is high, ball one.
20:27: westbaystars- The fourth pitch is down low, 2-2.
20:27: westbaystars- The radio color commentator says that Woods has trouble with the cut ball.
20:28: westbaystars- But what ever Kubo just through, Woods got good wood on it and ripped it up the middle for a base hit.
20:28: westbaystars- Tanaka scores from third, and Ishii is in right behind him from second.
20:28: westbaystars- Two run base hit to center.
20:29: westbaystars- That knocks the Giants' lead down to four, 7-3.
20:29: westbaystars- Tamura steps in with one out and runners at first and second.
20:29: westbaystars- I've been impressed with Woods hitting in the clutch this year.
20:29: westbaystars- Tamura lifts the ball to center.
20:29: westbaystars- Rhodes comes in and just get the ball for the second out.
20:30: westbaystars- Ah.
20:30: westbaystars- That'll bring up Kinjyoh.
20:32: habs- greetings.
20:32: westbaystars- Kinjyoh lifts a high fly to center.
20:32: westbaystars- Rhodes has a long run, but it hangs up there long enough that it wasn't a problem.
20:32: westbaystars- The side is retired.
20:32: westbaystars- But not before the BayStars score a pair of runs to come to within four.
20:33: westbaystars- Going to the bottom of the Eighth, they trail 3-7.
20:33: westbaystars- ---
20:33: westbaystars- Bottom of Eighth
20:33: westbaystars- ---
20:33: westbaystars- Hi, Habs-san. Hope you're having a good morning.
20:33: westbaystars- This game, as you can tell, has been all Giants.
20:34: westbaystars- Nishi led off the Giants' half of the first with a first pitch home run. That set the pace.
20:34: westbaystars- He hit another solo shot in the 7th, and Kiyohara hit a 3-run shot in the 3rd and a solo shot in the 6th.
20:35: westbaystars- A past ball (just before Kiyohara came to bat) accounted for the other Giant run.
20:35: westbaystars- Yamada takes the mound for Yokohama this inning, and faces Kiyohara.
20:35: westbaystars- The "5" boards are out.
20:35: westbaystars- And Kiyohara pulls the fans out of their seats again!
20:36: habs- I see Pete pitched yesterday and took the lost also.
20:36: westbaystars- The ball is lifted to left, but not far enough this time.
20:36: westbaystars- Kiyohara smiles as he aproches second. Three home runs in a row would be too much to ask for.
20:37: westbaystars- Yea, as I said, I don't understand why he was pulled after four for a pinch hitter when Yamashita-kantoku
20:37: westbaystars- waited too long to pull Mullan the day before.
20:37: westbaystars- Actually, that might have been the reason - to make up for his miss the day before.
20:37: westbaystars- Etoh goes down on strikes, two out.
20:38: westbaystars- I didn't get to watch the game yesterday, though, as I was at Yokosuka Stadium watch the SeaRex (Yokohama's
20:38: westbaystars- farm team).
20:38: westbaystars- Abe come up to bat.
20:39: westbaystars- At least we won that one, a sayonara victory in the 10th inning against the Lions.
20:40: westbaystars- Abe lines the ball toward right.
20:40: westbaystars- But Uchikawa makes a great jump to pull the ball in for the final out of the inning.
20:40: habs- Do you get a chance to go to any baystar games or is Searex stadium close to you.
20:41: westbaystars- So, we've finished eighth complete, and the Giants lead 7-3.
20:41: westbaystars- ---
20:41: westbaystars- Top of Nineth
20:41: westbaystars- ---
20:41: basebill- Westbay-san, do they use the DH in ni-gun?
20:42: westbaystars- Not at Yokosuka Stadium, since it's a Central League child park.
20:43: westbaystars- Aikawa comes up to bat for the first time this game.
20:43: westbaystars- Randell takes the mound for the Giants.
20:43: westbaystars- Sorry, that's Randel.
20:43: basebill- so, they alternate, depending on the home team...
20:44: habs- This game seems to be moving right along.
20:44: westbaystars- That's right.
20:44: basebill- thank you
20:44: westbaystars- Randel gets Aikawa swinging, strike three.
20:44: westbaystars- The pitch was down the middle.
20:45: westbaystars- Murata, who pitch hit for starting catcher Nakamura earlier and stayed in at third comes up.
20:46: westbaystars- But Murata fouls out to Abe behind home plate just in front of the backstop.
20:46: westbaystars- The 'Stars are down to their final out.
20:47: westbaystars- * Note: That's right to the best of my knowledge. I've only watched SeaRex farm games.
20:47: habs- A lot happens with 2 outs.
20:47: westbaystars- * As it's a short walk from home.
20:47: westbaystars- Randel gets two quick strikes before missing for ball one.
20:47: westbaystars- He's challenging them.
20:47: westbaystars- Ah, but Habs-san has it right!
20:48: westbaystars- Tanaka gets his second hit of the evening, the ball lining over Nishi's jumping glove.
20:48: westbaystars- The top of the order in Ishii comes up.
20:48: basebill- it makes sense, they do it that way for inter-league play here in the states
20:49: westbaystars- Home field rules, desho.
20:50: westbaystars- The pitch evens up at 2-2.
20:50: westbaystars- The next pitch, taken ball three. Full count.
20:50: westbaystars- The payoff pitch, is swung on and missed, strike threer!
20:51: westbaystars- The game is over.
20:51: westbaystars- The Giants win 7-3.
20:51: westbaystars- Kiyohara hit two home runs, bringing his career hit count to 1,995.
20:52: westbaystars- Kubo and Kiyohara are announced as the heros of the game.
20:52: westbaystars- Along with Nishi, who also hit a pair of home runs.
20:53: westbaystars- It was Nishi's first pitch home run in the first that pretty much set the mood for the game.
20:53: habs- Giants seem to be hitting a lot of home runs, why is that.
20:53: westbaystars- They've got a all-number-four batting lineup.
20:54: westbaystars- Other than Takahashi, Abe, and Nishi, their lineup is a collection of number four batters who came to the Giants as
20:54: habs- Did the giants hit any home runs yesterday?
20:54: westbaystars- free agents (or given away as in Kokubo's case).
20:54: basebill- unless their pitching goes completely flat, I don't see how they can lose..
20:55: westbaystars- Four. Three against Pets, if I recall correctly.
20:55: westbaystars- Sorry, Pets should be Pete. Typing getting bad.
20:56: westbaystars- The Giants were expected to run away with the Central League with this lineup.
20:56: westbaystars- At one point they were on pace for a last place finish with 300+ home runs.
20:58: westbaystars- Have a look at http://www.geocities.com/s_borisov/jb2004/clstandings.html
20:58: basebill- they shouldwin it all, if they don't some people won't be happy
20:58: basebill- I will not be among those people however..
20:58: westbaystars- It shows that the Giants had 99 home runs going into the game, giving up 71
20:59: westbaystars- I was sure that Yokohama had given up more. It sure seems like everyone is teeing off of the 'Stars.
20:59: westbaystars-
21:00: basebill- the Swallows pitching has been pretty shaky as well
21:01: westbaystars- Looks like they've given up the most home runs. That surprised me.
21:01: habs- SEEMS LIKE IT
21:01: westbaystars- I've always though Yakult's staff was pretty solid.
21:02: basebill- I had some hope for the Swallows this spring but it doesn't look too good now
21:03: westbaystars- Still, they're only 3.5 games out in last place.
21:03: basebill- I am pleased to see my all-time favorite NPB player, Furuta-san, is swinging the bat well
21:04: westbaystars- Furuta seems to go through ups and down. He's on the up swing.
21:04: westbaystars- Just when I think maybe it's time for him to retire, he starts doing very well.
21:04: westbaystars- I'm expecting him to take over the team as manager any year now.
21:04: basebill- At his age, catching so many games, he is amazing
21:05: westbaystars- It is. And when he's heathy, the Swallows are healthy.
21:06: westbaystars- If you look at the years that Yakult won the pennant, Furuta played pretty much every game.
21:06: westbaystars- Those that they finished in B-Class, Furuta missed some big chunks of the season.
21:06: basebill- Yes, but I don't see anyone topping the Giants this year
21:07: westbaystars- Hara showed that he can take a team with the best talent money can buy and not win.
21:07: basebill- Any one of those hitters can carry a team for a week or so, but it always does come down to pitching...
21:07: westbaystars- And when Horiuchi was announced as the new manager, his entire staff quit.
21:07: westbaystars- That doesn't instill confidence.
21:08: westbaystars- And handling the pitchers. That's what Furuta is the best at.
21:08: basebill- That is true
21:08: westbaystars- Any why Yakult stuggles when Furuta is down.
21:08: habs- MARLINS OVER HERE LAST YEAR SHOWED PITCHING WINS GAMES
21:09: westbaystars- Was the catcher given any credit to that?
21:09: basebill- absolutely
21:09: westbaystars- Was it a single catcher the whole year, or a variety of catcher?
21:10: habs- NO> HE BECAME A FREE AGENT AND WAS NOT RESIGNED
21:10: basebill- Ivan Rodriguez handled the staff
21:10: westbaystars- And I understand that the pitching isn't as good this season.
21:10: basebill- he left for Deyroit in the off-season
21:11: westbaystars- How is Detroit doing pitching wise?
21:12: basebill- a lot of younger guys, but they are doing much better this year than last
21:12: westbaystars- The Giants' Abe, while being praised for his bat, has been taking a lot of knocks for how he calls games.
21:13: westbaystars- See, just as with Yakult, a team's pitching staff can be made or broken with the catcher.
21:14: westbaystars- That's what I've learned watching Furuta over the years.
21:14: basebill- I believe it completely
21:15: basebill- Furuta has always struck me as a very intelligent ballplayer
21:15: basebill- I believe he will be an excellant manager
21:16: westbaystars- Nomura-kantoku groomed him to be so.
21:17: basebill- Ex-catchers have had a lot of success as managers
21:18: westbaystars- Soon it'll be Furuta's turn to pass on that knowledge. But not if he keeps having such good seasons.
21:18: westbaystars- Nomura and Mori are the two who come to mind right away.
21:18: westbaystars- I'd looked it up for someone once in the "Ask the Commish" section, I think.
21:19: basebill- There have been many in MLB over the decades
21:20: westbaystars- If I remember correctly, someone had wanted to proove that catchers made bad managers, based
21:20: westbaystars- on one in MLB.
21:20: westbaystars- I told the person that that wasn't what the data showed in Japan.
21:21: basebill- I saw that, however mgrs. w/l pct are skewed by the fact Connie Mack managed for 50 yrs. with some pretty awful teams
21:22: westbaystars- Well, look who Nomura managed. Nobody, including Yakult's own president, expected Yakult to win.
21:22: basebill- Joe Torre, Ralph Houk, Al Lopez, Jim Leyland all had great success
21:23: westbaystars- (It's been published quite often that Yakult's president, at the time, was a huge Giant fan.)
21:23: basebill- the '90s were a great decade for the Swallows
21:23: westbaystars- They were, especially under Nomura.
21:24: basebill- Did Nomura-san get any credit for the Tigers resurgence, even though he was no longer at the helm?
21:24: westbaystars- However, my main complaint with Nomura was that he killed his pitchers one year, making them require a year off.
21:24: westbaystars- None that I'd heard of. Hoshino-kantoku got all the credit.
21:25: westbaystars- Personally, I didn't think Nomura-kantoku really deserved any credit.
21:25: westbaystars- He seemed to be burnt out when he accepted the job.
21:25: westbaystars- Then didn't appear to have his heart in it.
21:25: basebill- The Tigers were pretty BAD under him
21:26: westbaystars- I know, no real evidence to my statements. That's just my impressions from what I'd seen of him in
21:26: westbaystars- press conferences and in the dugout.
21:27: basebill- Considering everything I read, I believe your opinion to be accurate
21:28: westbaystars- When he started working as manager for, what is it, the ammeter team he's now managing?
21:28: westbaystars- Well, when he took over there, he seemed to have gotten his second wind.
21:29: westbaystars- I think he's enjoying his job more now then when he was with Hanshin.
21:30: basebill- Maybe the oppurtunity to instruct has given him new life
21:30: westbaystars- I think it has. He took making Yakult into a winning team as a personal challenge, and enjoyed it.
21:31: westbaystars- He didn't seem to take the Hanshin job with the same enthusiasm.
21:31: westbaystars- He still had to prove himself in the Central League with Yakult.
21:31: westbaystars- With Hanshin, he was expected to be a miricle worker.
21:32: westbaystars- Expectations were too high. And he'd already done all the proving he needed to.
21:32: basebill- If you don't have the talent to start with there can be no miracles..
21:33: westbaystars- I think the main problem was with the front office and fans with high expectations.
21:33: westbaystars- How to deal with Shinjo was another touchy point.
21:34: basebill- I don't think it hurt the Tigers when Shinjo left
21:34: westbaystars- I'd like to see some of the Kansai crowd join in on this one. I've only got the viewpoint from the Tokyo area.
21:35: westbaystars- Definately not. His taking the MLB job surprised me. And he's really impressed me in a number of ways since then.
21:36: westbaystars- But at the time, Shinjo had to go before Hanshin would be able to morph into something else.
21:36: westbaystars- Anything else.
21:36: basebill- he's a unique individual, that is for sure
21:37: westbaystars- Hi, guest. Game ended about an hour ago. Giants won 7-3.
21:37: basebill- Well, I've got to go, thank you so much Westbay-san, you do us all a great service
21:37: basebill- and I for one really appreciate it
21:37: westbaystars- Glad you could join in before the end of the game this time.
21:38: westbaystars- I saw you just minutes before signing off last week.
21:38: westbaystars- And speaking of signing off, if there aren't any further questions, it's about that time.
21:39: basebill- Yes I had stayed up late watching the Yahoo stream of the Lions-Hawks game
21:39: basebill- Saito was really saharp that night
21:40: westbaystars- Ah. I really don't pay enough attention to the Pacific League.
21:40: habs- I ENJOYED TODAY CONVERSATION> SEE YOU NEXT WEEK
21:40: westbaystars- I'll try to do a Pa-League game the first time one's on a Sunday evening.
21:40: basebill- I love all the leagues, every where!!
21:40: westbaystars- Enjoyed having you.
21:40: westbaystars- Until next week.
21:40: westbaystars- Take care all.
21:41: habs- YOU DID A GOOD JOB WESTBAYSTAR
21:41: basebill- Take care Michael, domo
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Some rights reserved.
Habs-san, Walker pitched yesterday, so he's not the starting pitcher this evening. He threw four innings, giving up three runs on two solo home runs and a pair of hits. Yamashita-kantoku left Mullan in too long the night before, not pinch hitting for him with runners in scoring position in the 8th, then pinch hit for Walker in the 5th with nobody on and two out yesterday. I don't understand what's up with that.
Anyway, hope this doesn't turn you (or anyone else) off from "tuning in."