We had three games Thursday and two of them were pitchers’ duels, while another one started that way before José Marmolejos intervened with a grand slam. Elsewhere, the SoftBank Hawks will be without another outfielder for most of the season.
It’s also Roki Eve, ahead of Friday’s rematch between Roki Sasaki and Hawks ace Kodai Senga, although this one will take place in Fukuoka.
Shall we get started?
Hawks lose Uebayashi
The SoftBank Hawks announced Thursday that outfielder Seiji Uebayashi tore his right Achilles tendon in practice before Wednesday’s game against the Seibu Lions in Naha, where was stretchered off the field. After an examination on Thursday, it was estimated he will be out of action for three to four months.
Uebayashi has posted a .337 on-base percentage in 100 plate appearances with a .409 slugging average. Manager Hiroshi Fujimoto, told Nishi Nihon Sports that Uebayashi has been an important rival to push young prospect Tatsuru Yanagimachi.
“If Yanagimachi didn’t have Uebayashi to push him, he wouldn’t be where he is now.”
The Hawks are already without versatile outfielder Ryoya Kurihara, who tore his the ACL in his left knee
Thursday’s games
Giants 2, Carp 1: At Tokyo Dome, a rookie drove in both Yomiuri Giants’ runs, before the need to get ace Tomoyuki Sugano (5-3) a complete game victory nearly cost the Giants the win over Hiroshima.
Rookie Raito Nakayama singled and scored the tying run on a third-inning bouncer up the middle that was nearly caught at short, and then broke the 1-1 tie in the seventh inning, when he went down to get a good 3-2 changeup from Allen Kuri (2-2) and lined it into center for a one-out RBI single.
Ryan McBroom doubled to open Hiroshima’s second, and scored on Takayoshi Noma’s two-out single. Kuri went seven innings and Makoto Kemna and Atusya Horie left the bases jammed in a scoreless eighth.
The Giants tried to get Sugano the complete game victory, sending him out in the ninth after throwing 115 pitches, but one-out singles by Ryoma Nishikawa and McBroom put paid to that notion. Rookie closer Taisei Ota took over, got ahead 0-2 to Shogo Sakakura before hitting him on the toe, causing the Carp star to writhe in agony.
Ota came close to hitting the next batter before ending the game with a pair of routine outs for his 16th save.
Swallows 3, Tigers 0: At Jingu Stadium, Yasuhiro “Ryan” Ogawa threw seven shutout innings, and Tetsuto Yamada drove in two Yakult runs, plating Kotaro Yamasaki with a fifth-inning double off Joe Gunkel, and making it a 3-0 game in the seventh, when he doubled in Yamasaki from third off Ren Kajiya.
Ogawa walked three, struck out four, and allowed two hits. Ryuta Konno pitched a scoreless eighth for Yakult, and Scott McGough worked around a pair of hits in the ninth to record his 12th save.
Eagles 7, Marines 2: At Chiba Marine Stadium, Brandon Laird hit his fifth home run and Leonys Martin his third, and second in two nights, off Takayuki Kishi (4-1), but both were trumped when José Marmolejos capped a six-run seventh inning with a grand slam, his fifth homer of the season.
Haruki Nishikawa trimmed the Marines lead to a run in the fifth with his sixth homer.
Friday’s starting pitchers
Fighters vs Lions: Sapporo Dome 6 pm, 5 am EDT
Hiromi Ito (4-3, 2.72) vs Kona Takahashi (4-2, 1.67)
Eagles vs Buffaloes: Miyagi Stadium 6 pm, 5 am EDT
Ryota Takinaka (1-2, 3.03) vs Daiki Tajima (0-2, 2.87)
Hawks vs Marines: Fukuoka Dome 6 pm, 5 am EDT
Kodai Senga (3-1, 1.24) vs Roki Sasaki (4-0, 1.47)
BayStars vs Swallows: Yokohama Stadium 6 pm, 5 am EDT
Shinichi Onuki (1-2, 3.34) vs Hirotoshi Takanashi (3-2, 2.16)
Tigers vs Giants: Koshien Stadium 6 pm, 5 am EDT
Koyo Aoyagi (4-1, 1.09) vs Shosei Togo (5-2, 3.74)
Carp vs Dragons: Hiroshima Citizen’s Stadium 6 pm, 5 am EDT
Daichi Osera (4-1, 2.47) vs Yudai Ono (2-3, 2.76)
Active roster moves 5/19/2022
Deactivated players can be re-activated from 5/29
Central League
Activated
| Swallows | P | 26 | Koshiro Sakamoto |
| Carp | OF | 37 | Takayoshi Noma |
Dectivated
| Carp | C | 22 | Shosei Nakamura |
| Dragons | C | 27 | Shota Ono |
| Dragons | OF | 49 | Kosuke Ito |
Pacific League
Activated
None
Dectivated
| Eagles | P | 16 | Hideaki Wakui |
| Hawks | P | 56 | Fumimaru Taura |
| Hawks | OF | 51 | Seiji Uebayashi |
| Fighters | P | 13 | Tsubasa Nabatame |
