Friday marked the first time that Yoshinobu Yamamoto and Roki Sasaki will square off in an official game. We had five other games, though and I’ll just run through those really quickly.

The DeNA BayStars clobbered the Yomiuri Giants 8-3, the Chunichi Dragons did the same to the Hanshin Tigers 9-2, and the Hiroshima Carp got past Yasuhiro Ogawa (1-1) in a game called in the eighth inning. Ogawa’s throwing error led to the Carp’s only run.

Elsewhere in the Pacific League, Masahiro Tanaka (2-1) struck out seven over five innings, and Rakuten remarkably scored three runs, knocking out Tsuyoshi Wada (1-1) in the Eagles’ 3-0 win over the SoftBank Hawks, while Takayuki Kato (1-2) lost his shutout bid in the ninth on Shuta Tonosaki’s two-run homer but held on for a 100-pitch complete game in the Nippon Ham Fighters’ 5-2 win over the Seibu Lions.

So much for the undercard.

The past two seasons, Yamamoto has led the Pacific League in wins, winning percentage, ERA, innings pitched and strikeouts. He’s won the past two Pacific League MVP awards, and the last two Eiji Sawamura Awards that go to the most impressive starting pitcher across Japanese pro baseball.

The 21-year-old Sasaki is the hardest-throwing starting pitcher in Japan. A year ago in April at the age of 20, he threw a perfect game against Yamamoto’s Orix Buffaloes in which he tied an NPB record by striking out 19, and set another by striking out eight straight batters swinging.

Venue: Zozo Marine Stadium, Chiba, Japan. Game time: 6 p.m. Home plate umpire: Kazuyuki Shirai

Yamamoto done first, allowing one run on one clean single followed by a pair of fluke scratch hits. He struck out nine and walked one over six innings. He deserved a little better.

Sasaki allowed one hit, walked two, and struck out 11 over seven innings, the first four of which he was breathtakingly dominant.

Here he is finishing the first inning with his third K:

Hero interview:

Roki Sasaki

On facing Yamamoto: “I thought if I gave up one run (against Yamamoto) I couldn’t win, so I was completely focused on not allowing even one run.”

On 11 strikeouts: “I was good at first, and then the fielders bailed me out.”

How he felt when Kenta Chatani drove in the first run on a fluke single: “I didn’t think he could do it.”

Kenta Chatani

On his game-winning RBI single: “Like he (Sasaki) said. I thought it was beyond me.”

Marines 2, Buffaloes 0

Inning 9: Top

Lotte’s new pitcher is Hirokazu Sawamura

1. Ota K Swinging
2. Chano Flyout LF
3. Gonzalez Flyout CF on a fastball against former Red Sox teammate Sawamura, who strikes a Randy Arazorena pose on the mound.

Inning 8: Bottom

Orix’s new pitcher is Hitomi Honda.

1. Yamaguchi Groundout SS
2. Yasuda K Swinging
3. Polanco K Swinging

Inning 8: Top

Lotte bringing out closer Naoya Masuda in the eighth inning to take on the tail-end of the Orix order.

1. Nakagawa Flyout SS.
2. Nishino Groundout SS on 10 pitches.
3. Wakatsuki Groundout SS.

Inning 7: Bottom

Soichiro Yamazaki, a late addition to Japan’s WBC pitching staff, takes the mound after Yamamoto throws 101 pitches.

1. Chatani 1B to left
2. Sato SH, C to 2B, Runner 2nd, 1 out.
3. Hirasawa Walk. 1st and 2nd, 1 out.
4. Fujiwara K looking. 1st and 2nd, 2 outs.
5. Fujioka 1B to CF. Lotte 2, Orix 0. 1st and 3rd, 2 outs. New pitcher, or rather ageless pitcher in, 42-year-old Tomoki Higa.
6. Nakamura Flyout to LF warning track.

Inning 7: Top

Sasaki starts the 7th after 90 pitches.

1. Mori Walks on 5 pitches. The command is no longer there. Call to the bullpen.
2. Sugimoto GDP 6-4-3. Sweet as sugar. Fastball 160-called strike, fastball-low, split-miss, split rolled sharply to short.
3. Mune Groundout to SS. Ball 1 is Sasaki’s 100th pitch. Fastball-foul, fastball 161-miss, split-outside, split-checked, grounds hanging splitter. Sasaki gets a pat on the butt from manager Masato Yoshii, so he’s done after 105 pitches.

Inning 6: Bottom

Yamamoto begins the inning with 84 on the pitch count.

1. Yamaguchi Groundout to 2B, Misses the 1st two badly, but split-swing, fasball-called and it’s 2-2. Shirai runs it full.
2. Yasuda Groundout to 2B. Nice stop by Nishino.
3. Polanco Flyout to 1B on pop up. — that’s 101 pitches for Yamamoto. 9 Ks, 1 walk, five hits, one run.

Inning 6: Top

Sasaki had 10 strikeouts through four innings, but his commands was off in the fifth and he had to settle for three balls in play.

1. Nishino Walk. slider-high, fastball-high, fastball-high, fastball-low, mound conference…
2. Wakatsuki 1B. Squares to bunt, takes Strike 1 and Strike 2, throw after throw to first… where’s Japan’s disengagement rule? Takes two balls, fouls off one, lines a ball between second and short. 1st and 2nd, no outs.
3. Ota SH – 5-4. 2nd and 3rd, 1 out. Pitching coach Tomohiro “Johnny” Kuroki to the mound.
4. Chano. K Swinging. No. 11 for Sasaki. Infield in tight all around. fastball-low, fastball-foul, split-miss, split-foul. Sasaki up to 87 pitches. Fastball-low and inside, Split-miss. Golden sombrero for the rookie. 2nd and 3rd, 1 outs.
5. Gonzalez Foul out RF. Goes after first pitch.

Inning 5: Bottom

1. Hirasawa foul out to 1B.
2. Fujiwara Walk. 1st, one out
3. Fujioka K Swinging. That’s eight for Yamamoto. — the analyst on the NTV news broadcast attributed Chatani’s RBI single to his “really wanting to get a hit, and of course the cheering of the fans.” Right…
4. Nakamura K Swinging, Yamamoto puts him away swinging at his slider.

Inning 5: Top

1. Sugimoto Flyout to LF. slider-ball, fastball-miss, fastball-called strike, slider-good take, fastball-foul, split-ball, fastball-foul, hanging slider-lined out.
2. Mune Groundout to 1B. fastball-ball, another high and outside, fastball-called strike, fastball outside, fastball-foul, splitter in the zone, rolled to first.
3. Nakagawa Flyout to 2B. No strikeouts for Sasaki!. Slider outside-missed, splitter-foul, hanging slider lined softly.

Inning 4: Bottom

1. Nakamura K Swinging at slider. 4th straight for Yamamoto.
2. Yamaguchi 1B line to right, gets the end of the barrel on a curve after some very good fastballs put him behind in the count.
3. Yasuda 1B. Splitter gets up, Yasuda slams it into the turf. The high bounce carries it over first and into shallow right. 1st and 3rd one out.
4. Polanco Flyout to SS. fastball-foul, pops up another. (coach visits the mound) 1st and 3rd two out.
5. Chatani 1B. Three splitters for 2-1, fluke single on a bouncer off a hanging curve that glances off Mune’s glove at 3B. Lotte 1, Orix 0, 1st and 3rd two out.
6. Sato K Swinging 7th for Yamamoto.

Inning 4: Top

1. Chano K Swinging. That’s No. 8 at a splitter.
2. Gonzalez K Swinging. No. 9 on another one. Misses under high fastball, over a splitter away, fouls a splitter off his knee. Getting closer to the fastball, before he gets the split and down he goes.
3. Mori K Looking. No. 10 out of 12 batters faced. Misses slider, looks at 163 KPH (fastest so far) for Strike 2, foul, ball, checked swing, takes split in the dirt for 3-2. Checks swing on outside fastball with Sasaki getting a generous call from umpire Shirai.

Inning 3: Bottom

1. Hirasawa K looking. 2 fastballs and a curve, frozen.
2. Fujiwara K Swinging. Misses a big curve for Strike 3
3. Fujioka K Swinging. Might as well look at that curve as swing at it, since no one’s hitting it.

Inning 3: Top

1. Nishino Flyout SS tricky in the wind
2. Wakatsuki K Swinging. 6th K for Sasaki.
3. Ota K Swinging. 7th K. 3 sweepers, 2 splits. Sasaki just tried out three of those sweepers last week, almost as if he was saving them to show off to Yamamoto.

Inning 2: Bottom

1. Yasuda 2B. took 2 strikes before smashing fastball down the 3B line
2. Polanco K Swinging. missed 3-2 fastball away
3. Chatani Groundout SS.
4. Sato Groundout 2B — Yamamoto’s pitches are all so good, and he’s got a bunch of them. He starts Sato off with a curve before three straight splits.

Inning 2: Top

1. Sugimoto K swinging, looks at 2 sliders before missing split
2. Mune Groundout 2B, Nice stop, recovery after a fumble to retire Mune, who fell behind 0-2.
3. Nakagawa K swinging on 3 pitches, a fastball and two of the sweeper’s Sasaki picked up in the WBC.

Inning 1: Bottom

Pitcher: Yoshinobu Yamamoto

1. Fujiwara Groundout 2B, started with 4 straight fastballs. Really working to establish the 4-seamer.
2. Fujioka K Looking. at fastball inside at the knees.
3. Nakamura 2B, smashes a 1-2 curve just past the glove of Yuma Mune at third.
4. Yamaguchi Flyout RF, easy out on a 2-2 splitter.

Inning 1: Top

Pitcher: Roki Sasaki

1. Chano – K Looking. 2 fastballs, 2 splitters
2. Gonzalez – K Swinging fastball, split, split
3. Mori – K Swinging. Started with split, then 4 fastballs

Starting lineups

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