That’s what Hawks manager Hiroki Kokubo said Saturday after SoftBank’s second straight loss to the Seibu Lions, the Hawks’ fifth straight at home. Of course, there are many things worse than being in last place seven games into the season, but we get it.
In other news Saturday, we had yet another impressive import pitching debut in a game that featured a milestone home run and an immaculate inning from an unlikely hurler, while the Hiroshima Carp and DeNA BayStars played a game of closer Russian roulette.
Saturday’s games
Swallows 2, Dragons 0: At Jingu “Tokyo’s sacrifice to corporate greed and government malfeasance” stadium, Peter Lambert had a fun debut, retiring 15 of the first 16 batters he faced as he changed speeds with a really nice assortment of pitches. Chunichi bases in the sixth with a double, a single and a no-out walk, but Lambert got a fortunate called third strike and a comebacker for an easy as 1-2-3 double play.
I tuned into the game when Lambert was in the batter’s box, and darned if he doesn’t look like a hitter, taking good swings and making good contact. Before I could check his Baseball Reference page, the announcer informed us that he was 9-for-30 as a hitter in MLB. He’s the kind of pitcher some managers might be tempted to bat eighth because of his quality, but as I’ve said over and over again, No. 8 is the spot to put your weakest hitter instead of No. 9, where his outs come before the top of the order.
Yakult only managed five hits, three by Jose Osuna, but one was Tetsuto Yamada‘s 300th career home run, after Osuna doubled to lead off the second. The Swallows bullpen allowed one runner over the final three innings, on a throwing error by Yamada at second, but closed it out with former closer Taichi Ishiyama‘s immaculate inning.
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