Asamura wrecks Marines again
One day after Hideto Asamura routed the Lotte Marines single handed with three home runs, his 28th home run of the year broke a 3-3 tie to lift Hideaki Wakui (9-3) and the Rakuten Eagles to a 5-3 win at Sendai’s Rakuten Seimei Park Miyagi on Wednesday.
With a man on in the seventh, a ferocious swing launched a high two-strike straight-as-string cutter from reliever Yuki Karakawa (0-1) well beyond the center-field fence.
“I was only trying to set the table for the hitters coming up behind me,” said Asamura, who now leads both leagues in home runs.
Marines manager Tadahito Iguchi, speaking more out of frustration than logic, said, “He burned us with the home run again, and at a time when the only thing we couldn’t afford to give up was a home run.”
Considering there was indeed more meat coming up after Asamura, despite his claims of trying to play small ball, a walk or any kind of hit could easily have sunk the Marines at that stage.
Wakui, who last won on Aug. 19, allowed four hits and hit a batter and gave up three runs, all in the sixth inning with Leonys Martin’s two-run double tying it.
Kazuhisa Makita torpedoed the Marines in the eighth and Alan Busenitz worked the ninth to record his 14th save as the Eagles won four straight for the first time this season.
Buffaloes hand Hawks 5th straight loss
Daiki Tajima (3-4) allowed two runs in five innings, while Steven Moya drove in three runs and hit his third home run in five games as the Orix Buffaloes beat the SoftBank Hawks 10-5 at Fukuoka’s PayPay Dome.
With Yuki Yanagita not on the game roster for the first time this season due to stiffness in the neck. Hawks right-hander Shota Takeda (2-1) walked four and hit one as he allowed six runs over three innings.
Alfredo Despaigne drove in two consolation runs in the seventh with his fourth home run of the season and the 2,000th of the Hawks’ franchise.
Kimura leads Lions comeback
Fumikazu Kimura produces some electrifying swings as he hit a three-run homer and added an RBI single as the Seibu Lions overturned a 3-0 deficit in their 6-5 win over the Nippon Ham Fighters at MetLife Dome.
Rookie lefty Shota Hamaya (2-0) looked poised for a 21-year-old. He allowed four runs over 5-1/3 innings. Fighters starter Drew VerHagen (6-4) allowed six runs, five earned, over 4-1/3 innings.
Six-time PL home run champ Takeya Nakamura was back for the first time since Sept. 1, having missed 19 games due to pain in right wrist.
Fighters rookie Ryunosuke Higuchi went 1-for-2 with a walk and was hit by a pitch in his debut. Drafted in the second round of the 2019 developmental draft from independent Albirex Niigata, the 26-year-old Higuchi has been demolishing Eastern League pitching this summer, slashing .342/.441/.651.
Seibu closer Tatsushi Masuda earned his 21st save.
Taguchi flashes old form for Giants
Lefty Kazuto Taguchi (5-3) came within two outs of his first complete game in two years but earned the win in the Yomiuri Giants’ 7-3 victory over the Hiroshima Carp at Tokyo Dome.
For eight innings, the 25-year-old Taguchi looked like the guy who was a mainstay of the Giants rotation in 2016 and 2017 until Jose Pirela chased him in the ninth with a two-run homer. Takumi Oshiro drove in two runs for the Giants and Hayato Sakamoto’s three hits moved him to within 39 of 2,000 in his career.
What are his chances of reach 3,000? Find out in today’s members notes.
Kamichatani shuts out Tigers
Taiga Kamichatani (2-1) threw his second career shutout, and Neftali Soto hit his 17th home run, a three-run shot in the seventh as the DeNA BayStars beat the Hanshin Tigers at Koshien Stadium.
Using an absolutely wicked cutter, Kamichatani struck out 10. He allowed six hits and walked three in his 144 pitches, causing Pro Yakyu News analyst Takenori Emoto and former pitcher to praise manager Alex Ramirez: “Ramirez-san understands how important it is to get complete games.”
Dragons bash Swallows
The Chunichi Dragons overcame home runs by Tetsuto Yamada and Munetaka Murakami grinding out a 14-hit 11-5 win over the Yakult Swallows at Nagoya Dome.
Shuhei Takahashi drove in three runs and Dayan Viciedo four with an eighth-inning grand slam for the Dragons as the Swallows lost after holding a lead for the 21st time this season.
Active roster moves 9/23/2020
Deactivated players can be re-activated from 10/3
Central League
Activated
| Giants | IF | 98 | Estamy Urena |
Dectivated
| Giants | OF | 88 | Gerardo Parra |
Pacific League
Activated
| Lions | IF | 60 | Takeya Nakamura |
| Hawks | P | 18 | Shota Takeda |
| Marines | OF | 7 | Shuhei Fukuda |
| Fighters | IF | 32 | Ryota Yachi |
| Fighters | IF | 93 | Ryunosuke Higuchi |
| Buffaloes | P | 48 | Koki Saito |
Dectivated
| Lions | OF | 58 | Masato Kumashiro |
| Eagles | P | 58 | Wataru Karashima |
| Marines | C | 53 | Naoya Emura |
| Marines | IF | 67 | Kenta Chatani |
| Fighters | IF | 38 | Kazunari Ishii |
| Fighters | OF | 26 | Daiki Asama |
| Buffaloes | P | 14 | Kazumasa Yoshida |
Starting pitchers for Sept. 22, 2020
Pacific League
Eagles vs Marines: Rakuten Seimei Park Miyagi 6 pm, 5 am EDT
Yuki Matsui (2-3, 4.05) vs Daiki Iwashita (5-5, 4.52)
Lions vs Fighters: MetLife Dome 6 pm, 5 am EDT
Sho Ito (0-1, 3.15) vs Kenta Uehara (0-1, 1.04)
Hawks vs Buffaloes: PayPay Dome 6 pm, 5 am EDT
Tsuyoshi Wada (5-1, 2.83) vs Chang Yi (1-2, 3.71)
