On Wednesday in Japan, a young Lion threw his first shutout, Orix manager Satoshi Nakajima questioned his players’ attitude, Jake Scheiner decided a shutout, a castoff continues to have a happy time in Hokkaido, while another player celebrated having a new baby, and a player better known for his arm had a big day with the bat.
Wednesday’s games:
Lions 6, Buffaloes 0: At the domed stadium formerly known as “Prince,” 23-year-old Seibu right-hander Minato Aoyama (1-2) threw his first career complete game, a three-hit three-strikeout 106-pitch shutout.
“His weapon is changing speeds,” Lions GM and interim skipper Hisanobu Watanabe said. “He doesn’t have an amazing fastball, but he is able to jam hitters.”
Orix’s Hiroya Miyagi (3-5) allowed just one walk over the first 5-1/3 innings while striking out six, but surrendered four straight hits, a sacrifice fly and two more hits before he left the mound trailing 5-0. Lions rookie Takayoshi Yamamura homered to complete the scoring in the eighth.
In their last six games, all on the road, the Buffaloes have been shut out four times, and manager Satoshi Nakajima said it didn’t help that players were acting like everything is normal.
“It’s absolutely no good putting on a calm face and going about your business,” he said. “I think that’s our weakness right now.”
Continue reading NPB news: July 17, 2024