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NPB 2020 Sept. 16

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Lions’ rookie a winner in 1st start

Lefty Shota Hamaya (1-0) allowed a run over six innings without issuing a walk in his first career start, while veteran Takumi Kuriyama had four hits and two RBIs in the Seibu Lions’ 3-1 win over the Lotte Marines at MetLife Dome.

“I really tried to make good first pitches,” said the 21-year-old Hamaya, the Lions’ second-round pick last autumn. “When I got behind in the count, I just made sure I had good arm action on my pitches, and if they hit them, they hit them.”

Hamaya allowed a run on four this and three strikeouts.

The 37-year-old Kuriyama, playing in his 19th pro season, homered in the first off lefty Kazuya Ojima (5-6) to open the scoring and singled in the second run in the Lions’ fifth to chase the Marines starter.

“I think there is an image that left handers can bust us inside,” Marines manager Tadahito Iguchi said. “We have some work to do on that.”

Ojima allowed three runs on seven hits and a walk over 4-2/3 innings.

“This game turned on my giving up three hits to the same hitter,” Ojima said. “Obviously I need to take a hard look at that so I can do better next time.”

Tajima outduels Wakui

Daiki Tajima (2-4) threw his first career shutout, a two-hitter, to outduel Hideaki Wakui (8-3) in the Orix Buffaloes’ 2-0 win over the Rakuten Eagles at Hotto Motto Field Kobe.

Wearing the uniform of their predecessors, the Orix BlueWave, and playing in their former home park in the hills above the port city of Kobe, Yutaro Sugimoto broke open a scoreless game with fifth-inning home run, and Torai Fushimi homered against the Eagles’ bullpen in the seventh.

“From the first inning, I pounded them with my fastball,” said Tajima, who walked one while striking out eight. “I was able to really pitch my kind of game.”

The lefty, the top draft pick of the Buffaloes in 2017, didn’t allow a base runner after surrendering a one-out infield single in the fifth.

“I didn’t think about what was coming. I just took each batter head on,” Tajima said.

The complete-game shutout was Orix’s first of the season and came in its 76th game.

Despaigne lifts Hawks past Fighters

Alfredo Despaigne broke up a tie game with a two-run seventh-inning single after Fighters reliever Katsuhiko Kumon (0-2) loaded the bases with one out in the SoftBank Hawks’ 5-4 come-from-behind win over the Nippon Ham Fighters at Sapporo Dome.

Kumon left after getting only one out, on a sacrifice as the Hawks played to tie while a run down in the seventh. But they got much more as a single and a walk loaded the bases and slugger Yuki Yanagita forced in a run by walking against new pitcher Taisho Tamai, who then surrendered Despaigne’s single.

The blowup wasted a solid start from Toshihiro Nakamura, who allowed two runs on three hits and three walks while striking out six. Hawks starter Akira Niho gave up three runs, one earned, over 4-1/3 innings, but five relievers held the Fighters to a run on two walks and one hit over 4-2/3 innings. Closer Yuito Mori allowed a run after a leadoff infield single but recorded his 21st save.

Saiuchi returns from wilderness in win

Hiroaki Saiuchi, signed nine days earlier from the independent Kagawa Olive Guyners — I’m not making this up — made his first NPB start in six years, and allowed two runs over five innings for the Yakult Swallows in a 3-2 come-from-behind win over the DeNA BayStars at Tokyo’s Jingu Stadium.

Saiuchi, a 27-year-old who was the second draft pick of the Hanshin Tigers in 2011, is still 0-2 in his career as a starter, although he allowed one run over five innings in his pro starting debut on Sept. 2, 2012. He was released for the second time by the Tigers last winter, and signed this season with Kagawa.

In nine games in the Shikoku Island League-plus, Saiuchi was 5-0 with three shutouts a 0.42 ERA and 76 strikeouts in 64 innings.

BayStars starting pitcher Taiga Kamichatani allowed one run over six innings when Munetaka Murakami victimized him by hitting a good slider at the bottom of the zone and driving it deep into the stands for an opposite-field homer in the fourth.

Kamichatani, however, singled with one out to start a two-run fifth-inning rally for a one-run lead that was overtaken by the Swallows bench on back-to-back RBI singles in the seventh.

Giants reserves beat Tigers

A day after lighting up their magic number the Yomiuri Giants rested a couple of stars, shortstop Hayato Sakamoto and cleanup hitter Kazuma Okamoto as a pair of reserves delivered the firepower in a 7-6 win over the Hanshin Tigers at Tokyo Dome.

Shunta Tanaka and Soichiro Tateoka each homered and the pair combined to score four runs and drive in six, giving the Giants enough leeway to overcome a late Tigers fightback.

Giants-Tigers highlights

Carp clobber Dragons

Jose Pirela opened the scoring with a first-inning RBI single and added a late home run, his ninth, for the Hiroshima Carp in a 9-2 skewering of the Chunichi Dragons at Hiroshima’s Mazda Stadium.

Ryuhei Matsuyama also homered and drove in two for the hosts, while Carp right-hander Yusuke Nomura (5-1) allowed two runs over 5-1/3 innings to earn the win.

Carp ace Osera has surgery

Daichi Osera, the Opening Day starter for the Central League’s Hiroshima Carp the past two seasons, has undergone right shoulder surgery the team announced Wednesday.

No timeline was given for the 29-year-old right-hander’s return, but he will likely miss the rest of the season after having arthroscopic surgery to clean out the joint at a hospital in Tatebayashi, Gunma Prefecture.

Osera opened the season with back-to-back complete games for first-year manager and former Carp pitcher Shinji Sasaoka. He has twice been deactivated for “poor form.”

Marines’ Hermmann out of action

Lotte Marines reliever Frank Herrmann was deactivated Wednesday after he was diagnosed with tendon damage in his right index finger. He reportedly will refrain from throwing for two weeks.

Active roster moves 9/16/2020

Deactivated players can be re-activated from 9/26

Central League

Activated

BayStarsIF4Yukiya Ito
CarpC40Yoshitaka Isomura
SwallowsP91Hiroaki Saiuchi

Dectivated

BayStarsIF9Yamato Maeda
CarpC22Shosei Nakamura

Pacific League

Activated

LionsP20Shota Hamaya
HawksP13Akira Niho
MarinesP49Chen Kuan-yu
FightersP57Toshihiro Sugiura

Dectivated

MarinesP42Frank Herrmann
FightersP29Kazutomo Iguchi

Starting pitchers for Sept. 17, 2020

Pacific League

Fighters vs Hawks: Sapporo Dome 6 pm, 5 am EDT

Kenta Uehara (0-0, 1.00) vs Nao Higashihama (3-1, 3.02)

Lions vs Marines: MetLife Dome 6 pm, 5 am EDT

Tetsuya Utsumi (1-1, 4.20) vs Daiki Iwashita (4-5, 4.98)

Buffaloes vs Eagles: Hotto Motto Field 6 pm, 5 am EDT

Hirotoshi Masui (0-1, 3.68) vs Yuki Matsui (1-3, 4.10)

Central League

Giants vs Tigers: Tokyo Dome 6 pm, 5 am EDT

Angel Sanchez (4-2, 2.25) vs Yuki Nishi (6-3, 2.32)

Swallows vs BayStars: Jingu Stadium 6 pm, 5 am EDT

Hirotoshi Takanashi (2-4, 4.95) vs Michael Peoples (2-1, 4.86)

Carp vs Dragons: Mazda Stadium 6 pm, 5 am EDT

Masato Morishita (6-2, 2.39) vs Koji Fukutani (3-2, 2.78)

Baseball, Commentary, Paid Content, Scout Diary

Scout Diary: Jan. 24, 2020

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Friday is homework assignment day, so I’ll finish my look at the best pro infield tools with the top shortstops from Nippon Professional Baseball’s Central League.

Having now having glanced — I don’t want to glorify my youtube binge watching as study — at 12 elite shortstops, I realize I really don’t know what a 70 arm is yet. Have you seen an 80 arm at shortstop? The following video has some that show real carry, as the ball just fails to appreciably drop on its path to the target.

I’ve seen very few throws with that kind of carry in the Japanese videos I’ve been watching, so it’s possible that none of the 12 candidates have 80 arm strength, although Andrelton Simmons might.

The three CL players with the most votes in the Golden Glove voting were:

  • Hayato Sakamoto, Yomiuri Giants
  • Yota Kyoda, Chunichi Dragons
  • Yamato Maeda, DeNA BayStars

Sakamoto is a 31-year-old veteran offensive star whose metrics have in the past been occasionally the best in the league. Kyoda is a 25-year-old who is just establishing himself. Maeda is a 32-year-old longtime utility player, who won a Golden Glove after being converted to playing center fielder, who had phenomenal metrics in 2019.

Jump to 1 year as a scout page

  • Hayato Sakamoto
  • Yota Kyoda
  • Yamato Maeda

All three have soft hands, good fielding action and above-average transfers. My pick for the player with the best tools goes to Kyoda. Not only does he have excellent physical tools, but he appears to play shortstop like a point guard, with an excellent sense of timing and an understanding of where to throw the ball.

Sakamoto is blessed with a plus arm and does everything right. He is not the quickest on the transfer and tries not to backhand balls if he can help it. He uses his size to set and get good velocity on his throws. He does not appear to be as comfortable improvising with throws from all angles.

Kyoda may have the best instincts for getting to ground balls in Japan. With a quick accurate release and 70-75 arm strength. His transfer is above average, but not elite, and he could set his feet more often.

Maeda is above average at everything. The worst grade I would give him is a 60 for throwing accuracy. He is better at backhanding the ball than Sakamoto but not as good as Kyoda.

The best of the best

My tools competition has produced four league champs:

  • Fransico Lindor, Cleveland Indians
  • Nick Ahmed, Arizona Diamondbacks
  • Sosuke Genda, Seiibu Lions
  • Yota Kyoda, Chunichi Dragons

My pick from them is Ahmed. Of the Japanese shortstops I reviewed, Genda, Kyoda and Kenta Imamiya of the SoftBank Hawks could definitely start at shortstop in the majors.