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Japanese Baseball News
Archives: September 1998

September 1, 1998

Roster announced for November "Super Dome Series"

Himself selected by fan balloting, Giants manager Shigeo Nagashima will lead an all-Japanese roster of players against a tour of Major League all-stars this November.

The series will offer a taste of things to come for Japanese all-stars looking to jump to the Major Leagues in the coming seasons. Yokohama relief ace Kazuhiro Sasaki, who has often expressed an interest in jumping to the big leagues, will join the team. Ichiro Suzuki, widely regarded as Japan's top hitter and a coveted prospect for Major League scouts, received more votes (132,510) than any other player.

The list of players voted to the roster includes four Yomiuri Giants players -- all-star first baseman Kazuhiro Kiyohara, second baseman Toshihisa Nishi and outfielders Hideki Matsui and Yoshinobu Takahashi.

Takahashi will be joined on the Japan roster by fellow rookie Kenshin Kawakami of the Chunichi Dragons. Kawakami, who was named MVP in the first of this year's two All-Star games, earned more votes than any other pitcher.

Other players selected by fans to join the team include 1997 MVP catcher Atsuya Furuta of the Yakult Swallows, Hiroshima Carp third baseman Akira Eto, and Seibu Lions shortstop Kazuo Matsui.

Only players who participated in this summer's All-Star games were listed on ballots.

In announcing his complete roster the day after the voting results were published, Nagashima mentioned that while selecting players for the team, "most important was performance."

While Nagashima overlooked other Giants players, he also failed to pick a single foreign player even though Julio Franco, who placed behind Nishi in balloting for second base, received more votes (73,227) than others who were voted to the team. Nagashima received 73,004 votes while Kawakami and Eto picked up 50,037 and 0,374 respectively.

Prior to Nagashima's announcement, Franco told reporters that he wanted to play and hoped to be picked for the team. Daily Yomiuri sportswriter Ken Marantz quoted Franco as saying, "You don't get too many opportunities to play in (this series) . . . it would be an honor for me to play for the Japanese."

Franco, who was named team captain of Lotte Marines before he arrived for Spring training, was a member of the Major League team that toured Japan two years ago.

Though allowed to select almost twenty players, Nagashima also over looked Korean reliever Dong Yol Sun of the Chunichi Dragons and Kintetsu Buffaloes first baseman Phil Clark. Sun, currently holding a 0.93 ERA with 25 save points, is one of the leading relievers in Japan. Clark now leads the Pacific League with 26 home runs, 38 doubles, 257 total bases and a .610 slugging percentage.

The Major League roster will likely be announced September 15.

A look around the leagues . . .
Central League:

BayStars: BayStars received a painful dose of bad news last week when starting pitcher Daisuke Miura was taken off the active roster on Tuesday because of a liver ailment. Miura who was hospitalized the same day is expected to be off the roster for between three and four weeks. The 24-year-old right-hander has compiled a 10-6 win loss record this year while compiling a 3.25 ERA in 138 1/3 innings. While waiting for Miura to recover, Yokohama manager Hiroshi Gondo has apparently decided to give import Pat Mahomes a second chance. Prior to spending June, July and most of August on the farm, Mahomes had compiled an 0-3 record with a 5.66 ERA while allowing 48 hits in 35 innings. In his first start back with the top team, on August 29, Mahomes allowed ten hits, four walks and seven earned runs in less than five innings. With Mahomes possibly getting three more starts in Miura's absence, and the Dragons trailing by just two games...

Dragons: Apparently impressed by the glorious destruction of high school pitcher Daisuke Matsuzaka, who two weeks ago pitched a seventeen-inning complete game (250 pitches), Chunichi manager Senichi Hoshino allowed top starter Shigeki Noguchi to pitch a twelve-inning complete game and throw 203 pitches on August 30, nearly twice as much as the average starting pitcher. Noguchi lost the game when Yakult's Eric Anthony hit a bases-loaded two-run single in the twelfth. The move was a surprising aberration for Hoshino. Prior to this game, he hadn't let too many pitchers go past 130 pitches, largely because he has such a reliable bullpen. But the day before Noguchi's marathon, set-up relievers Eiji Ochiai and Yukinaga Maeda allowed five runs in the last 1 and 2/3 innings. That likely weighed on Hoshino's mind. Still, if this "aberration" becomes a full-blown trend, Yokohama may in fact have an excellent chance of holding the Dragons at withered-arm's length -- with or without the Mahomes-Express.
Last week, the Dragons released foreign pitcher Kevin Jarvis, who had spent several months on the team's minor league squad after Chunichi acquired ace Korean pitcher Samson Lee. Though Jarvis pitched well in his brief time with the Dragons' top team, Chunichi clearly gave top priority to Lee, who was signed to a two-year contract.

Giants: Eric Hillman never did pitch a game this season, Masumi Kuwata and Hiromi Makihara have been up and down all year, Sung Min Cho went on the disabled list in late July and Balvino Galvez received a rest-of-the-season suspension a few days later. Now this! On August 27, the Daily Yomiuri reported that right-hander Masaki Saito had strained a thigh muscle and will be sidelined for two to three weeks. For Giants critics, the news is bittersweet. Yes, it does increase the chances that Japan's most-hated team will compile losing seasons in consecutive years for the first time in franchise history, but the lack of pitching may give manager Shigeo Nagashima enough wiggle room to keep his job.

Swallows: If only the season had started in the beginning of May instead of April, the Swallows would now have a solid 47-37 record, 4.5 games out of first. And if the season began on June 1, Yakult would be sitting 2.5 games out of first with a 36-25 record (.590 pct.). But if we would have wiped the slate clean after the All-Star break and started the season in August, the Jingu-birds would be sitting in first place, 14-9, a half game above second-place Chunichi. What if?
Yakult got off to a miserable start but have been growing stronger ever since, and if they keep it up, they'll have an excellent chance of taking third place away from the Giants. Last week, the team climbed above the .500 mark (52-51) for the first time this season and are poised to become the Central League king-maker.
While Yakult had a well-balanced team last year -- best batting and pitching in the league -- this year they started out with the worst in both. And while their offense is still second division, the Swallows now boast the second-lowest team ERA in Japan (3.68). The team has got tremendous performances from Kenjiro Kawasaki (2.84 ERA and leading the league in complete games, shutouts, and wins), and two pitchers who never seem to get much run support -- Tomohito Ito (4-8, 2.81 ERA, 121 2/3 innings) and Mark Acre (0-1, 2.08 ERA, 56 1/3 innings). Acre missed most of the first half of the season, and it's no coincidence that the Swallows team ERA has fallen sharply since he began to pitch regularly in early July.
On a related foreign-player note, Sports Nihon reported last Saturday that the Swallows had wanted to keep popular outfielder Dwayne Hosey, but after the All-Star break gave him a goal that he had to meet in order to have his contract extended: 20 home runs and a .270 batting average for the year. Hosey is now batting .243 with nine homers.

Carp: The highlight of Hiroshima's week came on August 29, when they defeated the Yokohama BayStars 7-0 to end a five game skid. Hiroshima's batting is still near the top of the CL and that's due largely to right fielder Tomohiro Maeda who is currently leading the loop with a .339 average, 154 hits, 33 doubles, 256 total bases, 74 RBIs and a .564 slugging percentage. If he could show a little more power (currently his 23 home runs are five behind Hideki Matsui's pace), Maeda would have a credible shot at Japan's first triple-crown since Randy Bass did it for the Hanshin Tigers in 1986. While offense has been Hiroshima's trump card for the past several years, the team's pitching woes appear endless. Skipper Toshiyuki Mimura's inability to fix the mound problems likely prompted the Carp to search for a new manager. Last week, Hiroshima announced that they would promote minor league manager Mitsuo Tatsukawa to fill the post left vacant by Mimura in 1999. Tatsukawa served as Hiroshima's top catcher from 1978 until his retirement in 1992. Before managing the Carp farm team this year, Tatsukawa served one year as Daiei's battery coach.

Tigers: Though manager Yoshio Yoshida still has the heart to get mad and throw his cap in the dirt to protest an umpire's call, not much can be said for his team. With across the board sixth-place rankings in all batting and pitching categories, the Tigers have certainly earned their 41-67 record -- one more loss and they will be guaranteed a sub-.500 reason. Why Yoshida's head, albeit good-natured, is not on the chopping block remains a considerable mystery. Will all the blame for this season land on the traditional scapegoats -- here we go again -- imports Alonzo Powell (already released) and third baseman Dave Hansen (.256, ten home runs)? Hopefully not, since there is plenty of blame to go around, particularly for Yoshida. The only recent excitement for the Tigers has been the media-manufactured hype regarding Tomochika Tsuboi's chances of earning the CL's Rookie of the Year award. While Tsuboi is hitting .327 (third in the league), he's demonstrated little power. Unless the Hanshin toddler can capture the batting crown, it's virtually unthinkable that he will pry the freshman prize out of Yoshinobu "Foregone Conclusion" Takahashi's hands. The Yomiuri golden child is currently batting .292 with 18 home runs, and since opening day he's been lauded as the "golden rookie" with a "rifle arm," a kind of player who only comes around "once in a generation." Forget it, Tsuboi.

Pacific League:

Fighters: August has not been kind to the Fighters. Holding a nine-game lead after the All-Star break, Nippon Ham has finished the month with a dismal 6-14 win-loss record. While every part of the team struggled through a nine-game losing streak earlier this month, the team's batters were the prime cause of the funk. After putting an end to the streak, during which their lead over Kintetsu fell to a half-game, the Fighters won three-straight before losing the same. After several months of speculation, Kip Gross finally returned to the team on August 30 and pitched three brilliant innings before allowing six before allowing five earned runs in the fourth on two hits, two walks, and two hit batters. His return was supposed to mark the resurrection of the Fighters. For the moment, the Ham aren't looking for a win or even a tie. They're hoping for rain.

Lions: In one week, the Lions have pulled into second place, just three and a half games behind the Fighting Ham. Good pitching? No. Clutch hitting? No. The Lions owe their good fortune to Typhoon No. 4, which rained out four straight games (Friday though Monday). While the Buffs and Ham suffered through their respective indoor losing streaks, the Lions watched the rain fall through their roof-less dome. The rest should give Seibu an edge whenever the rain stops.

Buffaloes: Starting the week with a six-game losing streak before finally winning 12-5 on Monday, the Buffaloes dipped to third place. Their offense wasn't so bad, but the team's pitchers looked as if they were on the opponents' payroll, giving up an average of seven runs a game. Aside from their backward momentum, the biggest problems for the Buffs right now is that they only have 26 games left to play. Virtually tied with the Lions, who have 36 games left in the season (most of those against dispirited teams who've already dropped out of the pennant chase), Kintetsu can't survive another prolonged losing streak.

Hawks: A story in the Asahi Evening News last Friday mentioned that the Daiei supermarket chain, suffering their worst financial crisis ever, is considering a sale of the Hawks, their home ballpark, and a nearby luxury hotel. Nevertheless, the team announced that they had signed a contract with former Major League manager Davey Johnson, who will advise the team on acquiring foreign players. Could this be a first step toward Johnson succeeding Oh, who has failed to deliver a winning season since taking Daiei's helm four years ago, in 2000? If that's the case, Oh appears unwilling to give up his job without a fight. The Hawks have won twelve of their last sixteen games and are now four games under the Ham. Daiei's problem, however, is the same as Kintetsu's -- they only have 24 games left which allows little room for error or loss.

BlueWave: Only six games under .500 and ten games off the lead, the BlueWave have little chance of entering the Pennant race but still have an moderate chance of finishing with a wining record. Though he still has a lock on the PL batting crown, Ichiro Suzuki's average has fallen steadily from .395 a few weeks ago to .372. On Sunday, Ichiro was taken out of the game after being hit in the back of the skull by a pitch from Kintetsu rookie Masaki Maki (a likely PL Rookie of the Year candidate). Subsequent X-rays revealed nothing unusual. Ichiro was released from the hospital and played the following day, keeping his 531 consecutive game streak alive.

Marines: They have a solid batting average (second in the league) and good pitching (third) -- both much improved over last year -- but the Marines are on pace to win even fewer games than they did in 1997. All four games they were scheduled to play against the Lions last week were canceled -- probably the best week Lotte has had for quite a while.

September 8, 1998

The Mark and Sammy show

As exciting as the Pacific and Central League pennant races may be getting, there's only one baseball story this week, and that's Mark McGwire and Sammy Sosa's quest to the single season record of 61 home runs set by Roger Maris almost four decades ago.

But as far removed as that home run race is from Japan, where Yomiuri slugger Hideki Matsui leads with 30 homers, the race between McGwire and Sosa has some likely implications for Japanese baseball. If diluted pitching across the Majors is the main reason two players are threatening to hit over 61 home runs this year, Major League teams may try to supplement their pitching staffs with some imported help.

Recently, scouts from several Major League franchises have been coming to Japan to see what players are available and who has the talent to make it in the big leagues. Though four-time batting champion Ichiro Suzuki and career saves-leader Kazuhiro Sasaki are on everyone's short list, neither will be free-agents this season.

Though many teams want a Hideki Irabu-like starter, few want to deal with the problems involved with acquiring a player who is currently under contract to a Japanese team. Instead, it appears most ball clubs would be happy picking up a role-player or two, like Anaheim's Shigetoshi Hasegawa or former New York Mets hand Takeshi Kashiwada.

Depending on how many days they stay on their teams active roster this year, eighteen Japanese players will be eligible to test the free-agency market at the end of this season. But of those, only a handful have the clear ability to make it in the big leagues.

Of the position players only three stand out -- Yakult's Tetsuya Iida and Lotte infielders Kiyoshi Hatsushiba and Mitsuchika Hirai. Iida is a gold glove center fielder who can steal bases but has hits erratically from one season to the next, has little power, and has often been sidelined by minor injuries. Hatsushiba can clout twenty-plus home runs in Japan and teammate Hirai was batting roughly .360 going into this year's all-star break. Each has talent to play a role on a Major League team, but none is the total package.

The four pitchers most likely to succeed in the Major Leagues are Yokohama's Hiroki Nomura (29-year-old left-hander), Seibu's Tetsuya Shiozaki (30, right), Hiroshima's Shinji Sasaoka (31, right) and Masao Kida (30, right) of Orix.

Kida is having a lousy season this year (3-7, 9 saves, 5.12 ERA), but Nomura is doing reasonably well (11-7, 3.72 ERA). Sasaoka won the Sawamura Award in 1991 and was one of the best relievers in the Central League until the pitching-strapped Carp made him into a starter this year (he is currently 4-9 with six saves and a 3.67 ERA). Shiozaki had a tremendous season last year (12-7, 2.90 ERA) and has great career stats (58-33, 55 saves, 2.63 ERA before 1998) but has been less impressive this year (6-3, 4.08 ERA in 16 games).

Although they may have the talent to make it in the Majors, we have yet to see if they have the desire to go. For that, we'll have to wait until after the Japan Series.

A look around the leagues:
Central League:

BayStars: Things couldn't be going much better for Yokohama than they are now. The team has opened up a five game lead and they just swept a three-game series from their nearest challengers, the Dragons, who are currently self-destructing (see below). Moreover, the BayStars still have 29 games to go while the Dragons have just 23. The two teams will face each other in eight more games, but if the last series is any indication, Yokohama appears to have the edge. On September 4, Yokohama closer Kazuhiro Sasaki collected his 200th career save. Jose Malave was placed on the active roster last week, and in his first games since May collected two hits in four at-bats.

Dragons: When Chunichi manager Senichi Hoshino, who had been careful not to overwork top starter Shigeki Noguchi earlier this season, allowed the Central League ERA leader to pitch two complete games this last week, including a 13-inning complete game on August 30 in which Noguchi threw 203 pitches, it was clear something was up. Maybe part of it is that Hoshino, a former hurler who won Japan's top pitching prize, wants Noguchi to take home the Sawamura Award. Last year, Chunichi's Masa Yamamoto narrowly missed the prize after going 18-7 with a 2.92 ERA. That Yamamoto was eligible for the prize at all is largely because he pitched over 206 innings -- rarely are players with under 200 innings considered for Japan's version of the Cy Young award. Therefore, the extra innings may have been intended to cement Noguchi's lock on the honor. But if that was the plan, it backfired. The 24-year-old lefty lost both games, though he still has a 12-7 record, a CL-best 2.15 ERA and just over 167 innings under his belt -- second only to Hiroshima's Nathan Minchey.
A second theory is that Hoshino is simply trying to give his battle-scarred bullpen a little sorely needed rest. Like an engine that's traveled 200 miles at 7,000 rpm, the Dragons relief staff have begun showing cracks. Last Monday, set-up reliever Yukinaga Maeda dealt Chunichi a loss by giving up two late-inning earned runs. Though effective early August team closer Dong Yol Sun gave up a run on three hits last Tuesday -- only his fifth run allowed all season, and his first since mid-July. On Friday, back-up closer Eiji Ochiai earned a loss by surrendering four unearned runs on five hits in the ninth inning. Following their lead, Masahito Igasa and Yasuyuki Sato each gave up a run in Saturday's match, allowing the BayStars to come from behind and defeat the Dragons 3-2.
Though such set-backs might be business-as-usual other teams, the Dragons have been held aloft all year by a sturdy bullpen. Though their low-octane offense usually provides few runs, when the Dragons have managed to secure a lead, their relievers have been highly effective in preserving it.

Giants: Still eight games out of first place, Yomiuri's only hope for a pennant rests on Yokohama self-destructing. Hideki Matsui, having clubbed his CL-leading 30th home run of the season, appears destined to win his first home run crown. Meanwhile, things are beginning to look up for the Giants' pitching staff. Sung Min Cho, Balvino Galvez, and Masaki Saito are all still sidelined, but that has given the younger Giants pitchers and opportunity to show what they can do. On Monday, 22-year-old Hideki Okajima allowed just one unearned run on five hits over five innings. Two days later, Yasuaki Iriki, 25-years-old, got five strikeouts in 5 2/3 innings while only giving up one earned run. On Saturday, Koichi Misawa, 24, held the Swallows to four hits and one unearned run over seven innings while 21-year-old Hitoshi Ono six-hit Yakult on Sunday, giving up just two earned runs in 7 2/3 innings. The kids may not have a big impact this year, but their recent performances does offer hope for Yomiuri's injury-addled pitching staff next year.

Swallows: When the Tigers broke Yakult' seven game win streak on September 4, it knocked the defending Central League champs out of third place, a position they held for a mere 24 hours. That was also the start of a four game skid, which has dropped the team below .500 after playing nearly a week of winning ball. Last Tuesday, lefty Kazuhisa Ishii notched his 200th strikeout of the season, far beyond Central League runner up Tomohito Ito, Ishii's teammate, who has just 129. Ishii is averaging 11.00 strikeouts per nine-inning game. Bad news for the Swallows arrived on Sunday when it was learned that Mark Acre (2.34 ERA but winless this season) injured his elbow and will be sidelined indefinitely. In his place, the Swallows promoted Hisanobu Watanabe to Yakult's varsity roster. Attempting to resurrect his stalled career, the former Lions ace gave up three runs in three innings on Sunday.

Carp: Sixteen and a half games out of first place, the big news for Hiroshima last week was the team's announcement that two current players will retire at the end of this season. Left-handed pitcher Yutaka Ono, 43, will retire due to circulatory problems in his pitching arm. Ono earned the league's pitching title last year when he complied a 2.85 ERA while tallying a 9-6 record. In addition to wining the Sawamura Award in 1988 when he posted a 1.70 ERA and a 13-7 record, Ono was also one of the leagues top relief pitchers in the early 1990s and on April 4, 1998 became the older pitcher to start an opening day game. One day after Ono's announcement, Carp second baseman Kozo Shoda, who joined the team in 1985 and won CL batting titles in 1987 and '88, said that he would also retire at the end of the season. Both players are likely to become coaches for Hiroshima next year.

Tigers: If any of the following were true -- Hanshin twenty-five games out of first, mathematically eliminated from the pennant race, the holders of a .377 winning percentage, the first team in Japan to earn their 70th loss -- it would indeed be a bad day to be a Tigers fan. Since all are true, it's amazing that Hanshin is able to sell any tickets at all. The only excitement generated recently is whether newcomer Tomochika Tsuboi (.333, 2 home runs) can earn the 1998 Central League Rookie of the Year Award. Since he competing against Yomiuri "golden rookie" Yoshinobu Takahashi (.292, 18 homers), Tsuboi will probably need to win the CL batting title in order to elbow past his competition. Hiroshima center fielder Tomonori Maeda is currently leading the league with a .336 average.

Pacific League:

Fighters: Still hanging on to first place after a month of taking blows, the Fighting Ham now have a slim 1.5 game lead over the reinvigorated Lions. Only 3.5 games separate the Ham from fourth place Daiei. The Fighters got some good timely help on Sunday when Kip Gross earned his first win of the season, allowing just one run on three hits on five innings. Erik Schullstrom came into that game in the eighth inning and earned his second save in four days. A slightly panicked manager, Toshiharu Ueda tried earlier in the week to jump start his line-up by benching slugger Jerry Brooks. The Fighters lost that day. Last week, infielder Tetsuro Hirose announced that he was retiring at the end of the season.

Lions: Keeping up the heat on the Fighters, Seibu has pulled within 1.5 games of Nippon Ham but can't seem to jump ahead. They needn't worry though. Because of earlier games canceled by rain, the Lions have 30 games left to play while the Fighters have only 21. Advantage: Seibu. Right-hander Fumiya Nishiguchi, aiming for his second straight Sawamura Award, dealt himself two straight setbacks. On September 1, he allowed three runs (two earned) and six hits in two innings. Four days later, the 25-year-old right-hander surrendered seven runs on ten hits in 2 2/3 innings. In one week, Nishiguchi's ERA has risen from 2.89 (second-best in the Pacific League) to a fifth-ranked 3.35.

Hawks: Still in the PL hunt, the Hawks have just nineteen games with which to soar ahead -- the smallest margin of any of the four teams still chasing the flag. With fewer games, the Hawks have very little room for error. After three straight wins (23 strikeouts against ten hits in 22 1/3 innings), import Brian Williams got bombarded on September 4, giving up five earned runs on eight hits in less than four innings.

Buffaloes: Keeping pace with the Fighters' ups and downs, the Buffaloes remain three games off the lead with only twenty chances remaining. On September 5, 21-year-old Masaki Maki gave up five earned runs in just over four innings. But with a 3.53 ERA and a 6-4 record, Maki still has a shot at winning the Pacific League Rookie of the Year Award, largely because he has little competition. With the help of three home runs last week, bringing his total to twenty, Tuffy Rhodes is slowly pulling himself out of a two-month slump. After several disappointing mound appearances -- communication appears to be the problem -- the Buffaloes demoted Brian Shouse to their farm team while activating Phil Leftwich.

BlueWave: After flirting with the .400 barrier three weeks ago, Ichiro Suzuki's batting average has fallen to .364 -- good enough to win his fifth-straight batting title, perhaps, but not enough to garner a fourth MVP. Chris Donnels got his first home run of the year on Sunday, a grand slam in the BlueWave's losing match against Nippon Ham.

Marines: The Daily Yomiuri reported on September 3 that Mark Carreon, who has been in the United States for over a month because of back problems, will be dropped from the team. Though missing much of the season, left-handed reliever Yoshiyuki Kawamoto has returned in a big way, earning three saves last week and lowering his ERA to 2.60 in seventeen games this year. Meanwhile imported reliever Brian Warren continues to do the heavy bullpen lifting for Lotte, picking up two holds and one save last week. Warren, who has allowed runs in only two of his eighteen relief appearances, now has a 1.23 ERA. Despite having the best ERA and second best team batting average in the league, the Marines still remain in the cellar, 12.5 games off the lead.

September 15, 1998

No end to Nagashima's reign of error

After a week of speculation, the Yomiuri Giants announced that manager Shigeo Nagashima will remain the with the team one more season.

Reportedly, Nagashima had earlier decided to step aside after an incident last month which resulted in Yomiuri pitcher Balvino Galvez's suspension. However, after the manager's plans leaked to the press through the Sports Nippon tabloid newspaper, Nagashima was persuaded by Giants owner Tsuneo Watanabe to stick around.

In the past, Watanabe had pledged Nagashima would remain manager for life. But after the Giants finished with only their fifth losing season in franchise history last year, and now appear headed for a disappointing third-place finish this season, Watanabe's enthusiasm for Nagashima has recently been expressed in less grandiose terms, suggesting to some that the Giants were looking for new leadership.

Generally regarded as the most popular personality in Japanese baseball, Nagashima drew support from thousands of fans who protested his suspected dismissal. Polls in the Nikkan Sports revealed a solid majority of respondents wishing Nagashima to remain at the Yomiuri helm. One Giants fan, posting a message on the team's official bulletin board, suggested that if the Giants fired Nagashima, a new team should be formed for the express purpose of giving the aging star an opportunity to ply his trade.

Unclear, however, is how many of the respondents prefer Nagashima because of his popularity or his managing skills. Many Yomiuri fans concede that Nagashima's accomplishments fall short of his predecessors.

Nagashima's career .530 winning percentage is the lowest in Giants franchise history. Since the establishment of the two-league system in 1950, the Giants have had only four losing seasons -- all of them under Nagashima's popular leadership. Said Marc Robinson a Giants fan and reader of this page, "It's evident that the Giants are more interested in tradition than winning."

If the majority of Giants fans greeted the news with jubilation, supporters of other teams offered restrained approval. Wrote one droll Swallows fan on the Yakult bulletin board: "The Giants want to keep Nagashima around until he delivers a championship. I guess that means he will be manager for life."

A look around the leagues:
Central League

BayStars: Despite Chinch's recent drive to close the gap, the BayStars remain 3.5 games above their nearest spoilers. With nearly half of their remaining games to be played at home, Yokohama enjoys one clear advantage over the Dragons, who will play nearly three-quarters of their subsequent games on the road. Of their contests left to play, Yokohama will face Yakult, against whom the BayStars have a 12-6 win-loss record, in nine games. Chunichi, currently 13-9 against the Swallows, will have five more opportunities to meet Yakult. The Dragons and BayStars will face off in eight contests -- games which will feature Chinch's best-in-Japan starting rotation against Yokohama's hit-and-run offense. With career saves-leader Kazuhiro Sasaki for the BayStars and ace closer Dong Yol Sun appearing for the Dragons, it's likely that whoever scores an early lead in those games will prevail. Nearly every indicator gives Yokohama the edge.

Dragons: While the Central League flag is Yokohama's to lose, Chunichi may get some much needed help from rehabilitating shortstop Jeong Bum Lee. Sidelined for three months with a broken elbow after deflecting a Tetsuro Kawajiri deadball, Lee has begun playing for the Chunichi farm team. But in his one appearance last week, the Korean spark plug went 0-for-3. Unknown is whether Lee can make it back to the varsity team for the regular season.

Giants: Immediately after announcing the team would retain manager Shigeo Nagashima for one more season, the Giants proceeded to lose their next two games. Prior to that, Yomiuri had won six-straight games. The Giants did get a publicity boost earlier in the week when Miasma Kuwata was named the Central League MVP pitcher. Kuwata, who earned five wins in five August stats lowering his season ERA to 4.22 (ranked eighteenth out of nineteen CL starters), now boasts an improbable 13-4 win-loss record and leads the circuit in winning percentage. He wins small and loses big. Masaki Saito, out for a few weeks because of a pulled muscle, returned to the mound on Sunday night and pitched two strong innings of relief. Though nearly half of Yomiuri's remaining games are scheduled for their home ballpark, the team is now six games out of first place and has little chance of taking the league flag.

Swallows: Hovering one game below .500, the Swallows have 20 games remaining, a slight majority of them being home stands. Nine of their games, however, are against the Yokohama BayStars who have a 12-6 record against the Swallows. Still, the Swallows might have a chance to finish with a winning record -- perhaps even overtaking Yomiuri -- if they continue to get a big power boost from first baseman Eric Anthony, who has hit six home runs in the last six games.

Carp: Seven home runs and five RBIs. That, and the ability to keep pace with Yomiuri's Hideki Matsui, is all Hiroshima right fielder Tomonori Maeda needs to win the Central league triple crown. Currently leading the league with a .337 batting average while second with 24 homers and 78 RBIs, earned August MVP honors for hitting .369 while slugging nine long balls and batting in 26 runs. At this point, however, with only sixteen games remaining, probably the best Maeda can hope for is the batting and RBI crowns. Meanwhile, retiring hurler Yutaka Ono revealed that his decision to hang up his glove came last month when he surrendered a home run to Yomiuri rookie Yoshinobu Takahashi.

Tigers: Aside from Tomochika Tsuboi's fading hopes of winning the CL batting crown and Rookie of the Year Award -- he's currently hitting .325, well below Maeda's .337 -- the Tigers will finish the season empty-handed. Well, sort of. Hanshin's minor league team last week clinched a division championship thanks largely to import Doug Creek's sterling 8-1 record and 2.27 ERA in 95 innings. Creek had been on Hanshin's top team for the first month of the season but was demoted after arm stiffness -- a result of overwork in the third game of the season -- resulted in a brief lack of control. After being shifted down to the farm, Creek's spot was quickly taken over by lefty Darrell May, who has proven to be one of the team's top pitchers. If ever there was an example of a team needing the quota on foreign players lifted, it is Hanshin. Aside from Keichi Yabu and Tetsuro Kawajiri, the Tigers have no Japanese pitchers worthy of wearing a professional uniform. With a little more help from Creek, maybe this season wouldn't have been so humiliating for Hanshin's top team.

Pacific League:

Fighters: Kip Gross may have returned just in time to watch the Fighters stumble into obscurity. In a near four-way tie for first place, Nippon Ham holds a .002 percentage lead over second-place Seibu. Throughout the season, the Fighters have had a dismal road record, winning just 25 out of 57 away games. The Ham will be the visiting team in nine of their remaining sixteen contests. The Fighters will have either two or three games against every Central League team except the Marines, who they will play six times. Fortunately, Nippon Ham has their best win-loss record (13-8) against Chiba Lotte. Still, the Fighters problems seem to be everywhere at once. Though they seem to have finally given the closing spot to Erik Schullstrom, who has not give up a run in nearly two months, the team's batting average continues to plummet while their ERA -- despite Satoru Kanemura's shutout victory on September 12 -- appears inching upward every day.

Lions: Everything is going Seibu's way. Oddly, the second-place Lions -- just a half game behind Nippon Ham -- have been designated with the Magic number "21." It is their pennant to lose. Seibu will play nearly two-thirds of their remaining 24 games at home. Half of the twenty-four contests will be against the two worst teams in the league. And if that's not enough, the Lions got a psychological boost last week when pitcher Fumiya Nishiguchi won Pacific League MVP honors for August after pitching the team to three shutout victories. On September 11, Rudy Pemberton hit his first home run of the year after being called up just a few days earlier.

Hawks: Just five victories away from their first winning season since 1994 (and only their second in the last twenty years), Daiei can't hope for much more. They only have thirteen games left, with almost all of them at opponents' ballparks. That, however, may not be a bad thing for the Hawks -- they're currently 30-26 on the road. Last week, the team announced that infielder Hiroki Kokubo, who missed the first two months of the season because of a tax evasion suspension, will undergo surgery in his right shoulder.

Buffaloes: Two games out of first, the Buffaloes will play ten of their next fifteen games on the road. Kintetsu has gone 26-31 away from Osaka Dome. Knuckle-ball pitcher Rob Mattson pitched a complete game three-hit victory over the Fighters on September 9. Meanwhile, teammate Phil Clark, who won August PL MVP honors (10 home runs, 35 RBIs, 37 hits) last month and is now batting .330 with 45 doubles and 28 homers, would be any easy pick for the year's MVP award if the prize were simply handed out to the league's top player. Instead, the honor usually goes to the best play on the pennant-winning team. And that doesn't look like Kintetsu this year.

BlueWave: Finally. After months of poor starting pitching, things are starting to look up for the Orix mound staff. On Sept. 10, Hiroshi Kobayashi pitched a complete game two-hitter and tallied eleven strikeouts while Koichi Takahashi three a three-hit shutout two days later. Except for Mark Mimbs allowing four runs in three-plus innings on Sept. 11, all other BlueWave hurlers had an impressive week -- no wonder the team won four of their last five games. With the additional help of reliever Taira Suzuki and Masao Kida, Orix lowered it's team ERA from 4.29 to 4.13 in one week. If only the BlueWave had gotten this kind of pitching a few months ago, the PL pennant race might have been a little more crowded.

Marines: It has been almost two decades since Lotte was pitching and hitting this well (3.81 ERA, .269 average) at the same time. Why, then is the team in last place? It boggles the mind, especially since they have only scored four fewer runs than they have allowed. Given all their background stats, they should be in a virtual tie for first place. Is it poor managing, bad timing, early bullpen problems? Whatever the reason, the Marines -- if they can stay consistent next year -- will be a team to watch.

September 22, 1998

Yakult skipper Nomura to step down

Swallows manager Katsuya Nomura submitted his resignation to the Yakult Swallows on Sunday and the team accepted.

The Yakult Swallows have accepted the resignation of manager Katsuya Nomura, who announced his decision at a press conference on September 20.

Claiming that it was time to take off his uniform, Nomura told reporters that the team is planning to make changes so now is a good time for him to step down.

TV Asahi's NewsStation reported that the Swallows will ask 51-year-old batting coach Tsutomu Wakamatsu to manage the team next season. Wakamatsu began his playing career as an outfielder with the Yakult Atoms in 1971 and compiled a .319 career batting average, second only to Leron Lee's lifetime .320 mark, before retiring in 1989. He also collected 2,173 hits, 220 home runs, earned the Central League batting crown in 1972 and 1977. Wakamatsu was named league MVP in 1978 while leading the Swallows to their first Japan Series championship.

Wakamatsu became Yakult's batting coach in 1993. A soft-spoken reserved character, Wakamatsu little resembles Nomura who is well known for being demanding and publicly ridiculing players.

Since becoming Swallows manager in 1990, Nomura has led Yakult to four Central League pennants and three Japan Series championships. Prior to the current season, in which the Swallows are now in fourth place (59-62), Nomura had compiled a career 1,075-955 record as manager. Nomura also served as a player-manager for the Nankai Hawks from 1970-77. In a twenty-six season playing career as catcher, Nomura played in a record 3017 games and clubbed 657 home runs, a Pacific League record.

In a biography published several years ago, Nomura was quoted as saying that after he leaves the Swallows, he would be interested in rebuilding one of the weaker Tokyo-area teams, perhaps the Yokohama BayStars or Chiba Lotte Marines. Teams that are already competitive, Nomura claimed, wouldn't offer the kind of challenge he prefers.

Yokohama is currently on pace to win their first Central League pennant in nearly four decades while the Marines are headed for their second-straight last-place finish and their twelfth losing record in thirteen seasons.

A look around the leagues:
Central League

BayStars: As if to ensure the team wins their first pennant since 1960, the Yokohama Chamber of Commerce last week announced that they would offer three million yen in incentives (100,000 yen to the top player and 300,000 to the runner ups). With a four game lead and the Dragons apparently unable to capitalize on Yokohama's few recent losses, the BayStars are beginning to look inevitable. Closer Kazuhiro Sasaki earned his record-breaking 39th save on September 19 and made it 40 the following day The BayStars' pitching staff received good news when Daisuke Miura (11-6, 3.19 ERA), who had been hospitalized with a liver ailment earlier in the month, returned to the active roster on September 20, pitched nearly three-innings of no-hit relief to earn the win. On Sept. 17, starter Hiroki Nomura pitched a complete game, allowing just three hits against the Yomiuri Giants. The only recent question mark for Yokohama appears to be first baseman Norihiro Komada's defense, which has been marred with several errors in recent games.

Dragons: Perhaps too little, too late, but Chunichi has finally gotten some good news for their offense. After spending three months on the disabled list nursing a broken elbow, Jeong Bum Lee has returned to Chunichi's varsity roster. Although a shortstop earlier in the season, Lee has been moved to left field. On Saturday, Lee went one-for-four but only got on base once in Sunday's game, when he was walked in the fifth inning. Before his injury, a result of a Tetsuro Kawajiri "deadball," Lee had been the top Central League base stealer, and a crucial part of Chunichi's otherwise slumbering offense. The Dragons have fourteen games remaining, eight against the BayStars, and they'll need to start scoring early and often if they have any serious intent to claim the CL flag.

Giants: The big news for the Yomiuri Giants last week was their decision to release infielder Mariano Duncan. Unable to adjust quickly to pro yakyu, Duncan compiled a .232 batting average with ten home runs and 34 RBIs in 63 games. Also leaving the team, veteran lefty Kazuhisa Kawaguchi announced his retirement last week. Before jumping to the Giants as a free agent in 1995, Kawaguchi helped the Hiroshima Carp win three Central League pennants and one Japan Series title. In his eighteen year career, Kawaguchi compiled a 139-135 win-loss record and a lifetime 3.38 ERA. Leading the Central League with 32 homers, Hideki Matsui now appears to be on his way to earning his first home run crown. Although Masumi Kuwata got pounded on Sept. 15 when he gave up six earned runs in six-plus innings, the right handed pitcher earned his 14th win of the season when he pitched a complete-game, four-hit shutout against the Hanshin Tigers.

Swallows: Aside from their manager leaving (see above), it's been a rather quiet week for Yakult. Dwayne Hosey collected two home runs, Eric Anthony has recently been side-lined, and pitcher Kazuhisa Ishii boosted his league-leading strikeouts total to 224 on Friday, when he struck out fourteen Yokohama BayStars' batters.

Carp: As if finishing the season with a losing record weren't depressing enough for this small-town franchise, the Carp will likely go home empty handed in all of the individual awards as well. Center fielder Tomonori Maeda has fallen to second place in the league's batting standings and has been sidelined recently, prompting him to snap at a fan yelled "Gambatte!" to him last week. Nate Minchey (14-9, 2.87 ERA) is now in a three-way tie for the league lead wins, but neither his background stats nor his nationality bode well for his chances of winning the coveted Sawamura Award.

Tigers: Rumors have been buzzing recently about a likely shake-up in the Hanshin organization. Team president Kazuhiko Miyoshi and manager Yoshio Yoshida are reportedly among those preparing to walk the plank. There may also be a player purge, though it's unclear who may be involved. Despite pre-season boasting that this would be the "year of the tiger," Hanshin, currently 48-76, is headed for its third last-place finish in four years.

Pacific League:

Fighters: Still hanging on to first place, the Ham seem determined not to relinquish first place without a fight. Unfortunately, at this point it is almost out of their hands. Though the Fighters have a one-game lead, they have just eleven games remaining while the second-place Lions have eighteen. Should Seibu get hot in the next two weeks, Nippon Ham won't have the room to fight off a challenge. Psychologically, that should benefit the Fighters since, in theory, it should take the pressure off them and allow the team to play up to their potential. Whether that mind-set or the win-or-die-trying philosophy prevails may determine whether Nippon Ham chokes or goes all the way. With the return of Kip Gross, who has pitched three great games since his return on August 30, the Ham have gotten the pitching help they desperately needed. But in an attempt to apply shock-therapy to the Fighters' line-up, manager Toshiharu Ueda has recently kept outfielder Jerry Brooks (.249, 25 HR, 73 RBIs) on the bench. Meanwhile, Nigel Wilson leads the Pacific League with 31 home runs and 126 RBIs.

Lions: It's their pennant to lose. With eighteen games left to play, most of them at home, a surge could put the Lions over the top. Although they briefly reached first place after Saturday's game, their loss on Sunday allowed the Fighters to reclaim the league high-water mark. Though still a strong team, the Lions are trailing last-year's pace in nearly all pitching and batting categories, most notably in steals. They swiped 200 bases last year, but have only compiled 126 in this year's campaign. Manager Osamu Higashio's haphazard approach to running his pitching staff has also taken it's toll as several pitchers appear in starting and relief roles from week-to-week. But despite the problems, the Lions have the home park advantage and the best chances of seizing the flag.

Hawks: With only seven games remaining, mostly on the road, Daiei has no room for mistake. Currently, 1.5 games out of first, the team is reportedly planning to retain Luis Lopez and Brian Williams for next season.

Buffaloes: Two games out of first with only nine contests remaining, the Buffaloes can't make any mistakes in the next two weeks. Starters Hideo Koike and Hiroshi Takamura, have been struggling all year but fortunately Rob Mattson, Masaki Maki and Motoyuki Akahori have been able to do more than their share of heavy lifting recently. Knuckle-baller Mattson (8-5, 3.38 ERA), who is 6-3 in his last nine starts, delivered another win on Sept. 16. Though it's taken time for him to make the proper adjustments after several years in the Kintetsu bullpen, Akahori (3-2, 4.03 ERA) allowed just three hits in a complete game shutout of the BlueWave on Sept. 19. Maki (6-5, 3.49), a likely Pacific League Rookie of the Year contender, pitched 8 1/3 innings last Thursday and struck out eleven. Phil Clark remains the core of Kintetsu's offense, as he continues to lead the circuit in doubles, total bases and slugging percentage. But all cylinders must start firing if Kintetsu has any hope of surging past the Lions and Fighters.

BlueWave: For a team that has played the entire year in the depths of the league, the BlueWave are slowly coming to life. Though 7.5 games out of first, Orix may not have a chance of winning the pennant, but they could finish with a winning record... if the win nine of their eleven remaining games. Aside from Ichiro Suzuki's nearly inevitable fifth-straight batting title, about the only thing the team has to look forward to is a long Winter.

Marines: Now that manager Katsuya Nomura is available, will he take over the Marines and lead lowly Lotte to championship after championship. Although that is probably the best hope for the Marines to climb out of the cellar, it probably won't happen next year. The team appears committed to manager Akihito Kondo, for better or worse. The Marines have all the basic elements -- decent starting pitching, a respectable offense, good defense, and the foundation for a strong bullpen -- they just need someone to get all the wheels moving in the same direction, and that evidently isn't Kondo. Wait'll next year... or the year after next.

September 29, 1998

From the end of a season,
the beginning of another

As the curtain begins to close on this baseball season, and it looks ever more likely that we will see the Lions face the BayStars in this year's Japan Series, several players have chosen to take their last bow this week.

Hiroshima Carp left-hander Yutaka Ono pitched to one batter on September 27 -- he got a strikeout -- before descending the mound for the last time. One day before that, Orix BlueWave hurler Yoshinori Sato entered the ninth inning with two outs against the Hawks, giving up a hit and getting Kenji Jojima to ground out to end the last game of Sato's career.

Nippon Ham infielder Tetsuro Hirose made it official last week when he formally announced his retirement. One has to wonder if his sparingly used teammate, Hiromitsu Ochiai, will follow in Hirose's footsteps and choose a dignified departure rather than one more year going through the motions.

From Alfonso Soriano in May to Desi Wilson last Friday, thirteen foreign players have already come and gone this season. Wilson and teammate Tateo Kaku-ri were the latest, being cast-off last week in Hanshin's panic to do something, anything, to distract attention from manager Yoshio Yoshida's abysmal 49-79 record.

But even as this season winds down and players finally leave this boy's game behind, already some are looking toward next season. The Yakult Swallows are reportedly moving to acquire lefty pitcher Jason Jacome from the AAA Buffalo Bisons. With the Japanese amateur draft less than two months away, teams are already plotting to take away the top prizes. The Yomiuri Giants hope to acquire top college pitcher Koji Uehara while Daisuke Matsuzaka, the high school hurler who threw nearly five hundred pitches during the last week of the summer high school baseball championship at Koshien Stadium, announced that he would play only for the Yokohama BayStars -- if drafted by any other team, he will elect to play for a corporate team.

For those whose teams have already fallen out of the pennant races, looking ahead offers hope. But we still have a season to finish, so let's take...

A look around the leagues:
Central League

BayStars: Although the BayStars lost their magic number with their defeat on September 28, Yokohama still remains 5.0 games above the Dragons and, with thirteen games remaining, appear unlikely to relinquish the Central League top spot. Aside from waiting for the BayStars to clinch the pennant, about the only thing left to do is speculate which of their worthy players will earn the league MVP. Since the award is almost exclusively given to a player from the league's pennant winning team, three BayStars position players -- left fielder Takanori Suzuki, second baseman Bobby Rose, and shortstop Takuro Ishii -- seem likely candidates.
While Suzuki is headed for his second straight batting title, Rose isn't far behind and will probably overtake Giants slugger Hideki Matsui in the chase for the RBI crown. Ishii, while batting .320, is already leading the CL with 35 steals and will most likely surpass Matsui in runs. (Why are Rose and Ishii due to exceed Matsui? Because both players are two RBIs and runs, respectively, behind the Yomiuri slugger and while the Giants have just four games left to play, the BayStars have thirteen.) Toshio Haru, Yokohama's mood-setting center fielder, might also be among the others except for three factors: his primary stats (.275, one HR) are not that great, he was suspended for the first six weeks of the season, and he was convicted of tax evasion last Winter. What the gut-posing outfielder lacks in shame, he more than compensates for in stigma, which is the most likely reason for overlooking his role on the team when the MVP is announced.
The other -- most obvious to some -- MVP candidate is closer Kazuhiro Sasaki (1-1, 41 saves, 0.72 ERA), who has broken several relief records this year. But does a player who only contributed to half his team's victories, and only one inning of each, really deserve such an honor? There is precedent -- Chunichi reliever Genji Kaku won earned the Central League MVP when he collected 37 saves in 1988. Other than Sasaki, no other Yokohama pitcher looks like he has much of chance to win either the MVP or the Sawamura Award.
While manager Hiroshi Gondo's pitching strategy -- usually lifting his starters before their pitch count reaches 100 -- has helped ensure the long-term vitality of his rotation, it has left most of pitchers ineligible for the Sawamura. To win Japan's top pitching prize, pitchers usually have to have at least 15 wins, a .750 winning percentage, or at least 200 innings on the mound. None of Yokohama's hurlers even come close to any of those benchmarks.

Dragons: Any number of games throughout the season could be identified as the crucial turning point for Chunichi, but none poignant than their loss to the BayStars on September 22. Prior to that match-up, Dragons manager Senichi Hoshino stated that his team needed to win at least six of their remaining eight games against the BayStars to keep Chunichi's pennant hopes alive. With the previous day's game rained out, Dragons ace starter Shigeki Noguchi pitched on more than a week's rest -- Hoshino had reportedly been saving his "BayStars-killer" for this match -- and promptly gave up six runs, four earned, in less than three innings. With the team's biggest asset, their best in Japan pitching staff, failing them, the Dragons went on to lose that game and the next day's match as well. While Yokohama has recently stumbled, losing their last two games against the second-division Carp and Swallows, it looks highly unlikely that the Dragons will be able to capitalize on the front-runner's losses.

Giants: Making a last-ditch drive for respectability, the Giants have won their last six games in a row due largely to some impressive, albeit late, pitching performances. On September 22, Yusaku Iriki pitched a complete game two hitter against Hiroshima. Four days later, Masaki Saito and Kazutaka Nishiyama combined to shutout the Swallows three hits and three walks. But, for a team known for its power, the Giants have also been producing a lot of fireworks. On September 23, Hideki Matsui pounded his 33rd home run of the year, helping the Giants flay the Carp 11-3. While their recent wins guarantee that the Giants will finish in first division, but since they have only four games remaining, they can only move up in the standings if the Dragons suddenly fold in their last eleven matches.

Swallows: Since announcing last week that he would retire at the end of the season, Yakult manager Katsuya Nomura has led the team to three losses and one win. Last weekend, he gave a premature "sayonara" speech to his players and left early when he nearly broke into tears. A day later, he was his usual self, complaining that none of his players were any good. Nomura will be a tough act to follow... or miss. According to the Sept. 26 Nikkan Sports, the Swallows are moving to acquire Jason Jacome, who compiled a 14-2 record with a 3.26 ERA this year with the Buffalo Bisons, the Cleveland Indians AAA affiliate.

Carp: Losing seven of their last ten games, the Carp are headed for their worst finish since 1993. Losing his tenth game of the season on September 22, Nathan Minchey (14-10, 2.92 ERA) saw his hopes of a Sawamura Award dim substantially. In addition to the ingrained bias against foreign players winning individual awards, Minchey is one short of the of the usual number of wins to be considered for the prize. The only other honor within Hiroshima's grasp is the CL batting title. Tomonori Maeda, no batting .336, sits in second place behind Yokohama's Takanori Suzuki (.338). Since the Carp have only seven games remaining while the BayStars have fourteen, Maeda's hopes rest largely on how soon the BayStars can clinch the pennant and how well Suzuki bats until then.

Tigers: Starting their purge before the end of their dreadful season finally arrives, the Tigers (49-78 record with eight games to go) last week released Taiwanese pitcher Tateo Kaku-ri and American outfielder Desi Wilson. Kaku-ri, a middle reliever with minimal control, has been with Hanshin for several years but compiled a 4.61 ERA in eleven relief appearances in the first two months of the season. Wilson, on the other hand, spent the first four months of the season on the Hanshin farm team, where he hit very well in June and July. In order to promote him, however, the team had to release Alonzo Powell. With Wilson as their only foreign outfielder remaining on the team, manager Yoshio Yoshida just didn't give him a chance to succeed. Yoshida first used Wilson in center field, a position he had never played, then gave Wilson only a handful of pinch-hit at bats over the next month. Given Yoshida's poor judgment, it appears the Tigers released the wrong person.

Pacific League:

Lions: Finally with first place all to themselves, the Lions are wasting a lot of opportunities to deliver the knock-out punch since they can't seem to put much space between themselves and the rest of the league. Part of the problem is precipitation which have postponed three of Seibu's last seven contests. Their pitching has gotten stronger since the early months of the season thanks largely to Fumiya Nishiguchi (12-11, 3.24 ERA), and Takashi Ishii (8-3, 3.05 ERA). But their offense has been erratic recently, prompting manager Osamu Higashio to finally bench Domingo Martinez, who hasn't produced much power since the All-Star break, and temporarily replace him with DH Rudy Pemberton. With fourteen games remaining and a slim lead, the Lions can't afford to put off the inevitable much longer. Later this week, the Lions face off against the Fighters in a crucial three-game series at Seibu Stadium.

Fighters: If it was a bad week for the Fighters (two wins, three losses -- not counting their former first-place position), it was even worse for the team's gaijin. Jerry Brooks has spent gotten a dugout view of the action for the past week, while Nigel Wilson joined him for Sunday's game on the bench. The Fighters recent batting drought has put the heat on the pair, who started the season as the top foreign sluggers in Japan. And now, it has come to this. Erik Schullstrom, who had been the team's top closer, blew a save opportunity on Sept. 23 by allowing four earned runs in the ninth inning, prompting manager Toshiharu Ueda to prematurely mourn the death of his bullpen. True, when Schullstrom screws up, he does it in dramatic proportions -- in two of his three losses (out of 37 games) he has allowed more than one run to score. Nevertheless, Schullstrom appears to be one of the league's most reliable closers, not to mention one of its most overpowering. In 44 innings, Schullstrom has allowed just 29 hits and 21 walks while striking out 51 opponents. Ueda shouldn't forget, while weighing his strategy for the next week, those foreign players who did the heavy lifting earlier in the season.

Buffaloes: In one week, Kintetsu's fate should be known. Currently three games out of first place, the Lions have to overtake the Fighters quickly. But even their top pitcher, import knuckle-baller Rob Mattson, came up short on Sept. 28, so the Buffaloes' post-season chances are beginning to fade sharply. With only five more games remaining, the Buffaloes can reasonably take second place from the Fighters, but a pennant would require the Lions to self-destruct.

Hawks: Three games out and with only two contests remaining, Daiei can only hope that the other three teams in the PL flag hunt knock one another out. Otherwise, there's no hope. All of the league's individual batting honors are out of their reach, and about the only pitching honor within grasp is the PL wins title, an area in which Kazuhiro Takeda (13-9) currently hold the lead.

BlueWave: Throughout the first month of this season, a question that seemed to pass through everyone's mind: "What's wrong with Orix?" Their pitching staff seemed in tatters, the absence of Troy Neel (dismissed shortly after the 1997 season finished) coupled with Chris Donnels' injured hand left the team with almost no power hitting, and more than one newspaper noted Ichiro Suzuki's inability to hit in the clutch. Though Neel was brought back to the club in May and Ichiro's batting average crested at .395 in August, it wasn't until September that the BlueWave really played like the team that had won two Pacific League pennants in the last three years.
In the last four weeks, Orix has surged, winning fourteen of their last twenty-one games thanks largely to the power-hitting of Neel (25 home runs) and Yasuo Fujii (30). Chris Donnels, swinging a hot bat himself when not injured, came through with his share of roundtrippers until a sprained ankle sidelined him (perhaps permanently as far as the BlueWave are concerned) on Sept. 26. Orix has also gotten some timely bullpen help from new closer Masao Kida who notched his thirteenth save of the season on Sept. 27. And what of Ichiro's quest for his fifth straight batting title? In the bag. With a .359 average, a significant lead over Kintetsu Buffaloes first baseman Phil Clark (.326), Ichiro has been resting his aching back the past week by playing only as a ninth-inning defensive replacement -- just enough work to keep his consecutive games streak alive. The BlueWave now hold a 62-64 record with six games remaining.

Marines: Having long since been eliminated from the pennant race and virtually locked into last place, the Marines finally have something to get excited about... shortstop Makoto Kosaka now lead the Pacific League with eight triples and 40 steals. The only problem is that Lions shortstop Kazuo Matsui has 39 steals and four more games to play than Kosaka. Still, Kosaka's mark is even more impressive considering he missed several games with influenza earlier in the season and that he's got a dismal .232 batting average and .298 on-base percentage (vs. Matsui's .318, .377 marks). If only Kosaka had gotten on base a little more often, he might hold a wider margin.

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