After the brief ecstasy of moving to Nagoya Dome subsided, reality slapped the Dragons in the face. They had not made any significant plans for winning in their much bigger home ballpark. Relying on slow-moving home run hitters may have been OK at cozy little Nagoya Stadium, but using the same formula in 1997, Chunichi fell to the Central League cellar.

Apparently the Dragons have learned their lesson and are busy remodeling their team and acquiring speedy players who can help Chunichi win at home.

Pitchers:

Masahiro Yamamoto: One of the more reliable starters on the Dragons' staff, thirty-two year old Masahiro Yamamoto had another good season in 1997. Posting a 2.92 ERA, the Chunichi southpaw led the Central League with 159 strikeouts while earning the best record in Japan, 18-7.

Winner of the 1994 Sawamura Award, the Chunichi southpaw has a career 106-68 record, 1073 strikeouts and a 3.20 ERA.

Shinji Imanaka: Usually more reliable than teammate Yamamoto, Shinji Imanaka is sometimes the best pitcher on the staff. Though he was erratic when not sidelined in 1997 (2-2, 4.03 ERA, 18 strikeouts, 19 walks, in 44 2/3 innings), 27-year old Imanaka has compiled an 89-50 lifetime record, 1,072 strikeouts, and a 3.02 career ERA. In 1993, Imanaka won the Sawamura Award with a 17-7 record, 247 K's, and a 2.20 ERA.

Ken Kadokura: Because the Dragons have so many quality southpaws, right handed Ken Kadokura could potentially fill the role of right-handed starter. In 1996, the rookie earned a 7-3 record with a quite respectable 3.11 ERA.

In 1997, his 4.73 ERA (along with a 10-12 record with 143 strikeouts and a league-leading 96 walks and ten wild pitches) landed Kadokura in the Chunichi bullpen. Most easily identified by his massive chin, if the lanky 191 cm (6' 4") pitcher can gain more control he has the potential to dominate opposing batters.

Dong Yol Sun: Coming to Japan, Korean ace Dong Yol Sun raised faced very high expectations. In eleven seasons with the Haitai Tigers, the right-handed hurler had compiled a 146-40 record with 146 saves, 1698 strikeouts, 345 walks and a career 1.20 ERA. The most dominant pitcher in his native country, Sun had led the Koreans leagues in ERA eight times, strikeouts five, and wins four.

His first year with the Dragons, Sun compiled a 5-1 record with 67 saves, 22 walks and a 5.50 ERA, prompting several critics to think Chunichi had been duped. But after getting acclimated to Japanese baseball, the Korean closer tied the league lead in saves (38) while earning a 1-1 record with 69 strikeouts, 12 walks, and a sterling 1.28 ERA. It was largely because of Sun that the Dragons stayed relatively competitive through the summer despite being overwhelmingly outscored.

Shigeki Noguchi: Despite no-hitting the Giants in 1996, Shigeki Noguchi has yet to get his career on track. Showing moments of dominance, Noguchi just hasn't been able to hit a consistent stride. In 1997, he went 0-1 with a 6.57 ERA in 37 innings. Since 1994, the 24-year old lefty has compiled an 8-16 record, with 233 strikeouts and a 4.32 lifetime ERA. A southpaw on a staff filled with the same, Noguchi is going to have to struggle to assert his permanent place in the rotation.

Catchers:

Takeshi Nakamura: The regular Dragons catcher for a number of years, Takeshi Nakamura is an average batter who has shown some signs of power hitting in the past (20 home runs in 1991, eighteen in 1993). In eleven seasons since 1987, the right handed backstop has hit 103 home runs with a .250 average. In 1997, Nakamura stroked eight homers with 36 RBIs while batting .232.

Infielders:

Kazuyoshi Tatsunami: One of the few remaining bona-fide all-stars in the Dragons line-up, Kazuyoshi Tatsunami is a reliable hitter who can generally be counted on to hit ten to fifteen home runs a year. His defense is good, and since he's only 28 years old, chances are the Dragons won't need to go shopping for a new second baseman for several years.

Like nearly every other Dragon batter, Tatsunami's batting average sank in 1997. Hitting only .267 (versus .323 a year earlier), the right-hander (bats left) belted 14 home runs with 53 RBIs. In his ten year career, Tatsunami has collected 93 home runs with 431 RBIs while compiling a .287 average.

Leo Gomez: Before being released at the end of the 1996 season, third baseman Darnell Coles hit 29 home runs and batted .302. Coles was released because of his poor fielding. The job for Leo Gomez, therefore, was to produce at runs at the same pace as his predecessor, but improve on defense.

Indeed, Gomez did make an improvement: while Coles bobbled twenty balls in 1996, Gomez only committed eighteen errors a year later. That marginal upgrade is probably not what the Chunichi management had in mind.

Hitting 31 home runs and batting .315 with 81 RBIs in 1997, Gomez was the only thing that kept opposing fielders from pulling up lawn chairs and sipping mint juleps on the field. Practically the only offense the Dragons could muster, the former Chicago Cub led the team in nearly every batting category

Teruyoshi Kuji: Traded along with Koichi Sekikawa from the Tigers shortly after the 1997 season ended, twenty-nine year old shortstop Teruyoshi Kuji batted .257 with three home runs and 20 RBIs in 1997. Hardly a home run threat, the left-handed batter (throws right) still collected more walks than strikeouts and appears to be pretty good at judging pitches. Too bad he can't hit more of them. In his six-season career, the .258 lifetime batter has five homers, 23 triples and 37 stolen bases.

Yusuke Torigoe: 1996 was a pretty good year for Yusuke Torigoe. Playing in 77 games, the utility shortstop batted .276 and stole eight bases. Like nearly everyone else on the Dragon's line-up, he had a miserable season in 1997, barely hitting over .200. Despite his poor numbers, Torigoe played semi-regularly at short.

Jeong Bum Lee: Known widely as the "Korean Ichiro," in five seasons as the Haitai Tigers leadoff hitter Jeong Bum Lee has compiled a career .332 average with 106 home runs, 315 RBIs and 310 stolen bases. In 1994, the MVP shortstop batted .393 with 84 steals and in 1997 he clubbed 30 home runs while hitting .324 and stealing 64 bases. With power and speed, the acquisition of 28-year old Lee should help the Dragons take advantage of their new home ballpark.

Hiroyuki Watanabe: Twenty-six right-hander Hiroyuki Watanabe got a few chances to play in 1997, filling in for (injured, ineffective, and suspended) Yasuaki Taiho. Watanabe seemed to hit reasonably well in his first few games, batting .346 with five doubles in 52 at bats.

Tokitaka Minamibuchi: Formerly Lotte's regular second baseman, Minimibuchi lost his place in the Marines' line-up when Makoto Kosaka bumped Koichi Hori from shortstop to second. He was traded to Chunichi shortly after the end of the 1997 season. Batting .264 with five home runs in 1996, Minamibuchi is (or was) a rather ordinary hitter. In 35 games a year later, the right-handed infielder hit .205 with three doubles. Since 1990, the 32-year old has compiled a . 262 average with 22 home runs.

Outfielders:

Takeshi Yamazaki: Hitting a league-leading 39 home runs (although Chunichi pitchers walked runner-up Hideki Matsui in the last 1996 game to ensure their teammate would get the title), twenty-nine year old left fielder Takeshi Yamazaki saw his power numbers sink in 1997. It wasn't much of a surprise since the Dragons' new home, the Nagoya Dome, has much larger dimensions.

In 1997, Yamazaki's nineteen home runs was about half of his previous seasons' number. His batting average also dropped, from .322 in 1996 to .257 a year later. Without the close outfield wall at Nagoya Stadium to inflate his numbers, it's quite possible that Yamazaki will never again do as well as he did in 1996. His job should be secure, however, since there really aren't any hot prospects waiting to take his place.

Daisuke Masuda: Gaining a starting role as Chunichi's journeyman outfielder, Daisuke Masuda bucked the trend and actually had a relatively decent season. Batting .269, neither his on base or slugging percentages (.341 and .361) were very good, and he hit only two home runs. But the twenty-four year old batter did lead the league with triples.

Since he doesn't appear to have much power, he likely reached third by merit of his speed and base running skills. Yet he only stole a slim number of bases: eleven. On virtually every team, there's a designated base stealer (Ogata for Hiroshima, Matsui for Seibu, etc.), but there apparently aren't any on the Dragons staff (though that may change with Chunichi's acquisition of speedy Korean shortstop Jeong Bum Lee). In 1996, part-time infielder Yusuke Torigoe led the team with eight steals, and second baseman Kazuyoshi Tatsunami only swiped ten the year before that.

Base-stealing, it appears, is not something Manager Hoshino pushes his players to excel at, no matter how qualified they may be. Contrast that with the Kintetsu Buffaloes. Like the Dragons, the Buffaloes moved to a dome with Major League-dimensions in 1997.

But while the Buffaloes shifted strategy toward speed (stealing only 66 bases in 1996, the team swiped 112 a year later), the Dragons made few adjustments (going from 36 team steals to 55). And while the Buffaloes surged to a third place 68-63 record, the Dragons fell into the Central League cellar (after reaching second place in 1996)

Koichi Sekikawa: Traded from Hanshin shortly after the end of the 1997 season, Koichi Sekikawa was the Tigers catcher for several years before converted to the outfield. Though in and out of the line-up in 1997, the right-handed Tiger (bats left) hit .306 with five home runs in 95 games (245 at bats). Since 1991, he has compiled a .289 career batting average with twelve home runs. A generally solid batter, but with little power, twenty-nine year old Sekikawa should be able to help the Dragons.