Essentially the pattern remained consistent in 1997. By the all-star break, Eto was sidelined with a fractured foot and the Carp had compiled a second place 40-37 record, seven-and-a-half games out of first. Though leading the league with 399 runs scored and 97 home runs while batting .261, the team's pitching staff had compiled a 4.38 ERA, worst in the league.

The Carp remained in the pennant race until late August when they began fading. By the time they finished with a losing 66-69 record, the team ERA rose to 4.44 and batting average fell to .259.

Pitching: One of the worst in Japan. To be fair, Hiroshima Stadium is a tough place for pitchers to post great numbers. The park has the shortest outfield walls in Japan and one of the smallest foul territories. That said, Hiroshima pitchers are still a pretty miserable lot.

In 1997, Hiroshima compiled a team 4.44 ERA, the worst in Japan. Carp pitchers struck out 837 batters (only the Tigers in the CL did worse), walked 837 batters (second worst), surrendered 1272 home runs (worst) and 1272 hits (worst).

Only Yutaka Ono, Toshikazu Sawazaki and Shinji Sasaoka did well in 1997. Ono led the league with a 2.85 ERA while Sawazaki took the Rookie of the Year award with a 12-8 record and 3.74 ERA. Sasaoka, the team's top fireman, earned a 2.65 ERA while posting 21 saves and compiling 26 save points.

1995 Rookie of the Year Yasayuki Yamauchi offered his worst to-date performance, compiling a 5.21 ERA, a 7-11 record, and 23 strikeouts. First year Hiroki Kuroda pitched well at times, but finished with a 4.40 ERA and a 6-9 record.

Since forty-two year old Ono will likely slip in 1998, the Carp are going to have to rely heavily on Sawasaki and Kuroda. Yamauchi may come around, but because his early success had a lot to do with a gimmick delivery which CL batters have apparently gotten used to, it will be tougher for him to turn his career around.

Offense: Though buoyed by one of the best hitters parks in the nation, the Carp feature the most explosive offense in Japan. Three Hiroshima batters belted over twenty home runs (Tomoaki Kanemoto 33, Luis Lopez 30, Akira Eto 28) while Koichi Ogata clubbed seventeen, Tomonori Maeda fifteen and Kenjiro Nomura thirteen. Right fielder Ogata stole 49 bases and shortstop Nomura swiped 26.

Given their home run production and slugging percentages (over .500) either Eto, Lopez or Kanemoto could easily fill the cleanup hitter role. The Carp can do it all, hit for average, club home runs and steal bases.

The only weak spots in Hiroshima's line-up lies with catcher Shuji Nishiyama (batted .314 in 1996, .205 a year later) and Koji Shoda, a good defensive second baseman who led the CL in batting in 1987 and '88, but hit .235 and .241 the last two years. Nishiyama is thirty and may well bounce back, but thirty-six year old Shoda probably won't.

Top Player: Luis Lopez. Not only Hiroshima's best batter in 1997, first baseman Luis Lopez led the Central League in four categories: hits (170), doubles (37), total bases (297) and RBIs (112). The Brooklyn native also batted .320 with 30 home runs and a .558 slugging percentage. Unfortunately, the Carp could neither offer Lopez what he considered his market value (around $2 million per year) nor a two-year contract. The first baseman eventually signed a one-year deal with the Hawks.

Going into 1998, there are several candidates for "top player": third baseman Akira Eto, left fielder Tomoaki Kanemoto, shortstop Kenjiro Nomura and a few others. The Carp may be losing their top batter, but they've got a lot of fireworks to light off when the 1998 season begins.

Surprise Player: Yutaka Ono. Posting a 5-4 record with a 3.93 ERA in 1996, it looked like the end was near for Ono. In 1997, however, the forty-two year old pitcher led the league with a 2.85 ERA while posting a 9-6 record. He's slowing down, so this may be his last hurrah.

Biggest Disappointment: Akira Eto. One of the best players in Japanese pro baseball, Eto can't seem to complete a season without breaking one or more bones. In 1996, he deflected a one-hop infield drive with his cheek bone, and a year later broke a bone in his foot. Consequently, he misses a lot of games.

Most over-rated: Yasuyuki Yamauchi. Winner of the 1995 CL Rookie of the Year award, Yamauchi posted a 14-10 record with a 3.03 ERA three years ago. However, the Carp hurler has steadily declined for the past two years, finishing the 1997 season with a 5.21 ERA and a 7-11 record.

Initially, Yamauchi's odd wind-up (he stops midway through the delivery) succeeded in throwing off batters' timing. However, it now appears that CL hitters have adjusted to Yamauchi's gimmick delivery. Unless he can find some other way to get batters out, the twenty-five year old right-hander may soon find himself on the team's minor league squad.

New Faces: Kenji Tomashino (from Swallows), a career .256 part-time hitter may help out either at second base or at third and short when the starters are injured. Nate Minchey, a 29-year old former Colorado Rockies right-handed hurler might help the thin Carp pitching staff.

Strongest area: Fast and powerful line-up: the Carp can belt home runs, steal bases and hit for average. Probably the best outfield in Japan, and the top third baseman (Akira Eto) and shortstop (Kenjiro Nomura). Relief pitcher Shinji Sasaoka is one of the best closers in Japan.

Weakest area: Thin starting pitching rotation: Yutaka Ono may have pitched well in 1997, but he'll have a tough time repeating. Sawasaki and Kuroda are going to have to carry the pitching staff if Yasuyuki Yamauchi continues to flounder. On offense, catcher Shuji Nishiyama and second baseman Kozo Shoda remain the weakest links.

Biggest question mark: Yutaka Ono. The forty-two year old pitcher led the CL with a 2.85 ERA in 1997, but can he continue to do well in 1998? If Ono falters and no one else takes his place, the Carp pitching staff could get even worse.

Secret weapon: Shinji Sasaoka: Though the Carp have the Central League's worst pitching staff, Sasaoka is a reliable and productive closer who earned 21 saves with a 5-5 record and 2.65 ERA in 1997.

Fading star: Yutaka Ono: His 1997 pitching crown was probably the aging hurler's last hurrah. Hiroshima can't keep depending on him to carry the team for much longer. Also 1995 Rookie of the Year Yasuaki Yamauchi. His jerky wind-up threw off batters timing in first year, but opponents have since adapted.

In 1998, there will apparently be a new rule in the CL which will (if enforced) curtail the amount of strange movements pitchers are allowed to make. After Hideo Nomo and Hideki Irabu have been called on so many balks, the rule is apparently designed to bring Japanese baseball more in line with international standards. Because his wind-up is so unorthodox, Yamauchi will likely suffer the most.