BASEBALL
Hawks blank Dragons 5-0 to take Japan Series lead
The Softbank Hawks blanked the Chunichi Dragons 5-0 in game five of the Japan Series on Thursday night at Nagoya Dome. After losing the first two games of the series at home in Fukuoka, Softbank swept the Dragons three straight on the road to move within one win of the championship.
The Hawks were leading 2-0 in the top of the eighth inning when they loaded the bases with no outs off Chunichi starter Wei-Yin Chen. Dragons manager Hiromitsu Ochiai called in reliever Junichi Kawahara, who promptly hit third baseman Nobuhiro Matsuda before giving up a two-RBI single to right fielder Hitoshi Tamura.
Hawks starting pitcher Hiroki Yamada and a trio of relievers limited the Dragons’ batters to just five hits and a walk while striking out seven.
Softbank can clinch the series with a win in game six at Yahoo Dome on Saturday night.
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15 Comments
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0
calm down
That's the Softbank I know..the cream is starting to float to the top and the real difference in talent exposed
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billyshears
The state of Japanese baseball at the moment is that the batting is exceptionally weak throughout the 12 pro teams. Plus, of course, the mindset that requires an abundance of the bunt, even in the early innings, makes watching this stuff a painful bore for the neutral.
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pawatan
More like Chunichi is showing exactly how ancient they are. They've got some, ahem, "veteran" players on that team.
And just curious, why wasn't anybody posting pro-Hawks stuff when they were down 2-0?
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pawatan
billyshears
Nah, it was down this year but mostly the power numbers. Last year was an outlier in the other direction, so many guys hit well.
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billyshears
<Nah, it was down this year but mostly the power numbers>
So the batting is exceptionally weak! How many hit over .300 this season, how many hit over 25 home runs, how many hit under .260, how many hold the bat like an elementary school student (about 6 inches from the top of the stem) and how many have stopped taking steroids (including the "gaijin helpers" of course)???
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pawatan
Wow, billyshears! Where did that rant come from?
9 players total hit over 300. Last year 27 qualifying players hit over 300. The ball was changed between last year and this year, so I don't think the skill levels have gone down!
??? Do you just not like how people play in NPB or something?
All of them, though it's unlikely many were taking them to begin with - it's not the drug-riddled US, you know!
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multitasker
What happened to the choke?? "a painful bore for the neutral." Right you are! Couldn`t bother to watch most of the series, but might watch a bit this weekend. Btw, Jsports is showing a great docu called Catching Hell, about the Chicago fan who prevented Alou from making the catch in the 2003 playoffs. Part 1 is on this week, part 2 next.
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pawatan
Maybe it reversed! Losing 3 in a row at home with a 2-0 lead sure sounds like a choke to me.
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calm down
down 2-0 it took extreme self control to stop me from making apologetic comments about my over exuberant predictions.Well the fat lady is about to sing and bring an end to an 8 year drought...and 4-2 isnt quite 4-1 or 4-0 as tipped..but,its a bulls eye compared to pawatans choke choke choke call,and the pie hole flappin' off about how the dragons had a better roster and experience...ps I think the great pitching from both sides has had a lot to do with the lack of hits in this series..Uchikawas back in the groove which is curtains for chunichi.
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multitasker
Hey, CD, you`re a Buffaloes fan, ya? Being a lions fan. I usually cheer (somewhat) for the Pa L, eg. Fighters, Mrines, especially vs. Giants or tigers, but CANNOT cheer for the Hawks!!
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calm down
So you and pawatan dislike the Hawks because of their huge budget ?? You both seem to hate them with a passion,I remember the old and tough days when they were Nankai and played out of Osaka..lost much more than they won,dont have any affinity with them but dont like to see the better team/man lose...
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pawatan
I dislike them because they are obnoxious and so are their fans. Most obnoxious fans in baseball by far. Their budget is merely secondary. Everything about them just rubs me the wrong way.
And CD, don't worry - they still have plenty of time to choke. I like pitching duels for sure but this series seems more defined by what people didn't do rather than what they did. It's not very good baseball, I think.
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lostrune2
multitasker,
BTW, "Catching Hell" is a documentary made by ESPN last month.
This Japan Series seems to be shaping up like the 1996 World Series when the underdog NY Yankees (yes, underdogs) lost the first 2 WS games at home to the defending champion Atlanta Braves, but then proceeded to sweep 4 straight games for their first championship in 2 decades and starting the dynasty of winning 4 WS in 5 years.
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pawatan
Lostrune, it seems very unlikely the Hawks will be a dynasty with Wada, Sugiuchi, and Kawasaki all leaving this offseason.
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multitasker
Pawatan, I thought you hated the Lions! Geez, make up your mind... CD, I
ve always considered the Hawks to be the main rivals of the Lions, so hope they lose. BUT I do respect them. They were the class of the PL this year. Just checked tonights score. Looks exctiing, but cant watch it now. And, no, I wasnt aeound for the Nankai Hawks days!Back to top