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Bobby Valentine in Japan Series with the Lotte Marines

The last time Bobby Valentine headed into a baseball championship it was at the helm of the 2000 New York Mets.

This time round the pressure is just as great as he attempts to guide the Chiba Lotte Marines to their first Japan Series pennant in 31 years.

The Mets lost the 2000 World Series in five games to the New York Yankees, but Valentine likes the Marines' chances in this year's Japan Series.

"The Marines and the Mets of 2000 are quite similar," Valentine said Thursday. "If it came down to a question of bullpens, I would say the Marines are better."

The Marines, once a Pacific League doormat, have excelled since Valentine returned for his second stint with the club.

When they face the Central League champion Hanshin Tigers in the best-of-seven championship starting Saturday, the Marines will be bidding for their first title since 1974, when they were known as the Lotte Orions.

Valentine guided the Marines to a second-place finish in the Pacific League this season. The Marines then went on to beat the defending Japan Series champion Seibu Lions and first-place Softbank Hawks in the playoffs.

"This is a very good team," said Valentine. "Everyone has done what they needed to do to get here."

Valentine, who is hugely popular among Lotte's fans, is the first foreign manager to reach the Japan Series since Hawaiian-born Wally Yonamine did it in 1974 as manager of the Chunichi Dragons.

Former Mets Benny Agbayani and Matt Franco, who were with Valentine in 2000, had productive season and are expected to play a key role in the Japan Series.

Japanese media reported Friday that 10-game winner Naoyuki Shimizu would start today's opening game at Chiba Marine Stadium. Lefty Kei Igawa is expected to be Hanshin's starter.

Valentine is in the middle year of a three-year contract with the Marines. He has repeatedly said he will return to the Marines next season.

In his first stint with Lotte in 1995, Valentine led the team to a second-place finish but was let go at the end of the season.
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