The Uni-President Lions piled on the runs at the Tokyo Dome yesterday, defeating the SK Wyverns 10-4 to advance the today’s Asia Series final on account of having conceded less runs in the tournament than the vanquished South Koreans.
Liu Fu-hao hit a pair of three-run homers, his first in the fourth inning as the Lions jumped to a 5-0 lead, and then added another in the eighth when the Taiwanese league champions scored four more runs.
The Uni-President Lions will take on the Japan Series champions Seibu Lions in today’s final.
The Asia Series features the top teams from the professional baseball leagues of Japan, South Korea, Taiwan and China, with all the matches being played in Tokyo.
■SEIBU 16, TIANJIN 2
NPB Champions Saitama Seibu Lions made quick work of China’s CBL champions the Tianjin Lions, winning 16-2 in a mercifully shortened seven-inning game.
Left-fielder Kuriyama Takumi and rotund third baseman Nakamura Takeyama had three hits apiece for Seibu.
Takeyama’s towering three-run blast in the top of the second — which ended up in the upper tier of left field — triggered the Japanese champions’ offensive onslaught. First baseman Ishii Yoshihito and shortstop Kataoka Yasuyuki also had multiple-hit games for Seibu.
Ohnuma Koji picked up the win for Seibu in relief of Taiwanese import Hsu Ming-chieh, who gave up two early runs to Tianjin. Hsu struggled, giving up four hits to the eleven batters he faced, before being removed from the game.
Tianjin starter Chen Wei took the loss, surrendering five runs on three hits and four walks. He struggled to control his fastball and kept things interesting for Seibu hitters, plunking several of them.
Things got out of hand after six runs in the top of the third inning — in which Tianjin committed two errors — which turned the game into a blowout.
It marked the second consecutive game in which the Chinese champions have given up 15 or more runs, a marked departure from their near victory against Taiwan’s Uni-President Lions in their opening game.
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