For two days in Japan, the Hanshin Tigers looked like the class of the MLB’s National League.
In another sign that Japanese baseball has never been better, the Tigers capped a two-game sweep over MLB clubs with a 3-0 win over the Los Angeles Dodgers yesterday at the Tokyo Dome.
Even more impressive, the Tigers did not give up a run in either game. Daichi Ishii recorded the final out, freezing James Outman for strike three on a 95mph fastball to cap 18 scoreless innings in a row.
Photo: Darren Yamashita-Imagn Images / USA Today
Hanshin tagged two-time Cy Young award winner Blake Snell for three runs in the fourth inning when the first two batters reached base before Teruaki Sato smoked a three-run homer into the right-field seats, where a jubilant Tigers’ fan club erupted in celebration.
On the mound, right-hander Hiroto Saiki threw five dominant innings, giving up just one hit and one walk while striking out seven. Saiki struck out Dodgers star Shohei Ohtani to start the game and then coaxed a harmless popup from the slugger in the fourth.
Saiki was one of the best pitchers in Japan last season, finishing with a 13-3 record and a 1.88 ERA over 167-2/3 innings. The Tigers had a 74-63 record last season, which was good for second place in Nippon Professional Baseball’s Central League.
Photo: AP
The Tigers started the two-game sweep on Saturday with a 3-0 win over the Chicago Cubs after 20-year-old lefty Keito Mombetsu threw five perfect innings. No Cubs reached base until Miguel Amaya smacked a single through the infield in the sixth that just got past the shortstop.
Hanshin also dominated on the base paths against the Cubs, going three for three on stolen base attempts.
Japanese players have made a huge mark on MLB, particularly over the past three decades. Former Seattle Mariners star Ichiro Suzuki was recently elected to the Hall of Fame and the Tokyo Series at the weekend featured five Japanese players, including three on the Dodgers with Ohtani, Yoshinobu Yamamoto and Roki Sasaki.
Seiya Suzuki and Shota Imanaga play for the Cubs.
Still, Ohtani thrilled Tokyo fans, despite a brief hitless performance against the Tigers.
On Saturday, the 30-year-old electrified the sold-out Tokyo Dome with a home run as the Dodgers beat the Yomiuri Giants in their first warm-up game.
He could not repeat the trick against the Tigers, striking out in his first at-bat before being taken out of the game after two hitless trips to the plate.
Yuko Nakajo, one of many among the 40,000 fans in the stadium wearing a Dodgers jersey with Ohtani’s name and No. 17 on the back, said she was still glad she came.
“I don’t think he’s showing his true form yet,” the 43-year-old said. “Ohtani is the pride of Japan. Everyone in my family supports him, all three generations.”
Additional reporting by AFP
HEATED RIVALRY: The pair had met 14 times previously, with Sabalenka winning eight of the encounters and entering the final as the favorite to take the title Elena Rybakina took revenge over world No. 1 Aryna Sabalenka to win a nail-biting Australian Open final yesterday and clinch her second Grand Slam title. The big-serving Kazakh fifth seed held her nerve to pull through 6-4, 4-6, 6-4 at Rod Laver Arena in Melbourne in 2 hours, 18 minutes. It was payback after the Belarusian Sabalenka won the 2023 final between two of the hardest hitters in women’s tennis. The ice-cool Rybakina, 26, who was born in Moscow, adds her Melbourne triumph to her Wimbledon win in 2022. It was more disappointment in a major final for Sabalenka, who won the US Open
GUNNING FOR A WIN: The victory sending Arsenal to the final for the first time in six years was cathartic for a team who had lost their previous four semi-finals Arsenal on Tuesday reached the League Cup final for the first time in eight years as Kai Havertz sealed a 1-0 win against Chelsea in the semi-final second leg. Mikel Arteta’s side had put themselves in pole position in the first leg and Havertz came off the bench to finish the 4-2 aggregate victory in the closing moments at the Emirates Stadium. It was a cathartic triumph for the Gunners, who had lost their previous four semi-finals in last year’s UEFA Champions League and League Cup, the 2022 League Cup and the 2021 UEFA Europa League. In their first final for six years,
Denver superstar Nikola Jokic returned from a 16-game injury absence to post a 31-point, 12-rebound double-double on Friday and propel the Nuggets to a 122-109 NBA victory over the Los Angeles Clippers. Three-time NBA Most Valuable Player Jokic had not played since suffering a bone bruise in the left knee he hyperextended in a game against Miami on Dec. 29 last year. The Serbian big man did not miss a beat. He led all scorers, connecting on eight of 11 shots from the field, and also handed out five assists with three steals while playing just 24 minutes, 32 seconds as the
DEADLINE DAY: Rennes’ Jacquet had been linked with a transfer to Chelsea earlier this month, but was reportedly put off the move due to the Blues’ bloated squad Liverpool on Monday won the race to sign Stade Rennais defender Jeremy Jacquet on the quiet final day of the English Premier League transfer window, while Crystal Palace swooped for Wolverhampton Wanderers striker Jorgen Strand Larsen despite the collapse of Jean-Philippe Mateta’s move to AC Milan. The Reds agreed a reported fee of up to ￡60 million (US$82 million) for the highly rated Jacquet. However, the 20-year-old will not join the Premier League champions until the summer despite Liverpool’s need for defensive reinforcements. Jacquet had been linked with a transfer to Chelsea earlier this month, but was reportedly put off
RSS