Let me see if I can wrap my head around yet another incredible night at the ballpark. But first, a bit of background on how I got tickets.
Some of you might remember that back in December 2017, I was featured in Daily Sports Online (a big-time Kobe sports newspaper). The journalist who interviewed me actually took quite a liking to me, and it is through him that I have my current gig writing for the paper once or twice a month.
Anyhow, he texted me on Tuesday afternoon, saying he had an extra ticket for the game on Wednesday night, and would I like to go. How could I say no?
And so, we end up at the park, meet some other fun people before the game, and get to our seats (which came courtesy of one of the Giants coaches, who is friends with my journalist friend). It’s young Koyo Aoyagi against one of their young lefties, some Imamura fella.
Anyhow, Aoyagi gives up a first-inning home run to Maru (on the heels of a Sakamoto double play, which, in retrospect, was huge). Then another bomb in the third, this one by Sakamoto, who definitely had something to prove against our submariner. An inning later, back-to-back doubles put our boys down three, and it looked pretty hopeless. Another Giants game attended, another loss.
But wait… the Tigers bats finally came to life in the fifth, thanks in part to pinch hitter Kento Itohara’s leadoff single, but ending on Hiroki Uemoto’s 2-RBI double to right center. Just down a run! This could get good…
Until the next Maru home run, anyways (this one off of Koki Moriya). So we’re down two and it’s looking gloomy. The bottom of the 8th sees the Tigers put one man on base but record two outs before Jefry Marte comes to the plate. Fat-necked Sawamura got his Biff Tannen on, telling Marte McFly to “Make like a tree… and get outta here.” And so, he sent the ball out of the park.
Tie game! Momentum is ours! But nothing doing in the ninth or tenth. In the eleventh, we got a chance at glory, but it proved fleeting: bases loaded, no outs. Fly ball to shallow center, strike out, fly ball to center. The poor hitters shall remain nameless.
Kyuji Fujikawa comes in and puts on his usual show: walk, strikeout, walk… fly ball… strikeout. They were 90 feet from taking a lead in the 12th after the bullpen held so strong for 7 innings.
And then, magic. With one out and nobody on, Kosuke Fukudome drew a walk. Ryutaro Umeno got an infield single. Seiya Kinami fought off pitches to earn a walk. Bases loaded, and the last guy on our bench who has yet to see action, Shun Takayama, comes to the plate. Ball one. Ball two. This. (You decide for yourself which version of the play-by-play you prefer.)
That’s three straight wins against the Giants for our boys. (Keep in mind we are still down 3-6 in the season series.) This one is definitely my hands-down favorite for Game of the Year. It will not be topped… or will it? This is a team I can’t take my eyes off of. You?
Final Score: Hanshin 8x, Yomiuri 4
WP: Fujikawa (3-0)
HR: Marte (5), Takayama (1 BIG CLUTCH GRAND SLAM)
Then the team went out on Thursday and led the game from start to finish, thanks in large part to this Yusuke Ohyama home run.
Haruto Takahashi combined with a few of his foreign bullpen friends to keep the Giants bats mostly silent. A couple more runs later in the game ensured that the Giants would leave town feeling like the losers they are.