You know, there are days when the team plays well but loses a close one. There are days when the team plays alright but wins a close one. And then there are outright stinkers, like today. Instead of dwelling on the negatives, here are some of the “highlights” of today’s shutout loss. Starting Pitchers: Takumi…
It took until the ninth inning for the Tigers to get on the scoreboard, and they got good pitching from their birthday boy starter, but ultimately they fell in extras. Starting Pitchers: Shintaro Fujinami (0-0, 5.59 ERA) vs. David Buchanan (2-0, 0.56 ERA) 2 Three straight singles gave the Swallows a quick lead. It took…
March 13: Starter Shintaro Fujinami didn’t look like himself. Or should I say, he looked a little too much like his 2017 self. Control was lacking, pace was slow, and it all fell apart in the fourth inning. (Prior to that, he played with fire in the first three innings.) In the 4th, it was…
Though the year hardly ended on a positive note, it was still one filled with lots to get excited about. There were good times, and there were bad times. Here’s H-TEN’s look back at the season, with the ten biggest things that defined it. 10) Kakefu Sheds Uniform for the Last Time As you may…
This has been an absolutely atrocious year for the Yakult Swallows. The injury bug bit them frequently and didn’t seem to want to leave even after there was no more blood. And the Tigers have enjoyed feasting on the li’l Birds all season, too. In this, their last tilt of the season, we picked their…
In case you missed it, there is an amazing baseball tour that can take you all across Japan. You can travel in from anywhere in the world, join the group, and experience Japan and its yakyu from multiple perspectives: different cities, stadiums, seats, subcultures, and more. The tour comes in three options: Main Tour, See…
Just a week ago these two teams squared off in the home-run friendly confines of Jingu Stadium. The Tigers experienced a spike in their offensive numbers while enjoying another series victory against the Yakult Swallows. And at long last, the team was back at Koshien Stadium to play baseball – the first time since July…
The road trip of death has just one week left. So far it has been quite successful, but now is not the time to let up. Playing against the last-place Yakult Swallows, against whom the Tigers have had good success this year (who hasn’t, really?), it would be nice to win two or three. But…
Let’s not fool ourselves. The Yakult Swallows are sitting a distant last in the standings, but any given team can win any given game. These Swallows have been playing decent ball of late, having come back from a 10-run deficit last week against the Dragons, and then overcoming a 4-run Giants lead on Thursday night….
It’s actually a scary thing to be facing a team that is riding a 13-game losing streak. Because you know that streak will eventually come to an end, and you don’t want to be the team that helps them snap it. The Yakult Swallows last won on June 30th against these very Hanshin Tigers. So…