Nichidai-san was the other half of the Tokyo taikai that was just a complete bloodbath. Generally Sanko is a powerhouse team in Tokyo to begin with, but out of nowhere it seems they took it to another level (much to the pleasure of some of my friends). All but 1 game was ended via mercy-rule and that was the finals against Hino, where even though they only won 5-0, all 9 innings are played no matter what anyways.
Despite the entire offense firing on all cylinders, the lynchpin of the offense is probably Oota Kazuki. On the mound, Ooba Ryoutarou has given up no more an 1 run in any of his outings in the natsu taikai. He's a righty who throws low 140s with a slider and curve. Oddly he doesn't strike out a lot of batters for the higher than average velo.
Nichidai Yamagata returns after several years away from Natsu Koushien having ceded the spot to Yamagata's mainstay Sakata Minami. This year they emphatically took it from Sakata Minami, and dominated Yonezawa Chuo for the title.
Ace Shouji Yutaka despite having upper 130s-lower 140s stuff was prone to giving up several runs in a game, so the pressure might go to the offense, which against Nichidai-san... good luck. If they are going to do it, they'll need production from their 3 & 4 batters Mineda and Okumura, but they can't afford to go through lulls in their lineup because Sanko will put pressure every inning.
Nichidai Yamagata (Yamagata)
CF Aoki Tatsuya
2B Nakano Takumu
LF Mineta Jyunnosuke
SS Okumura Hiromu
1B Yoshioka ?
C Asanuma Takanori
RF Takeda Shouhei
P Shouji Misaki
3B Itasaka Hiroki
Nichidai-san (Nishi Tokyo)
2B Kawatsu Kazuya
CF Inami Yuuki (#17)
LF Mori Ryouma
1B Sasaki Yuu
3B Oota Kazuki
RF Igarashi Masahiro (#6)
P Ooba Ryourtarou
C Yumoto Yuuki
SS Funayama Takahiro (#16)
____________________________________________________________
10:45 - First Pitch
Top 1st
Uh, what? Nakano comebacker to Ooba, who soft tosses over Sasaki for an E1 and Nakano ends up on 2nd.
And now a ball gets away from Yumoto allowing Nakano to 3rd? Boy that seems sloppy.
Mineta with a short looper that Funayama backs up and catches for 2nd out. Looks like Ooba will get out of the jam.
Okumura with a ball to deep center. Inami backing up, slowing down at the wall. Backs into it?!
HAITAAAAAAAAAAAA!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?
え？
Okumura hits a ball that just gets over the fence in center right for a 2-run HR. 2-0 Nichidai Yamagata?!
Yoshioka now with a grounder to 2nd, and that's booted by Kawatsu! Yoshioka safe, and Ogura-kantoku calls for time.
Asanuma strikes out to retire the side, but color me surprised (at least to start).
Bottom 1st
Kawatsu with a heck of an AB versus Shouji. Continuously spoils balls that he puts on the outside. 11th pitch of the AB makes a bid for a single with a ball to the right side, Nakano sprints over to cover turns and fires to just get Kawatsu for the 1st out.
Inami up, gets hold of a fastball. Takeda running back to the fence, tries to leap onto the padding...
HAITAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Well, that was quick. Shouji hangs fastball, gets penalized for a run. 2-1 Nichidai Yamagata.
Mori follows that with a ball to right center. Takeda runs that down to limit it to a single.
But it looks like the HR has rattled Shouji because not only does he walk Sasaki, but Oota as well.
Manui for Sanko with Igarashi up... and Shouji cannot throw a strike. #11 Satou is warming up early.
Igarashi gives him an assist chasing a high ball and fouling out to Yoshioka.
Thar brings up Ooba to help his own cause. Fouls off a couple of pitches...
SANSHIN! A changeup (I think?) freezes Ooba to leave the bases loaded! But Sanko gives notice that a 2-run 1st won't phase them.
Top 2nd
Defensive change already for Sanko. #8 Ishida in for Igarashi and goes to CF, Inami goes to RF.
Much more regular inning for Ooba on the mound. Takeda with a soft pop to Sasaki, Shouji fails to check his swing, and Itasaka grounds to 3rd. A quiet 2nd inning which means...
Bottom 2nd
Sanko can get back on the bats that much faster.
Yumoto cues a grounder to 1st where Yoshioka beats him to the bag for the out.
Shouji then issues his 3rd walk to Fujiyama and the lineup turns over for Kawatsu.
Kawatsu with a grounder to short. Okumura to 2nd for 1, Nakano with a weird turn towards 1st, but there in time for the double play to end the inning!
Top 3rd
Aoki with popup around the mound, no one really calling for it until Fujiyama finally catches it.
Nakano rips one up the 1st base line, but Sasaki lunges and makes the snag! Goes to 1 for the 2nd out.
And another 1-2-3 inning as Mineta hits easy grounder to 2nd to retire the side.
Bottom 3rd
Shouji gets back at Inami for the HR by freezing him on a curve for his 2nd K.
Mori grounds to short for the 2nd out, but when Shouji tries to go for the curve with 2 strikes to Sasaki he just says thank you and lines it to center.
But Shouji gets Oota to swing and miss on a... well, I'm not sure what. It looks like something that comes back on a RHB, but no clue what it is (maybe I'm just seeing things). Anyways, side retired.
Top 4th
Okamura with ball to 1st, takes high hop but Sasaki leaps and secures it, goes to 1st for the first out.
Asanuma finally breaks the 9 straight retired by Ooba. He singles past a diving Funayama into center.
Ooba one strike away from getting out of the inning and Ooba runs one in on Takeda to push Asanuma into scoring position for Shouji.
Shouji with hard ball, but right at 3rd. Oota goes to 2nd to retire the side, hit hard, but not in the right place.
Bottom 4th
There's that pitch again. What looks like a sinker or something like that gets Ishida frozen for the first out.
Ooba swings on the first pitch and flies out to Aoki in center.
Yumoto with a two out single to left, but Yoshioka snares a Funayama liner for the 3rd out!
Top 5th
Itasaka with a drive to left!! Mori running back, still running back... over his head! He plays it off the wall as Itasaka has a double!
But Yamagata goes backwards on the basepaths when Aoki's bunt goes to 3rd to cut down Itasaka.
And Yamagata goes even further backwards as Aoki breaks for 2nd... and is thrown out.
Which becomes a shame because Nakano singles past Kawatsu, and then on the next pitch Mineta singles to center. Which if they didn't do the initial bunt would be at least 1 run.
Instead Okumura chases a slider for the 3rd out and Nichidai Yamagata gets nothing and will have to like it.
Bottom 5th
Kawatsu with grounder to gap in short. Okumura runs it down, slides, throws strong looping ball to get a springing Kawatsu!
But then he gets careful with Inami and walks him.
Mori with a deep drive to center, but Aoki ranging to his left catches it with some room to spare at the wall.
Sasaki up and once again Shouji is careful and winds up walking him for the 2nd time.
The walks don't come back to bite him as Oota grounds to short to end the inning.
We hit the break with Nichidai Yamagata surprisingly in the lead at 2-1. but it's been Sanko who's had the chances as of late.
Top 6th
Yoshioka looking rather silly sticking his butt out trying to bend down and hit a change he can't hit.
Asanuma catching the ball off the end of the bat and grounding right to Kawatsu for out #2.
Takeda also chasing outside pitch, meekly grounds to short and Ooba back to 3 up, 3 down.
Bottom 6th
#10 Saitou warming up in bullpen as Araki-kantoku might make change in next inning or two (since he did that in the prefecturals).
Meanwhile, Shouji continues to record outs.
Ishida and Ooba go back to back grounders to Itasaka, and Yumoto flies out to right.
That's Shouji's first 1-2-3 inning. but he's still preserving a razor thin lead.
Top 7th
Shouji with a single through the left side. Chances are Itasaka will bunt... and he shows it.
But he takes a strike and then just whiffs on an attempt. Still showing bunt and takes a ball. They still seem committed to it as he takes another ball to fill up the count.
Buster hit! Chopper back up the middle, off Ooba's glove! Funayama has to change course, but by that time everyone's safe! Another bad break for Sanko!
Aoki up and he's bunting... but he too can't lay it down and falls behind 0-2.
Still committed, takes ball 1.
Hitting!
Aoki hitting, goes down to hit a slider and sends it through the right side for a base hit! Ogura-kantoku calling time as a pitcher warms up in bullpen.
Nakano up with no-out manrui. Not showing squeeze, but not surprised if it comes out.
No, swinging and fouls one off to fall behind 1-2.
Nakano in a repeat of the last AB, goes down again and lines a ball to right! Itasaka being waved around as Inami fires home! But the throw is late and 2 runs score on the timely! 4-1 Nichidai Yamagata!!
Now Araki-kantoku calling for the bunt??!
Mineta lays it down and Ooba throws slightly high but beats a diving Mineta.
And with 1st open, Sanko says thank you and intentionally walks Okumura to get to Yoshioka who is hitless on the day.
And still hitless. He pops it up. Funayama on the 2nd base side makes the catch for the 2nd out.
Asanuma jammed on the first pitch! Blooper to the right side, Kawatsu sprinting back and to the 1st base line, dives...
And it falls in!!
2 runs score on the blooper and it's 6-1 Nichidai Yamagata!?
That's it for Ooba as #10 Ogino comes in for him. He didn't pitch badly, just got rather unlucky it seems.
Takeda single through short and another run scores! It's 7-1!?!
Ogino finally gets out of the inning with a groundout by Shouij, but Sanko is in a world of hurt right now. But there's still some time to claw back.
Bottom 7th
#13 Tadokoro in to hit for Funayama.
Full count pulls off a blooper for his own just out of the reach of a diving Nakano. He's replaced by #14 Arai.
Grounder to 2nd. Nakano to 2nd for one, Okumura spins and throws to 1st, double play!
Wow, that looked good.
Once again Shouji goes around Inami and walks him for the 2nd straight AB.
And maybe a small bit of karma, Shouji and Asanuma try to sell the 2-2 pitch for strike 3, don't get call, then give up walk. Which brings Sasaki who they've walked twice already. If convention holds, they aren't going to pitch to him.
But they are?! AND THEY GET HIM SWINGING, ON 3 PITCHES, WTF?
I do not understand this at all. When it looks like they've been going around Inami and Sasaki they decide to after him now and it works?!
Top 8th
Arai stays in to play SS.
Itasaka ahead 3-0, tries to walk to 1st twice, gets called back... twice. After a foul ball he can finally walk to 1st when Ogino's offering went wide.
After a sac bunt, Ogura-kantoku replaces Ogino with #11 Kugimiya.
He starts off jamming Nakano into a dribbler to the left side that he takes and throws to 1st.
Mineta apparently thinks that's a cool thing to do and basically carbon copies it to end the inning.
Bottom 8th
After Oota grounds out, #9 Watanabe comes into hit for Ishida and I hear Zankoku na tensha no teeze.
He pops out to Itasaka.
#15 Doi hits for Kugimiya, and flies out to center to end the inning.
Top 9th
Doi stays in to play CF, #18 Miwa comes in for Watanabe and takes the hill...
Throwing upper 140s - though with no control as he walks Okumura.
He settles down after that with Yoshioka flying out to center, Asanuma a failed bunt attempt that Yumoto catches, and Takeda goes down swinging.
Bottom 9th
Ogura-kantoku with #12 Suzuki hitting for Yumoto completely empties the bench. That's an indicator that they know they're done.
And in fact, the side is retired so quickly I can't even type it. Itasaka secure the last popup from Kawatsu and Nichidai Yamagata wins 7-1!!
Well, I don't know if anyone saw that coming. I sure didn't. Nichidai Yamagata under the excellent pitching of Shouji completely shuts down a team that seemed on fire coming in.
I really have no explanation for this. None.
About the only reasoning I can give is that since the only opposition they faced was 2nd tier Souka followed by 3rd tier Hino, the nubmers were inflated....
...But to this extent? Impossible.
The only other explanation is Araki-kantoku wanted to take the bat away from Inami and Sasaki and force the other players to drive in runs, which they couldn't. It that's the case, I applaud them because it worked.
Notable Players
Shouji Misaki (Nichidai Yamagata) - CG, ER, 5 H, 5 K, 7 BB
Okumura Hiromu (Nichidai Yamagata) - 1-3, HR, R, RBI, 2 BB
Nakano Takumu (Nichidai Yamagata) - 2-5, 2 R, 2 RBI
Itasaka Hiroki (Nichidai Yamagata) - 2-3, 2B, R
Itami Yuuki (Nichidai-san) - 1-2, HR, R, RBI, 2 BB
Sasaki Yuu (Nichidai-san) - 1-2, 2 BB
Showing posts with label Nichidai-san. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Nichidai-san. Show all posts
Tuesday, August 13, 2013
Wednesday, August 7, 2013
95th Natsu Koushien Title Contenders
Well, at least as best as I can anyways:
Title Contenders
Urawa Gakuin (Saitama) - 2nd straight time a school goes haru-natsu?
Ok, I panned Uragaku for the longest time back in Senbatsu (Haru Koushien). But Ojima Kazuya (小島 和哉) proved me wrong time and time again - and laughed all the way to the title.
As much as I still may have my doubts regarding him as an ace, you have to be special if you can throw a perfect game. Yes, that's right, Ojima in the quarterfinals against Saitama Heisei went 27 up, 27 down. That's saying something.
It looks like his stuff hasn't changed. Still has a change and a screwball to go with the normal slider and curve. Reports have him in the low 140s but I don't necessarily buy it especially since smaller stadiums seem to have faster radars.
And the team is on a roll - the last tournament game they lost was in the quarterfinals of the 2012 Meiji Jingu Tournament against Harue Kougyou. The most runs Ojima's given up in a game during that timespan? 2 - against Toukaidai Bouyou in the Kanto Spring Super-Regional Tournament.
If he continues to pitch like this, despite not being a "fireballer", watch out. We may have back-to-back Haru-Natsu Renzoku Yuushou (spring-summer champions).
Speaking of which...
Osaka Touin (Osaka) - 6th ever back-to-back Natsu champion?
Osaka Touin had a chance in the spring to be the first ever 3-time calendar consecutive Koushien champion. But injuries to key players - Mori Tomoya (森 友哉) and Kinden Takuya (近田 拓矢) crippled their offense as they fell to Kenritsu Gifu Shougyou.
Now, both of the lynchpins are back, and the offense is chugging along as good as new. Their weakness is probably back to where it was before Fujinami - their pitching. Ace Kuzukawa Tomoya (葛川 知哉) and reliever Amimoto Kousuke (網本 光祐) are definitely above average, but nothing about either stands out.
But if one or both of them can be good enough, Osaka Touin may just defend their title. This is a short blurb, on a title contender, but when you talk Osaka Touin, the story is generally the same - 打て、打て、打て!
Saibi (Ehime) - Can Anraku carry the team all the way?
The story of Anraku Tomohiro (安楽 智大) has been well heard of, 232 pitches in his first game, velocity dropped immensely by the final due to flat out fatigue.
Now it would be just a matter of if Saibi could give Anraku another chance at Koushien this summer this year. And with the exception of a scare against Kawanoe which required a late-game comeback, Anraku pitched all but 2 outs in his team's run to the title.
Saibi has the opposite problem of Osaka Touin. Great pitching, average offense. We saw it at Senbatsu, the offense on average scoring 3-4 runs a game. That's not bad, but it's not dominating either. They will need to avoid the "bad day" as Anraku can't carry the team if the team can't score.
Which brings us back to Anraku himself. Certainly he won't suffer the same workload early as he did at Senbatsu, but it's possible he could play 4 of the last 5 calendar days of the tournament. He's throwing faster than ever, reportedly hitting 157 on the gun - but as perhaps he may have learned, hitting the high numbers on the gun doesn't mean a whole lot if you can't deliver when it really matters. If Anraku's stamina can hold up under the summer humid heat, Saibi may just challenge for the title yet again - and this time win.
Potential Contenders
Nichidai-san (Nishi Tokyo)
For those that know me and my coverage, I really don't like Nichidai-san. My fellow colleagues would say, "Why don't you like them? I like X player, and Y player - they're really good". Well, to be honest they ruined my 2011 Natsu Koushien trip by defeating both Kanzei and Narashino.
But before all that went down, Nichidai-san and Osaka Touin to me epitomizes the one thing about kokoyakyu I really don't like. Strong teams with pedigrees will continue to accumulate talent at the expense of weaker schools. There is no parity in kokoyakyu - quite the opposite in fact.
But regardless of my feelings toward them, Sanko I have to begrudgingly admit can be a title contender. The only reason why I don't have them in the upper tier is two-fold.
First, the team was eliminated in the quarterfinals of the fall taikai to Souka (though they did avenge that with a 7-0 victory in the summer) and second, outside of Hino - and no offense to them it's a bit of a stretch - they did not face a quality opponent towards the title. So the gaudy 75-9 score they accumulated is a bit inflated.
However, they did get a chance to play Urawa Gakuin in the Kanto Spring Super-Regionals, and though they lost 2-0, ace Ooba Ryoutarou (大場 遼太郎) limited Uragaku to just 4 hits while racking up 10 on Ojima. The top half of the lineup is especially dangerous for teams that are not careful.
Shuutoku (Higashi Tokyo)
Tokyo for as big as the field is was barely contested this year. Shuutoku almost as easily blew through the field. Their only close game was their 5th round game when they had to play Teikyou. But as Teikyou is wont to do, their pitching failed them later allowing Shuutoku to tie and eventually win the game. And while the score in the final versus Nishougakushadai Fuzoku looked rather ugly (13-6), the game was never really in doubt.
Looking at the pitching staff, there is ace Nishibayashi Kenshin (西林 賢人) and reliever Yusa Kazuki (遊佐 和輝). Interestingly in that game against Teikyou, CF Iino Shouta (飯野 周太) started the game (not well mind you) with Yusa coming in relief for 7 innings. That is an interesting call for a team to make knowing you're playing in a key game. Does that mean that Shuutoku has two pitchers they can call on? Not sure, but if they do it may help their chances.
Yokohama (Kanagawa)
I have to admit, Yokohama is kind of like the teams I described when talking about Nichidai-san. They have represented Kanagawa 7 times (including this year) since 2000. In their prior 6 Natsu appearances, they have reached the quarterfinals and semifinals 2 times each though recently they haven't been as successful.
Yokohama's road to Koushien at least by name was probably one of the hardest. Starting from the Round of 16, they played in order:
From my fellow kokoyakyu sources #3 and #4 batters Asama and Takahama were ironically labeled "Matsui-killers" and did in fact cause his downfall. Who knows if the articles and discussion got to both sides' heads.
The only problem with Yokohama is that their offense looks a bit below average, despite the HRs in the Toukou Gakuen matchup.
On the mound is ace Itou Masashi (伊藤 将司), who apparently has a twitter account if you want to send him your best wishes. A lefty, he apparently throws in the mid-130's which would put him in the Ojima range.
What seems to perhaps benefit Yokohama is that at least 7 of their starting 9 are 2nd years! For a school such as Yokohama that has such a big pool of players to draw from, to predominantly use 2nd years means a lot. And since they theoretically have one more year of chances at Koushien, they may be able to play with nothing to lose - because they don't. That's scary - and something you cannot measure.
____________________________________________________________________________________________________
To be honest, outside of these 6 teams I don't know who else could really be a challenger for the title. Sure, there will be other teams who will go deep, but if they run into any of these teams they will certainly be an underdog.
Title Contenders
Urawa Gakuin (Saitama) - 2nd straight time a school goes haru-natsu?
Ok, I panned Uragaku for the longest time back in Senbatsu (Haru Koushien). But Ojima Kazuya (小島 和哉) proved me wrong time and time again - and laughed all the way to the title.
As much as I still may have my doubts regarding him as an ace, you have to be special if you can throw a perfect game. Yes, that's right, Ojima in the quarterfinals against Saitama Heisei went 27 up, 27 down. That's saying something.
It looks like his stuff hasn't changed. Still has a change and a screwball to go with the normal slider and curve. Reports have him in the low 140s but I don't necessarily buy it especially since smaller stadiums seem to have faster radars.
And the team is on a roll - the last tournament game they lost was in the quarterfinals of the 2012 Meiji Jingu Tournament against Harue Kougyou. The most runs Ojima's given up in a game during that timespan? 2 - against Toukaidai Bouyou in the Kanto Spring Super-Regional Tournament.
If he continues to pitch like this, despite not being a "fireballer", watch out. We may have back-to-back Haru-Natsu Renzoku Yuushou (spring-summer champions).
Speaking of which...
Osaka Touin (Osaka) - 6th ever back-to-back Natsu champion?
Osaka Touin had a chance in the spring to be the first ever 3-time calendar consecutive Koushien champion. But injuries to key players - Mori Tomoya (森 友哉) and Kinden Takuya (近田 拓矢) crippled their offense as they fell to Kenritsu Gifu Shougyou.
Now, both of the lynchpins are back, and the offense is chugging along as good as new. Their weakness is probably back to where it was before Fujinami - their pitching. Ace Kuzukawa Tomoya (葛川 知哉) and reliever Amimoto Kousuke (網本 光祐) are definitely above average, but nothing about either stands out.
But if one or both of them can be good enough, Osaka Touin may just defend their title. This is a short blurb, on a title contender, but when you talk Osaka Touin, the story is generally the same - 打て、打て、打て!
Saibi (Ehime) - Can Anraku carry the team all the way?
The story of Anraku Tomohiro (安楽 智大) has been well heard of, 232 pitches in his first game, velocity dropped immensely by the final due to flat out fatigue.
Now it would be just a matter of if Saibi could give Anraku another chance at Koushien this summer this year. And with the exception of a scare against Kawanoe which required a late-game comeback, Anraku pitched all but 2 outs in his team's run to the title.
Saibi has the opposite problem of Osaka Touin. Great pitching, average offense. We saw it at Senbatsu, the offense on average scoring 3-4 runs a game. That's not bad, but it's not dominating either. They will need to avoid the "bad day" as Anraku can't carry the team if the team can't score.
Which brings us back to Anraku himself. Certainly he won't suffer the same workload early as he did at Senbatsu, but it's possible he could play 4 of the last 5 calendar days of the tournament. He's throwing faster than ever, reportedly hitting 157 on the gun - but as perhaps he may have learned, hitting the high numbers on the gun doesn't mean a whole lot if you can't deliver when it really matters. If Anraku's stamina can hold up under the summer humid heat, Saibi may just challenge for the title yet again - and this time win.
Potential Contenders
Nichidai-san (Nishi Tokyo)
For those that know me and my coverage, I really don't like Nichidai-san. My fellow colleagues would say, "Why don't you like them? I like X player, and Y player - they're really good". Well, to be honest they ruined my 2011 Natsu Koushien trip by defeating both Kanzei and Narashino.
But before all that went down, Nichidai-san and Osaka Touin to me epitomizes the one thing about kokoyakyu I really don't like. Strong teams with pedigrees will continue to accumulate talent at the expense of weaker schools. There is no parity in kokoyakyu - quite the opposite in fact.
But regardless of my feelings toward them, Sanko I have to begrudgingly admit can be a title contender. The only reason why I don't have them in the upper tier is two-fold.
First, the team was eliminated in the quarterfinals of the fall taikai to Souka (though they did avenge that with a 7-0 victory in the summer) and second, outside of Hino - and no offense to them it's a bit of a stretch - they did not face a quality opponent towards the title. So the gaudy 75-9 score they accumulated is a bit inflated.
However, they did get a chance to play Urawa Gakuin in the Kanto Spring Super-Regionals, and though they lost 2-0, ace Ooba Ryoutarou (大場 遼太郎) limited Uragaku to just 4 hits while racking up 10 on Ojima. The top half of the lineup is especially dangerous for teams that are not careful.
Shuutoku (Higashi Tokyo)
Tokyo for as big as the field is was barely contested this year. Shuutoku almost as easily blew through the field. Their only close game was their 5th round game when they had to play Teikyou. But as Teikyou is wont to do, their pitching failed them later allowing Shuutoku to tie and eventually win the game. And while the score in the final versus Nishougakushadai Fuzoku looked rather ugly (13-6), the game was never really in doubt.
Looking at the pitching staff, there is ace Nishibayashi Kenshin (西林 賢人) and reliever Yusa Kazuki (遊佐 和輝). Interestingly in that game against Teikyou, CF Iino Shouta (飯野 周太) started the game (not well mind you) with Yusa coming in relief for 7 innings. That is an interesting call for a team to make knowing you're playing in a key game. Does that mean that Shuutoku has two pitchers they can call on? Not sure, but if they do it may help their chances.
Yokohama (Kanagawa)
I have to admit, Yokohama is kind of like the teams I described when talking about Nichidai-san. They have represented Kanagawa 7 times (including this year) since 2000. In their prior 6 Natsu appearances, they have reached the quarterfinals and semifinals 2 times each though recently they haven't been as successful.
Yokohama's road to Koushien at least by name was probably one of the hardest. Starting from the Round of 16, they played in order:
- Yokohama Hayato - 2-run 6th gave them the final 3-2 margin
- Toukou Gakuen - Lack of offense plus pair of HR's from Takahama Yuuji (高浜 祐仁) and Asama Daiki (浅間 大基) spell doom for heralded ace Matsui.
- Toukaidai Sagami - Sagami's pitching has not been the same, and yielded all 7 runs in the 6-8 innings for the mercy-rule loss.
- Hiratsuka Gakuen - While not a powerhouse, Hiratsuka is actually one of the best "3rd tier"* teams out of Kanagawa and did only lose to Yokohama 3-0.
From my fellow kokoyakyu sources #3 and #4 batters Asama and Takahama were ironically labeled "Matsui-killers" and did in fact cause his downfall. Who knows if the articles and discussion got to both sides' heads.
The only problem with Yokohama is that their offense looks a bit below average, despite the HRs in the Toukou Gakuen matchup.
On the mound is ace Itou Masashi (伊藤 将司), who apparently has a twitter account if you want to send him your best wishes. A lefty, he apparently throws in the mid-130's which would put him in the Ojima range.
What seems to perhaps benefit Yokohama is that at least 7 of their starting 9 are 2nd years! For a school such as Yokohama that has such a big pool of players to draw from, to predominantly use 2nd years means a lot. And since they theoretically have one more year of chances at Koushien, they may be able to play with nothing to lose - because they don't. That's scary - and something you cannot measure.
____________________________________________________________________________________________________
To be honest, outside of these 6 teams I don't know who else could really be a challenger for the title. Sure, there will be other teams who will go deep, but if they run into any of these teams they will certainly be an underdog.
Saturday, August 11, 2012
Day 4, Game 2 - Nichidai-san (Nishi Tokyo) vs. Seikou Gakuin (Fukushima)
Our next game features the defending champions who have a good shot of being just the 7th school to repeat at Natsu Koushien champions. They'll be facing a sentimental Seikou Gakuin squad from Fukushima who probably have the biggest hill to climb they've ever faced.
Nichidai-san almost didn't even make it here. Kousei Gakuen (not to be mistaken with Kousei Gakuin) had a 1-0 lead heading into the top of the 9th, but ace Isozaki and his defense folded under pressure, relinquishing the lead with just one out to go.
And so they find themselves at Koushien once again, looking to be the first team to repeat since Komadai Tomakomai back in 2004-2005.
There are some differences though between last year's and this year's teams. The biggest one is on offense. When last year, Sanko ran circles around their opposition, batting an amazing 0.377, this year it's a more modest 0.295. What's more, the offensive production started falling off in the quarterfinals as they had the following games:
Next, ace Yoshinaga is gone as well. Wildly effective, he for the most part kept batters uncomfortable at the plate. Taking his place is Saitou Fuuta who can throw into the low 140's and as far as I know, carries just the slider in the 130's.
Now, Ogura-kantoku did go to his bullpen in the finals, going with #11 Ooba, first year #18 Kugimiya for a batter, then closed it out with #12 Ogino.
Overall, it's certainly not the dominating team from last year, but they're here so they have a chance.
The team tasked with the first attempt to bring down the champions is Seikou Gakuin. This is their 6th consecutive Fukushima victory, and were never challenged in any of their 6 games. However, the dominance in prefectural play has not necessarily translated into success at Koushien though with the exception of 2009, they have at least won one game, and reached the Best 8 twice (both times from a bracket of 4 teams).
The team batted a rather average 0.321 during this iteration, yet averaged 8 runs/game. It certainly won't translate against Sanko though, though by how much it would be reduced is anyone's guess. What is apparent though is that a lot of the offense is generated by the upper half of the lineup. So if that part is shut down, they'll really have problems on their hands.
Ace Okano is the go-to guy on the mound for Saitou-kantoku. He has used #10 Iidaka, but only on a spot start basis. Neither are fireballers, so it'll be up to the defense to play solid ball.
It doesn't need to be said again, but good luck Seikou Gakuin... you're going to need it...
Nichidai-san (Nishi Tokyo)
LF Morii
3B Kawatsu
SS Kaneko Ryouya
2B Tomioka
RF Yamanaka
CF Seki
1B Murai
C Yumoto (#13)
P Saitou Fuuta
Seikou Gakuin (Fukushima)
CF Anzai (#9)
SS Hirano
C Nagai
1B Sonobe
LF Saitou Yuuki (#8)
3B Kyouda
RF Sekine (#7)
2B Honma (#14)
P Okano
__________________________________________________
10:33 - First Pitch
Top 1st
Morii leads off the game with a blooper over Honma into center. After a sac bunt, Sanko threatens to get on the board quickly.
But Ryouya flies out to left, and while Tomioka makes good contact, he flies out to right to end the inning.
Bottom 1st
Saitou's first pitch to Anzai is a curve that he takes into center for a leadoff hit. Hirano tries the safety bunt, but just gets beaten out by Kawatsu's throw.
Saitou falls behind Nagai 3-0 and eventually walks him, bringing up cleanup batter Sonobe.
Sonobe, after getting behind in the count, works it full. Swings on a high fastball, but hits it deep enough to center to get Anzai in and Seikou Gakuin takes the 1-0 lead!
Saitou (Fuuta) struggling with his control early on here, falling behind Saitou (Yuuki) 2-0. He gets a strike and a foul to even the count and eventually getting him to fly out to right to end the inning. Quick run for Seikou, but it's a long game.
Top 2nd
Okano features a fastball in the mid-130s with a fork in the mid-upper 120s and change in the lower 120s.
Yamanaka works the count full, but his hit to the right side is snagged by Honma who makes a great play for the out.
Seki up and he's frozen on a fastball on the outside corner! Murai follows that up with a chopper to 1st that Sonobe handles and takes to the bag to end the inning.
Bottom 2nd
After using 2 pitches for 2 outs, Honma is a bit more stubborn at the plate. Still, it's a 9 pitch inning as Honma grounds out to Tomioka for the 3rd out.
Top 3rd
Yumoto with a blast to right center, Sekine backs up near the wall and makes the catch.
Fuuta swings on the first pitch, but grounds out to short.
Morii tests Hirano with a hot shot, but he fields it cleanly to make the 3rd out. It's a quick 4-pitch inning.
Bottom 3rd
Saitou Fuuta has a fastball that sits in the mid-upper 130s, and 2 off-speed pitches that sit in the mid 120s, and the high 110s-low 120s.
Anzai with a shot to 3rd, and it bounces off Kawatsu and to Ryouya! His throw is late though and Anzai's on for his 2nd time.
And he takes off for 2nd! Sekiya drops the ball and he's in with his 2nd SB! Then he goes to 3rd on Hirano's grounder to Tomioka.
Nagai though first pitch swings and flies out to center to end the inning.
Top 4th
Kawatsu is made to look silly on a slider way away for a K.
Ryouya gets around on a fastball inside, but is just on top of it and hits a comebacker to Okano for the 2nd out.
Okano working at close to ludicrous speed and Tomioka hits a shot at Sonobe who blocks it, then runs to the bag for the out. Since the opening base hit to Morii, Okano's retired 12 straight.
Bottom 4th
Sonobe attacks tthe first pitch from Fuuta and sends it over Kawatsu and to the wall for a leadoff double. Yuuki then tries to sac bunt, but can't and falls behind 0-2. Yuuki still shows bunt, but pulls it back and takes a ball. He pulls it back again, but hits it to short. The ball wasn't hard hit though and Ryouya has no play at 3rd, so he throws to 1st.
Kyouda with a liner to right, but Sonobe makes a baserunning error! He breaks for home then has to go back on the catch! The ball was so hard hit that Sonobe can't tag up now!
And with Sekine's foul out to end the inning, that costs Seikou Gakuin a run! Will that cost them later? Kousei Gakuen needed that extra run in the finals, and facing Sanko every run counts.
Top 5th
Yamanaka with a hard hit to right puts the douten runner on. Seki moves him to 2nd.
Murai gets 2nd life when he appeals a swinging 3rd strike and gets the foul ball call. It pays off as he is jammed but cues a ball back up the middle! Hirano and Honma converge on the ball, but Honma has no play! Douten run 90 feet away! That missed tag-up looks mighty costly right now!
SQUEEZE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Yumoto with the squeeze, but the ball hits off the bat again and it's called foul! Now he takes a 2nd strike and he can't bunt right?
Not yet anyways, he takes a pitch just outside. Another ball, this time in the dirt is blocked by Nagai and the count runs full. Playing with fire and he walks Yumoto!
Manrui now with Fuuta up! Okano with no room for error, especially with only a 1-run lead!
First pitch a slider over the middle for a strike. Fastball outside for a ball. I bet Fuuta's not swinging unless he has to.
Pitchout yields no squeeze and he falls behind 2-1.
Now a pitch up and in makes it 3-1. The threat of a squeeze is so much they may get a walk!
Saitou takes the pitch, but the runners are taking off!! Yamanaka is hung out to dry! He's run down for the 2nd out! And he makes his displeaure known to Fuuta.
But Okano seems to throwaway the 3-2 pitch to Fuuta walking him - even though he's the #9 batter.
So manrui one again for leadoff batter Morii.
And Okano gets him to pop it up! Sonobe in foul territory makes the catch and the side is retired! Misses by both sides in consecutive half innings cost teams a potential run! So the score remains 1-0 in favor of Seikou Gakuin.
Bottom 5th
Homna makes good contact, but it's a routine fly to Seki. Okano puts a good charge into it, but too flies out to center.
Fuuta gets Anzai to hit a comebacker and we hit the break with Seikou's run in the 1st holding up, though just. While it is a lead, it will not be a comfortable one until the last out is recorded in the 9th.
Top 6th
Kawatsu grounds out to 2nd, Ryouya after working the count full has to swing away and grounds to Sonobe who grabs the tricky hop and tosses to Okano for the 2nd out.
Tomioka is then fooled by Okano, swinging early and hitting a routine grounder to Sonobe who again tosses to Okano to retire the side.
Bottom 6th
Hirano first pitch hits a solid single to right center. Nagai successfully lays down the bunt to put Hirano in scoring position for Sonobe.
Sonobe with a grounder to 2nd, and Ryouya easily catches Hirano between the bases and he's run down for the 2nd out.
Yuuki then swings at the first pitch and pops it up. Tomiko just on the grass in center makes the catch for the 3rd out. Another base-running error by Seikou there.
Top 7th
Yamanaka with a hard hit ball the other way, but it's lined to Yuuki for the first out.
Seki with a ball into the gap on the left side, Hirano with a great stop and strong throw to first! Sonobe with the great stretch to record the out!
Murai with a drive to right center! Sekine running back, running back! At the wall!!
Makes the catch as he bumps into it! That was a close one for Okano as the side is retired in order!
Bottom 7th
Kyouda with a comebacker to Fuuta. He runs to 1st, and the ball comes out of his hand! He runs it down, but not before Yuuki reaches base! I think he accidentally hit his body with his hand and the ball came out! What a bizzare play!
Sekine tries to bunt him over but can't and the count runs to 2-2!
He attempts and makes the free bunt! The insurance run is in scoring position yet again with Honma up to bat.
Fuuta though can't find the zone and he's behind 3-0 and walks Honma on 4 straight.
That gets Ogura-kantoku moving and he's sending in #11 Ooba to relieve Fuuta on the mound.
Okano up, and Saitou-kantoku calls for the bunt, even so far as the free bunt! Okano tries, but can't lay down the bunt for the 2nd out. I guess they were trying to avoid the double play.
But still, it's 2 outs so they need a base hit or a non-out. The lineup does turn over to Anzai though.
And Kyouda takes off on the 1-1 pitch! Sekiya's throw is not in time and he has the base!
Meanwhile, Anzai stays patient at the plate and earns a walk! Manrui for Seikou!
Hirano though doesn't try to wait Fuuta out, he swings away and fouls off the first 2 pitches and is behind 0-2. Ooba take advantage with a waste pitch.
Pitch inside and Hirano just fouls it off... Fastball high and away he fouls off as well...
Ooba gets Hirano to hit a grounder to 2nd! Tomioka with the putout at 1st and Sanko is out of the pinch! Seikou Gakuin unable to get that much needed insurance run in!
Top 8th
Yumoto, after getting a couple of sliders wide of the plate chases a fastball on the outside corner for Okano's 3rd K.
New P Ooba watches a fastball cross over the plate for strike 3, and there's 2 down.
Top of the order and Morii hits a ball to 3rd. The ball bounces off of Kyouda, and by the time he retrieves it it's too late! That's Seikou's first error of the day and it puts the douten runner on as Kawatsu steps in.
He hits a grounder to 3rd and this time Kyouda doesn't muff it! He throws to first and the side is retired! Okano doesn't panic on the error and they're 3 outs away from sending the defending champions home!
Bottom 8th
But it woudl really, really help if they got an insurance run...
Sonobe with a drive to deep left center!!! Seki running over, running, dives...
Doesn't have it! The ball rolls away towards the wall as Sonobe breaks for 3rd! Relay throw in not in time! Sonobe in with a 1-out triple!
Replays show Seki was indeed there and had the catch, but the landing dislodged the ball!!
Yuuki connects on a high fastball and lines up the middle! Sonobe scores and Seikou Gakuin gets some much needed breating room at 2-0! Saitou-kantoku will try for another one-timer for another run as he has Kyouda free bunt and send Yuuki to 2nd.
Sekine with a base hit through the right side! Yamanaka charging in as Yuuki is sent home! The throw is on line... OUT!
Yuuki tries to sweep tag, but Sekiya swipes him first for the out! Can't fault them for trying really.
But now it's hang on time!
Top 9th
In kokoyakyu, the english saying "The last 3 outs are the hardes to get..."
AND BOY DOES IT APPLY!!!
Okano behind 3-1 to Ryouya gives him a fastball and he grooves it all the way off the first wall in dead center! It's 2-1!
Will the thought of defeating vaunted Sanko undermine yet another team??
Tomioka with a deep ball.. but not deep enough! Anzai with the catch for the first out.
Yamanaka to step in next. He drives one to center! But again it isn't far enough!! Anzai makes the catch for the 2nd out!
Last chance for Sanko as Ogura-kantoku sends #15 Tadokoro to the plate. He hits a liner to center!
But Anzai is there once again and secures the ball for the 3rd out! Seikou's done it!
Well, color me surprised. I mentioned earlier that Nichidai-san isn't the same team from last year, but I still thought they had the talent to make a deep run. But losing a key piece on the bat and the ball can be too much to overcome.
Nichidai-san had several opportunites to tie the game, but mental errors contributed to their loss. I'm sure Saitou Fuuta would shoulder a bit of the blame with the missed squeeze sign, and knocking the ball out of his own hand. It'll be a lot of "what might have been" for Sanko had they executed like they expect from themselves.
But Okano Yuuichirou should also be credited with pitching a great game. He kept the Sanko batters off balance for most of the game, though he did almost crack under the pressure in the 9th. They had their own mistakes, but managed to do what was necessary to win and advance. Their win will certainly be celebrated across Fukushima and perhaps the entire Tohoku region.
Sanko's loss opens up Block C to anyone who wants it. It'll certaintly be a mad scramble for the Best 8 berth.
Notable Players
Okano Ryuuichirou (Seikou Gakuin) - CG, ER, 4 H, 4 K, 2 BB
Sonobe Satoshi (Seikou Gakuin) - 2-3, 2B, 3B, R, RBI
Saitou Fuuta (Nichidai-san) - 6.1 IP, ER, 3 H, 2 BB
Kaneko Ryouya (Nichidai-san) - 1-4, HR
Nichidai-san almost didn't even make it here. Kousei Gakuen (not to be mistaken with Kousei Gakuin) had a 1-0 lead heading into the top of the 9th, but ace Isozaki and his defense folded under pressure, relinquishing the lead with just one out to go.
And so they find themselves at Koushien once again, looking to be the first team to repeat since Komadai Tomakomai back in 2004-2005.
There are some differences though between last year's and this year's teams. The biggest one is on offense. When last year, Sanko ran circles around their opposition, batting an amazing 0.377, this year it's a more modest 0.295. What's more, the offensive production started falling off in the quarterfinals as they had the following games:
- Quarterfinals - defeated Hino 3-0
- Semifinals - defeated Souka 3-1
- Finals - defeated Kousei Gakuen 2-1
Next, ace Yoshinaga is gone as well. Wildly effective, he for the most part kept batters uncomfortable at the plate. Taking his place is Saitou Fuuta who can throw into the low 140's and as far as I know, carries just the slider in the 130's.
Now, Ogura-kantoku did go to his bullpen in the finals, going with #11 Ooba, first year #18 Kugimiya for a batter, then closed it out with #12 Ogino.
Overall, it's certainly not the dominating team from last year, but they're here so they have a chance.
The team tasked with the first attempt to bring down the champions is Seikou Gakuin. This is their 6th consecutive Fukushima victory, and were never challenged in any of their 6 games. However, the dominance in prefectural play has not necessarily translated into success at Koushien though with the exception of 2009, they have at least won one game, and reached the Best 8 twice (both times from a bracket of 4 teams).
The team batted a rather average 0.321 during this iteration, yet averaged 8 runs/game. It certainly won't translate against Sanko though, though by how much it would be reduced is anyone's guess. What is apparent though is that a lot of the offense is generated by the upper half of the lineup. So if that part is shut down, they'll really have problems on their hands.
Ace Okano is the go-to guy on the mound for Saitou-kantoku. He has used #10 Iidaka, but only on a spot start basis. Neither are fireballers, so it'll be up to the defense to play solid ball.
It doesn't need to be said again, but good luck Seikou Gakuin... you're going to need it...
Nichidai-san (Nishi Tokyo)
LF Morii
3B Kawatsu
SS Kaneko Ryouya
2B Tomioka
RF Yamanaka
CF Seki
1B Murai
C Yumoto (#13)
P Saitou Fuuta
Seikou Gakuin (Fukushima)
CF Anzai (#9)
SS Hirano
C Nagai
1B Sonobe
LF Saitou Yuuki (#8)
3B Kyouda
RF Sekine (#7)
2B Honma (#14)
P Okano
__________________________________________________
10:33 - First Pitch
Top 1st
Morii leads off the game with a blooper over Honma into center. After a sac bunt, Sanko threatens to get on the board quickly.
But Ryouya flies out to left, and while Tomioka makes good contact, he flies out to right to end the inning.
Bottom 1st
Saitou's first pitch to Anzai is a curve that he takes into center for a leadoff hit. Hirano tries the safety bunt, but just gets beaten out by Kawatsu's throw.
Saitou falls behind Nagai 3-0 and eventually walks him, bringing up cleanup batter Sonobe.
Sonobe, after getting behind in the count, works it full. Swings on a high fastball, but hits it deep enough to center to get Anzai in and Seikou Gakuin takes the 1-0 lead!
Saitou (Fuuta) struggling with his control early on here, falling behind Saitou (Yuuki) 2-0. He gets a strike and a foul to even the count and eventually getting him to fly out to right to end the inning. Quick run for Seikou, but it's a long game.
Top 2nd
Okano features a fastball in the mid-130s with a fork in the mid-upper 120s and change in the lower 120s.
Yamanaka works the count full, but his hit to the right side is snagged by Honma who makes a great play for the out.
Seki up and he's frozen on a fastball on the outside corner! Murai follows that up with a chopper to 1st that Sonobe handles and takes to the bag to end the inning.
Bottom 2nd
After using 2 pitches for 2 outs, Honma is a bit more stubborn at the plate. Still, it's a 9 pitch inning as Honma grounds out to Tomioka for the 3rd out.
Top 3rd
Yumoto with a blast to right center, Sekine backs up near the wall and makes the catch.
Fuuta swings on the first pitch, but grounds out to short.
Morii tests Hirano with a hot shot, but he fields it cleanly to make the 3rd out. It's a quick 4-pitch inning.
Bottom 3rd
Saitou Fuuta has a fastball that sits in the mid-upper 130s, and 2 off-speed pitches that sit in the mid 120s, and the high 110s-low 120s.
Anzai with a shot to 3rd, and it bounces off Kawatsu and to Ryouya! His throw is late though and Anzai's on for his 2nd time.
And he takes off for 2nd! Sekiya drops the ball and he's in with his 2nd SB! Then he goes to 3rd on Hirano's grounder to Tomioka.
Nagai though first pitch swings and flies out to center to end the inning.
Top 4th
Kawatsu is made to look silly on a slider way away for a K.
Ryouya gets around on a fastball inside, but is just on top of it and hits a comebacker to Okano for the 2nd out.
Okano working at close to ludicrous speed and Tomioka hits a shot at Sonobe who blocks it, then runs to the bag for the out. Since the opening base hit to Morii, Okano's retired 12 straight.
Bottom 4th
Sonobe attacks tthe first pitch from Fuuta and sends it over Kawatsu and to the wall for a leadoff double. Yuuki then tries to sac bunt, but can't and falls behind 0-2. Yuuki still shows bunt, but pulls it back and takes a ball. He pulls it back again, but hits it to short. The ball wasn't hard hit though and Ryouya has no play at 3rd, so he throws to 1st.
Kyouda with a liner to right, but Sonobe makes a baserunning error! He breaks for home then has to go back on the catch! The ball was so hard hit that Sonobe can't tag up now!
And with Sekine's foul out to end the inning, that costs Seikou Gakuin a run! Will that cost them later? Kousei Gakuen needed that extra run in the finals, and facing Sanko every run counts.
Top 5th
Yamanaka with a hard hit to right puts the douten runner on. Seki moves him to 2nd.
Murai gets 2nd life when he appeals a swinging 3rd strike and gets the foul ball call. It pays off as he is jammed but cues a ball back up the middle! Hirano and Honma converge on the ball, but Honma has no play! Douten run 90 feet away! That missed tag-up looks mighty costly right now!
SQUEEZE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Yumoto with the squeeze, but the ball hits off the bat again and it's called foul! Now he takes a 2nd strike and he can't bunt right?
Not yet anyways, he takes a pitch just outside. Another ball, this time in the dirt is blocked by Nagai and the count runs full. Playing with fire and he walks Yumoto!
Manrui now with Fuuta up! Okano with no room for error, especially with only a 1-run lead!
First pitch a slider over the middle for a strike. Fastball outside for a ball. I bet Fuuta's not swinging unless he has to.
Pitchout yields no squeeze and he falls behind 2-1.
Now a pitch up and in makes it 3-1. The threat of a squeeze is so much they may get a walk!
Saitou takes the pitch, but the runners are taking off!! Yamanaka is hung out to dry! He's run down for the 2nd out! And he makes his displeaure known to Fuuta.
But Okano seems to throwaway the 3-2 pitch to Fuuta walking him - even though he's the #9 batter.
So manrui one again for leadoff batter Morii.
And Okano gets him to pop it up! Sonobe in foul territory makes the catch and the side is retired! Misses by both sides in consecutive half innings cost teams a potential run! So the score remains 1-0 in favor of Seikou Gakuin.
Bottom 5th
Homna makes good contact, but it's a routine fly to Seki. Okano puts a good charge into it, but too flies out to center.
Fuuta gets Anzai to hit a comebacker and we hit the break with Seikou's run in the 1st holding up, though just. While it is a lead, it will not be a comfortable one until the last out is recorded in the 9th.
Top 6th
Kawatsu grounds out to 2nd, Ryouya after working the count full has to swing away and grounds to Sonobe who grabs the tricky hop and tosses to Okano for the 2nd out.
Tomioka is then fooled by Okano, swinging early and hitting a routine grounder to Sonobe who again tosses to Okano to retire the side.
Bottom 6th
Hirano first pitch hits a solid single to right center. Nagai successfully lays down the bunt to put Hirano in scoring position for Sonobe.
Sonobe with a grounder to 2nd, and Ryouya easily catches Hirano between the bases and he's run down for the 2nd out.
Yuuki then swings at the first pitch and pops it up. Tomiko just on the grass in center makes the catch for the 3rd out. Another base-running error by Seikou there.
Top 7th
Yamanaka with a hard hit ball the other way, but it's lined to Yuuki for the first out.
Seki with a ball into the gap on the left side, Hirano with a great stop and strong throw to first! Sonobe with the great stretch to record the out!
Murai with a drive to right center! Sekine running back, running back! At the wall!!
Makes the catch as he bumps into it! That was a close one for Okano as the side is retired in order!
Bottom 7th
Kyouda with a comebacker to Fuuta. He runs to 1st, and the ball comes out of his hand! He runs it down, but not before Yuuki reaches base! I think he accidentally hit his body with his hand and the ball came out! What a bizzare play!
Sekine tries to bunt him over but can't and the count runs to 2-2!
He attempts and makes the free bunt! The insurance run is in scoring position yet again with Honma up to bat.
Fuuta though can't find the zone and he's behind 3-0 and walks Honma on 4 straight.
That gets Ogura-kantoku moving and he's sending in #11 Ooba to relieve Fuuta on the mound.
Okano up, and Saitou-kantoku calls for the bunt, even so far as the free bunt! Okano tries, but can't lay down the bunt for the 2nd out. I guess they were trying to avoid the double play.
But still, it's 2 outs so they need a base hit or a non-out. The lineup does turn over to Anzai though.
And Kyouda takes off on the 1-1 pitch! Sekiya's throw is not in time and he has the base!
Meanwhile, Anzai stays patient at the plate and earns a walk! Manrui for Seikou!
Hirano though doesn't try to wait Fuuta out, he swings away and fouls off the first 2 pitches and is behind 0-2. Ooba take advantage with a waste pitch.
Pitch inside and Hirano just fouls it off... Fastball high and away he fouls off as well...
Ooba gets Hirano to hit a grounder to 2nd! Tomioka with the putout at 1st and Sanko is out of the pinch! Seikou Gakuin unable to get that much needed insurance run in!
Top 8th
Yumoto, after getting a couple of sliders wide of the plate chases a fastball on the outside corner for Okano's 3rd K.
New P Ooba watches a fastball cross over the plate for strike 3, and there's 2 down.
Top of the order and Morii hits a ball to 3rd. The ball bounces off of Kyouda, and by the time he retrieves it it's too late! That's Seikou's first error of the day and it puts the douten runner on as Kawatsu steps in.
He hits a grounder to 3rd and this time Kyouda doesn't muff it! He throws to first and the side is retired! Okano doesn't panic on the error and they're 3 outs away from sending the defending champions home!
Bottom 8th
But it woudl really, really help if they got an insurance run...
Sonobe with a drive to deep left center!!! Seki running over, running, dives...
Doesn't have it! The ball rolls away towards the wall as Sonobe breaks for 3rd! Relay throw in not in time! Sonobe in with a 1-out triple!
Replays show Seki was indeed there and had the catch, but the landing dislodged the ball!!
Yuuki connects on a high fastball and lines up the middle! Sonobe scores and Seikou Gakuin gets some much needed breating room at 2-0! Saitou-kantoku will try for another one-timer for another run as he has Kyouda free bunt and send Yuuki to 2nd.
Sekine with a base hit through the right side! Yamanaka charging in as Yuuki is sent home! The throw is on line... OUT!
Yuuki tries to sweep tag, but Sekiya swipes him first for the out! Can't fault them for trying really.
But now it's hang on time!
Top 9th
In kokoyakyu, the english saying "The last 3 outs are the hardes to get..."
AND BOY DOES IT APPLY!!!
Okano behind 3-1 to Ryouya gives him a fastball and he grooves it all the way off the first wall in dead center! It's 2-1!
Will the thought of defeating vaunted Sanko undermine yet another team??
Tomioka with a deep ball.. but not deep enough! Anzai with the catch for the first out.
Yamanaka to step in next. He drives one to center! But again it isn't far enough!! Anzai makes the catch for the 2nd out!
Last chance for Sanko as Ogura-kantoku sends #15 Tadokoro to the plate. He hits a liner to center!
But Anzai is there once again and secures the ball for the 3rd out! Seikou's done it!
Well, color me surprised. I mentioned earlier that Nichidai-san isn't the same team from last year, but I still thought they had the talent to make a deep run. But losing a key piece on the bat and the ball can be too much to overcome.
Nichidai-san had several opportunites to tie the game, but mental errors contributed to their loss. I'm sure Saitou Fuuta would shoulder a bit of the blame with the missed squeeze sign, and knocking the ball out of his own hand. It'll be a lot of "what might have been" for Sanko had they executed like they expect from themselves.
But Okano Yuuichirou should also be credited with pitching a great game. He kept the Sanko batters off balance for most of the game, though he did almost crack under the pressure in the 9th. They had their own mistakes, but managed to do what was necessary to win and advance. Their win will certainly be celebrated across Fukushima and perhaps the entire Tohoku region.
Sanko's loss opens up Block C to anyone who wants it. It'll certaintly be a mad scramble for the Best 8 berth.
Notable Players
Okano Ryuuichirou (Seikou Gakuin) - CG, ER, 4 H, 4 K, 2 BB
Sonobe Satoshi (Seikou Gakuin) - 2-3, 2B, 3B, R, RBI
Saitou Fuuta (Nichidai-san) - 6.1 IP, ER, 3 H, 2 BB
Kaneko Ryouya (Nichidai-san) - 1-4, HR
Tuesday, July 31, 2012
The field is set, who are the favorites?
With Fukui-ken qualifying the last team in Fukui Koudai Fukui, the field is set. Some teams such as Hanamaki Higashi (Iwate) and ace Hamada, Yokohama (Kanagawa), Takasaki Kenkoudai Fukushi (Gunma), and Kyushu Kokusaidai Fuzoku (Fukuoka) are markedly absent.
Who's left, who's new, and more importantly, who can challenge for the title?
With the Haru Koushien champions qualifying, albeit with a late scare as they almost punted a 10-1 lead in the final against Riseisha, Osaka Touin has to be considered the front-runners to win and thus achieve haru-natsu renzoku yuusho, or spring-summer champions.
But the exact reason they almost gave up that lead, is the same reason they may not be able to win.
In the spring, Fujinami was able to hold out until the end. But I said back then that in the spring the weather is much, much more favorable. Come the summer, the heat and humidity would be much less accommodating.
And as mentioned, in the Osaka taikai he couldn't finish out the final game and had to turn it over to reliever Sawada to close it out. There's no doubt that they'll have to lean on Sawada more if they wish to be the 7th ever spring-summer champions.
Osaka Touin has been known for their offense. Nishitani-kantoku's management of the pitching staff will be key to victory.
Kousei Gakuin (Aomori) - 6th appearance, 2nd consecutive
While we're at it, let's look at the bridesmaids for the last two calendar Koushien tournaments - Kousei Gakuin.
When I saw them in person, there was nothing about the team that stood out, and when they were annihilated in last summer's final against Nichidai-san, I figured that'd be the end of that.
Instead, they replaced ace Akita with Kanazawa, qualified for Senbatsu this year, and reached the finals before losing to Osaka Touin 7-3.
Then came the Aomori taikai where they had 2 scares right off the bat against Misawa and former powerhouse Aomori Yamada. Once they cleared those two, the path to the final was much easier.
The pitching for Kousei Gakuin is deeper, but not as strong. 2B/P Jyouma has been used interchangably by Nakai-kantoku which will be a great help in keeping the arms fresh. The offense isn't as strong, but is still very solid. They have become a good all-around team from a prefecture not known for contending baseball teams.
Nichidai-san (Nishi Tokyo) - 15th appearance, 2nd consecutive
As much as I dislike Sanko, you have to give them their due - they were the dominating team last summer, and in the Nishi Tokyo final, they trailed 1-0 to Kousei Gakuen before Kousei crumbled giving up the game-winning double to the wall.
Sanko despite almost losing in the final, gave up just 3 runs in 7 games. Despite losing Yoshinaga, Saitou has taken over as the ace number, with Ooba as their main reliever and has done a great job.
Offensively, the first 4 games saw them post double-digit runs in 3 of them. But against the tougher competition - Hino, Souka and Kousei Gakuen, they won 3-0, 3-1 and 2-1.
So it will be interesting to see how the offense reacts to a good pitcher, especially if they draw one in the early going. But the opportunity to be a repeat champion is good motivation in and of itself.
Sakushin Gakuin was another, "Oh, that's nice they got to the semifinals" team before losing to Kousei Gakuin. They then made it to Senbatsu as well and got to the 2nd round before giving up a 1-run lead in extras to Naruto.
Sakushin profiles to be a poor man's Kousei Gakuin. Not as good of an offense, and a pitching tandem of Tsutsui and Mizunuma that is not as strong as Kanazawa-Jyouma. But with a rather weaker field then usual, a favorable draw could get them back to the semifinals.
Aikoudai Meiden (Aichi) - 10th appearance, 1st in 5 years
Aikoudai Meiden almost didn't make it like Nichidai-san. Down 2 runs to Touhou in the final, Touhou crumbled giving up the lead, the 2nd of which was due to a passed ball. Meiden would win in 11, and be yet another team to make both Senbatsu and Natsu Koushien this year.
Hamada is certainly more than an average pitcher, but he's almost all alone on the mound. Azuma is the reliever Kurano-kantoku would go to, but from his usage is not that trusted.
Meiden's offense is also a weakness. As witnessed against Touhou and earlier against Aichi Sangyoudai Kougyou, the offense can disappear leaving Hamada to try to carry the team - much more than the usual.
After 3 years of unable to reach Natsu Koushien, they finally book their tickets here in 2012. They were here in the spring, and reached the quarterfinals, and were 3 outs away from defeating eventual champion Osaka Touin, but ace Satou Takuya couldn't close the door.
Up until that moment, Urawa Gakuin was just like any other team in Saitama - underwhelming. For as big as Saitama is in population, it has NEVER won a Natsu Koushien tournament.
Never.
Why the heck is that? I mean, they have the 5th biggest population by prefecture. The 4 bigger ones - Tokyo, Kanagawa, Osaka and Aichi - all have won a Natsu Koushien, but Saitama has not.
I think a lot of it has to do with the fact that Saitama is so close to Tokyo, so close to Kanagawa. If you were a good baseball player in middle school, you were probably recruited by teams down south. Why play for a team locally when you can go to a prestigious school such as Nichidai-san, or Waedsa Jitsugyou or Teikyou?
Urawa Gakuin in the Saitama taikai gave up just 2 runs. Ace Satou was responsible for one of the two (Yamaguchi Rui gave up the other). They did defeat Seibou Gakuen and last year's representative Hanasaki Tokuharu. But because it's still in prefecture, despite the impressive results, it doesn't prove anything.
They batted 0.361 in the spring and 0.350 this summer, but the question will be whether they can string the hits together, or if Satou and Yamaguchi will can hold up if they don't.
And so Urawa Gakuin enters the 94th Natsu Koushien, with a good performance in the spring to perhaps portend things in this summer. But they'll probably need things to fall their way for it to happen.
Urasoe Shougyou (Okinawa) - 4th appearance, 1st in 4 years
This is just Urasoe Shougyou's 4th ever Natsu Koushien appearance, but apart from their first appearance where they lost in the first round, they have reached the semifinals in 1997 (losing to Chiben Wakayama) and 2008 (losing to Tokoha Kikugawa - I remember that game and the 9-run 2nd by Kikugawa and how happy I was!).
The appearance had been somewhat in coming as outside of a surprising loss to Chuubu Shougyou last summer in the 3rd round, they had reached at least the quarterfinals in other taikais.
This time around, their road to the title saw them face such well-known schools as Kounan, Kadena and in the final - Urasoe Shougaku. And before that final against Urasoe Shougaku, they outlasted cinderella Maebara, who had their sights on their first ever title.
I don't have a lot of information on Urasoe Shougyou other than they faithfully use a tandem of pitchers - Miyazato ? (宮里 泰悠) and Teruya Hikaru (照屋 光). Teruya is a fireballer, able to hit 150+ on the gun. I can't find a whole lot on Miyazato, but the tandem seems to have worked.
It will be interesting to see what happens on the big stage. Will they be able to continue the successes at Koushien?
Who's left, who's new, and more importantly, who can challenge for the title?
Title Favorites
Osaka Touin (Osaka) - 6th appearance, 1st in 4 yearsWith the Haru Koushien champions qualifying, albeit with a late scare as they almost punted a 10-1 lead in the final against Riseisha, Osaka Touin has to be considered the front-runners to win and thus achieve haru-natsu renzoku yuusho, or spring-summer champions.
But the exact reason they almost gave up that lead, is the same reason they may not be able to win.
In the spring, Fujinami was able to hold out until the end. But I said back then that in the spring the weather is much, much more favorable. Come the summer, the heat and humidity would be much less accommodating.
And as mentioned, in the Osaka taikai he couldn't finish out the final game and had to turn it over to reliever Sawada to close it out. There's no doubt that they'll have to lean on Sawada more if they wish to be the 7th ever spring-summer champions.
Osaka Touin has been known for their offense. Nishitani-kantoku's management of the pitching staff will be key to victory.
Kousei Gakuin (Aomori) - 6th appearance, 2nd consecutive
While we're at it, let's look at the bridesmaids for the last two calendar Koushien tournaments - Kousei Gakuin.
When I saw them in person, there was nothing about the team that stood out, and when they were annihilated in last summer's final against Nichidai-san, I figured that'd be the end of that.
Instead, they replaced ace Akita with Kanazawa, qualified for Senbatsu this year, and reached the finals before losing to Osaka Touin 7-3.
Then came the Aomori taikai where they had 2 scares right off the bat against Misawa and former powerhouse Aomori Yamada. Once they cleared those two, the path to the final was much easier.
The pitching for Kousei Gakuin is deeper, but not as strong. 2B/P Jyouma has been used interchangably by Nakai-kantoku which will be a great help in keeping the arms fresh. The offense isn't as strong, but is still very solid. They have become a good all-around team from a prefecture not known for contending baseball teams.
Nichidai-san (Nishi Tokyo) - 15th appearance, 2nd consecutive
As much as I dislike Sanko, you have to give them their due - they were the dominating team last summer, and in the Nishi Tokyo final, they trailed 1-0 to Kousei Gakuen before Kousei crumbled giving up the game-winning double to the wall.
Sanko despite almost losing in the final, gave up just 3 runs in 7 games. Despite losing Yoshinaga, Saitou has taken over as the ace number, with Ooba as their main reliever and has done a great job.
Offensively, the first 4 games saw them post double-digit runs in 3 of them. But against the tougher competition - Hino, Souka and Kousei Gakuen, they won 3-0, 3-1 and 2-1.
So it will be interesting to see how the offense reacts to a good pitcher, especially if they draw one in the early going. But the opportunity to be a repeat champion is good motivation in and of itself.
Title Contenders
Sakushin Gakuin (Tochigi) - 8th appearance, 2nd consecutiveSakushin Gakuin was another, "Oh, that's nice they got to the semifinals" team before losing to Kousei Gakuin. They then made it to Senbatsu as well and got to the 2nd round before giving up a 1-run lead in extras to Naruto.
Sakushin profiles to be a poor man's Kousei Gakuin. Not as good of an offense, and a pitching tandem of Tsutsui and Mizunuma that is not as strong as Kanazawa-Jyouma. But with a rather weaker field then usual, a favorable draw could get them back to the semifinals.
Aikoudai Meiden (Aichi) - 10th appearance, 1st in 5 years
Aikoudai Meiden almost didn't make it like Nichidai-san. Down 2 runs to Touhou in the final, Touhou crumbled giving up the lead, the 2nd of which was due to a passed ball. Meiden would win in 11, and be yet another team to make both Senbatsu and Natsu Koushien this year.
Hamada is certainly more than an average pitcher, but he's almost all alone on the mound. Azuma is the reliever Kurano-kantoku would go to, but from his usage is not that trusted.
Meiden's offense is also a weakness. As witnessed against Touhou and earlier against Aichi Sangyoudai Kougyou, the offense can disappear leaving Hamada to try to carry the team - much more than the usual.
Dark Horses
Urawa Gakuin (Saitama) - 11th appearance, 1st in 4 yearsAfter 3 years of unable to reach Natsu Koushien, they finally book their tickets here in 2012. They were here in the spring, and reached the quarterfinals, and were 3 outs away from defeating eventual champion Osaka Touin, but ace Satou Takuya couldn't close the door.
Up until that moment, Urawa Gakuin was just like any other team in Saitama - underwhelming. For as big as Saitama is in population, it has NEVER won a Natsu Koushien tournament.
Never.
Why the heck is that? I mean, they have the 5th biggest population by prefecture. The 4 bigger ones - Tokyo, Kanagawa, Osaka and Aichi - all have won a Natsu Koushien, but Saitama has not.
I think a lot of it has to do with the fact that Saitama is so close to Tokyo, so close to Kanagawa. If you were a good baseball player in middle school, you were probably recruited by teams down south. Why play for a team locally when you can go to a prestigious school such as Nichidai-san, or Waedsa Jitsugyou or Teikyou?
Urawa Gakuin in the Saitama taikai gave up just 2 runs. Ace Satou was responsible for one of the two (Yamaguchi Rui gave up the other). They did defeat Seibou Gakuen and last year's representative Hanasaki Tokuharu. But because it's still in prefecture, despite the impressive results, it doesn't prove anything.
They batted 0.361 in the spring and 0.350 this summer, but the question will be whether they can string the hits together, or if Satou and Yamaguchi will can hold up if they don't.
And so Urawa Gakuin enters the 94th Natsu Koushien, with a good performance in the spring to perhaps portend things in this summer. But they'll probably need things to fall their way for it to happen.
Urasoe Shougyou (Okinawa) - 4th appearance, 1st in 4 years
This is just Urasoe Shougyou's 4th ever Natsu Koushien appearance, but apart from their first appearance where they lost in the first round, they have reached the semifinals in 1997 (losing to Chiben Wakayama) and 2008 (losing to Tokoha Kikugawa - I remember that game and the 9-run 2nd by Kikugawa and how happy I was!).
The appearance had been somewhat in coming as outside of a surprising loss to Chuubu Shougyou last summer in the 3rd round, they had reached at least the quarterfinals in other taikais.
This time around, their road to the title saw them face such well-known schools as Kounan, Kadena and in the final - Urasoe Shougaku. And before that final against Urasoe Shougaku, they outlasted cinderella Maebara, who had their sights on their first ever title.
I don't have a lot of information on Urasoe Shougyou other than they faithfully use a tandem of pitchers - Miyazato ? (宮里 泰悠) and Teruya Hikaru (照屋 光). Teruya is a fireballer, able to hit 150+ on the gun. I can't find a whole lot on Miyazato, but the tandem seems to have worked.
It will be interesting to see what happens on the big stage. Will they be able to continue the successes at Koushien?
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