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Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks

Crystal Ball

Here's what some of the members of the Japan baseball media thought about the season prior to Opening Day 2008. (We'll keep this up until shortly before the next season, so you can see how they did.)

From the Yomiuri Shimbun Online

Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks -- Predicted Finish: 1

The Hawks offense was crippled in 2007 and how well Nobuhiko Matsunaka and the other walking wounded bounce back should be the story.

"He was hurt like never before last season," manager Sadaharu Oh said. "We count on him as our big producer and without him, we didn't get it together."

Matsunaka sat out 21 games and when he did play he was a mere shadow of himself. Shortstop Munenori Kawasaki was dynamite but also missed 49 games.

The other big question for the Hawks offense is how well Hitoshi Tamura will do in his second PL season. As usual, Tamura was hurt (torn leg muscle). He is capable of really driving the ball when healthy, but has almost no chance of hitting 40 homers here.

The Hawks will be without third baseman Hiroki Kokubo for a few months. However, Nobuhiro Matsuda is a good player and capable of hitting .283 with 10 homers and 40 RBIs before Kokubo is ready to play.

Second baseman Yuichi Honda, too, will also miss Opening Day, while injuries have also laid siege to Oh's pitching staff.

Ace Kazumi Saito is coming off surgery; lefty starter Tsuyoshi Wada is also on the mend, while closer Takahiro Mahara's season debut will be delayed.

"Last year we thought we were OK, but the injuries took us out," Oh said. "This time we know we're hurting and we've got to get after it. Everyone is pulling together."

On the plus side, Oh has plenty of arms to fill the gap in the rotation behind lefty Toshiya Sugiuchi and right-hander Nagisa Arakaki. Jason Standridge was successful as a starter last season, and Rick Guttormson was very good after coming over from Yakult a year ago. Oh also has second-year man Kenji Otonari and rookie Shota Oba on hand along with newcomer D.J. Houlton.

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From Jason Coskrey of The Japan Times

There are rumblings that this season may be the last for manager Sadaharu Oh, and the Hawks should have a chance to send their skipper out on top.

First baseman Nobuhiko Matsunaka is the main event offensively and has found his stroke early with four home runs this spring. If the Softbank star is healthy after limping to the finish last season, he should again be one of the league's most imposing figures at the plate.

Shortstop Munenori Kawasaki batted .329 last season and anchors the infield. He could be joined by either Yuichi Honda or Kenji Akashi at second and Nobuhiro Matsuda, who adds some power at third base. Newcomer Michael Restovich will handle the DH duties and also see some time at first.

Center fielder Hitoshi Tamura anchors the outfield, and is joined alongside Hiroshi Shibahara and Naoyuki Omura.

Pitcher Toshiya Sugiuchi, who will likely toe the rubber on Opening Day, and Tsuyoshi Wada (when healthy) anchor a strong pitching staff that also includes Nagisa Arakaki, Rick Guttormson and Jason Standridge.

In the bullpen, C.J. Nitkowski and Akio Mizuka return to help get the ball to All-Star closer Takhiro Mahara.

The Hawks also added veteran Jeremy Powell, D.J. Houlton and No. 1 draft pick Shota Oba in the offseason and should get the injured Kazumi Saito back around mid-season.