RIP Marty Kuehnert (1946-2024): Trailblazer. First foreign GM in NPB history. First GM in Rakuten Eagles history. Senior GM of Sendai 89ers. Writer. TV host. Sports management consultant. University professor. Friend of JapanBall. And much, much more. He will be missed.
Samurai Japan started its quest for the WBSC Premier12 championship this week, finishing a perfect 5-0 to secure the top spot in Group B and advance to the Super Round in Tokyo. The opening game was played in Nagoya, while the rest of the matchups were on the road in Taipei. Highlighted by clutch hitting and overpowering pitching, Japan took down Australia, Korea, Chinese Taipei, Cuba, and the Dominican Republic, outscoring its opponents 36-16. As expected, Japan’s elite pitching has been on display with a 2.80 ERA and 63-9 strikeout-to-walk ratio across 45 innings. The offense, while missing many of the best NPB stars, has also been great with a .306/.388/.404 team slash line. Let’s see how each game played out!
Samurai Japan defeated Australia 9-3 in their Premier12 opener at Vantelin Dome Nagoya in front of over 30,000 fans. All eyes were on No. 1 overall MLB draft pick Travis Bazzana, who was making his senior national team debut for Australia. Japan capitalized on defensive mistakes and bullpen struggles from Australia, who utilized 12 pitchers in the game and got a strong start from Yomiuri Giants youngster Haruto Inoue. Rixon Wingrove’s two-run shot in the 6th inning gave the Aussies hope, but Japan pulled away late, with standout performances from Kaito Kozono, Shugo Maki, and Shota Morishita sealing the victory.
Japan took a detour to Taiwan to play out the remainder of its Group B matchups and edged Korea 6-3 in its second tournament game, powered by clutch hitting and dominant pitching. Down 3-2, Shugo Maki’s clutch two-run single flipped the game in the 5th, and Shota Morishita’s 7th-inning homer provided insurance. Chunichi Dragons ace Hiroto Takahashi struck out eight over four frames, and Chihiro Sumida and Shoma Fujihira combined for nine strikeouts in four innings of relief. Flamethrower Taisei shut the door in the 9th to get Japan a key win over its rivals.
In a battle of undefeated teams, Japan took down hosts Chinese Taipei 3-1, leaning on early offense and more stellar pitching. The Taipei Dome was rocking all night long, but the Samurai didn’t get swept away in the loud road environment. Hanshin Tigers star Hiroto Saiki threw 5.2 shutout innings, and Sosuke Genda’s solo homer in the 4th was the highlight of the hitting. Chinese Taipei scored with a late homer against Koki Kitayama, but Taisei had no issues recording his second straight save as Japan moved to 3-0, inching closer to the Super Round.
In rainy Taipei, Japan edged Cuba 7-6 in a thriller, maintaining its perfect record and securing a spot in the Super Round. Down 5-1 early, Cuba rallied to tie the game in the 7th inning, getting timely hits and capitalizing on rare defensive mistakes by Japan. Yadir Drake, who played for the Nippon-Ham Fighters back in 2017, had three hits for Cuba. Starter Takahisa Hayakawa allowed four runs over 5.1 frames, striking out seven. Japan retook the lead in the 8th as Ryoya Kurihara hit a clutch sacrifice fly against his SoftBank Hawks teammate, Livan Moinelo. Rakuten Eagles reliever Shoma Fujihira faced a bases-loaded jam in the 9th but struck out back-to-back batters to preserve the victory.
Japan 11, Dominican Republic 3
With a Super Round berth already clinched, manager Hirokazu Ibata decided to rest some of his stars and give the bench more playing time. Despite falling behind early, Japan came back and defeated the Dominican Republic 11-3 to finish Group B with a perfect 5-0 record. Shogo Sakakura, Kotaro Kurebayashi, Toshiya Satoh, and Ryota Isobata each had two ribbies. Cleanup man Shota Morishita went 3 for 3, raising his tournament average to .571. Yomiuri Giants starter Shosei Togo struck out six over four innings, and the bullpen held strong. Japan now advances to the Super Round at Tokyo Dome, where it will face the United States, Venezuela, and Chinese Taipei. The top two teams advance to the championship game on Sunday!
- NPB Standings
- Central League Hitting Leaders
- Central League Pitching Leaders
- Pacific League Hitting Leaders
- Pacific League Pitching Leaders
- Yuri’s NPB Pitcher Rankings
- Yakyu Cosmopolitan’s Website
