After taking a break, and being inundated by work, I'm back to review the Fall Tournament which in many cases, are in the final stages in prefectural play.
I didn't have the time this time around to do brackets for the fall tournament, my apologies for that.
Before I start though, a quick note on Hifumi Shinta. At the matsuri Uwajimaya was holding, I talked to a food representative who was up from California. We got to talking and I mentioned Hifumi Shinta. Turns out his switch to a sidearm delivery was as a result of a deadball he delivered that hit a player on the head. Apparently shaken by that, he switched to a sidearm delivery. Better to hit someone on the thigh or leg than the head.
But if the summer was any indication, his control is nothing to be desired.
Hokkaido (1 automatic bid)
Regional play has concluded with the following teams qualifying for the prefectural tournament:
Sapporo - Sapporo Dai-ichi, Hokkai, Sapporo Kousei and Hokkai Gakuen Sapporo
Muroran - Mukawa, Hokkaido Sakae
Hakodate - Hakodate Shougyou, Hakodatedai Yuuto
Otaru - Hokushou
Sorachi - Takigawa Nishi, Komadai Iwamizawa
Asahikawa - Asahikawa Jitsugyou, Asahikawa Kougyou
Nayoro - Wakkanai Ootani
Kitami - Engaru, Memanbetsu
Tokachi - Shirakaba Gakuen, Obihiro Ootani
Kushine - Kushiro Hokuyou, Kushiro Kougyou
All of these teams are for the most part regulars, with the exception of Memanbetsu who is making their 1st ever appearance. Go Memanbetsu!
Komadai Tomakomai just cannot get their team back in gear, losing in the block semifinals to Muroran Ootani 7-2.
Aomori (3 bids to the Tohoku Super-Regionals - Kousei Gakuin, Aomori Yamada, Hirosaki Kougyou)
I was happy to see Hachinohe Koudai Dai-ichi make it to Koushien, although they didn't really last very long. They automatically got a pass to the prefectural tournament and defeated Noheji 6-1 to advance to the best 8. But they couldn't get past Aomori Higashi, losing 4-1.
Aomori Higashi then faced Kousei Gakuin who had pretty much rolled through the field. They were then rolled 8-1.
On the other side, Aomori Yamada had done the same and continued the trend against Hirosaki Kougyou shutting them out 3-1.
That gave both Kousei Gakuin and Aomori Yamada automatic bids to the super-regional. But the team who would take top spot and earn a game against a (supposed) easier opponent would be Kousei Gakuin in an impressive 6-0 shutout over Aomori Yamada.
And the final spot would go to Hirosaki Kougyou, who had no mercy on the newcomer Aomori Higashi 8-1.
Akita (3 bids to the Tohoku Super-Regionals - Oodate Houmei, Yokote Jyounan, Oomagari Kougyou)
Summer participant Noshiro Shougyou managed to advance out of the regionals, but lost in the 1st round of the prefectural to Nishime 4-0.
The Best 4 featured some new faces as Yokote and Yokote Jyounan met in one semi while Oomagari Kougyou and Oodate Houmei face off in the other. Yokote Jyounan scored in the late innings to defeat Yokote 4-3 and Oodate Houmei gave Oomagari Kougyou a 2 run head start before immediately scoring 3 to take the lead and didn't look back, winning 5-2.
In the championship Oodate Houmei would win only it's 2nd fall prefectural title shutting out Yokote Jyounan 4-0 while Oomagari Kougyou would secure the final spot, defeating Yokote 7-3.
Yamagata (3 bids to the Tohoku Super-Regionals - Sakata Minami, Tsuruoka Higashi, Yamagata Chuo)
Yamagata's final 4 should be of no surprise as Sakata Minami, Nichidai Yamagata, Tsuruoka Higashi, and summer representative Yamagata Chuo.
In perhaps in a bit of an oddity, Sakata Minami and Nichidai Yamagata were involved in a slugfest game, yet while Sakata Minami never trailed, Nichidai Yamagata always had some response to Sakata's offense. It wasn't enough though as Sakata would win 10-8. Mean while, Tsuruoka Higashi had scored 4 in the 7th to take a 3 run lead late, but Yamagata Chuo wasn't going to go down without a fight, and in fact tied the game in the bottom of the 9th. It would stay tied until the 14th inning where Tsuruoka would break the deadlock for good.
So while Tsuruoka Higashi had earned an automatic bid, the 14-inning affair would theoretically give the advantage to Sakata Minami for the top seed. Yet the game was tied 1-1 going into the bottom of the 8th. Suddenly, the offense on both sides switched on. Sakata would score in the 8th taking the 2-1 lead with just 3 outs to go. In those 3 outs, Tsuruoka Higashi scored 2 to take the lead themselves! The final act though saw Sakata Minami score 2 of their own, earning the sayonara victory 4-3!
The 3rd place game was just as close as Yamagata Chuo denied Nichidai Yamagata a spot in the super-regionals, winning 6-5.
Iwate (3 bids to the Tohoku Super-Regionals - Morioka Chuo, Ichinoseki Gakuin, Hanamaki Higashi)
Iwate's final 4 should be of no surprise to kokoyakyu followers - Morioka Chuo, Moriokadai Fuzoku, Ichinoseki Gakuin and Hanamaki Higashi.
Each team though (with the exception of Hanamaki Higashi) had a scare in the prefecturals. Morioka Chuo edged Kuji Higashi 2-1, Moriokadai Fuzoku beat Mizusawa Kougyou 4-3, and Ichinoseki Gakuin had trouble in the first round but managed to beat Morioka Dai-san also by a score of 4-3.
In the battle of the Moriokas, Moriokadai Fuzoku achieved a 2-1 lead late against Morioka Chuo, but Morioka Chuo's Ookou(?) Ryousuke would hit a sayonara homerun off off Moriokadai ace Tateshita for an automatic bid. Ichinoseki Gakuin had a lead against Hanamaki Higashi, but let them get back into the game with runs in the 6th and 7th innings. However, Ichinoseki Gakuin would prevail in the 10th with a sayonara run.
But Ichinoseki Gakuin still cannot shake the just not good enough tag as they are shutout 7-0 to Morioka Chuo in the final. And to add insult to injury, Moriokadai Fuzoku is edged out by Hanamaki Higashi 5-4 for the final bid.
Miyagi (3 bids to the Tohoku Super-Regionals - Sendai Ikuei/Tohoku, Touryou)
While the order of the 3 bids have not been determined yet, (they're playing the final as I write this), we do know who has qualified.
Summer representative Sendai Ikuei secured their bid with a 5-inning rout of Furukawa Kougyou 16-4. Furukawa Kougyou by the way, defeated Rifu 9-7 in the quarterfinals.
In the other semi, Yu Darvish's Tohoku had a 3-0 lead on Touryou - only to see it evaporate in the last 2 innings. The momentum for Touryou couldn't push them over the top as Tohoku regained control, scoring the go-ahead run in the top of the 11th.
The final spot would go to Touryou as they defeated the Furukawa squad 5-3.
Fukushima (3 bids to the Tohoku Super-Regionals - Seikou Gakuin/Nichidai Tohoku, Shouin Gakuin Fukushima)
The semifinals in Fukushima appeared to be blowout possibilities as Seikou Gakuin looked to roll into the Tohoku Super-regionals with a win against Shouin Gakuen Fukushima while Haramachi would certainly have a heck of a time against Nichidai Tohoku.
Indeed both were blowouts as the favorites won 12-3 and 8-2 respectively securing their spots in the super-regional. And the 3rd place game has already been played, with Shoiun Gakuen edging Haramachi 3-2.
Ibaraki (2 bids to the Kanto Super-Regionals)
Ibaraki has their draw for the prefecturals. Suijyou looks to show their efforts last summer weren't just a fluke. Standing in the way are teams such as Tsukuba Shuuei, Kasumigaura, Shimotsuma Dai-ni, Mito Sakuranomaki (which Ken likes because of their old style M's hat and Mets-style jerseys) and Jyousou Gakuin.
Tochigi (2 bids to the Kanto Super-Regionals)
Tochigi is into the Best 8. And of the 8 seeded teams, only Tochigi Kougyou did not make it losing to Hakuoudai Ashikaga, certainly not a weak team. Those seeded teams that remain include teams such as Sakushin Gakuin, Bunsei Geidai Fuzoku and summer representative Sano Nichidai.
Gunma (2 bids to the Kanto Super-Regionals)
Gunma is in the semifinal stages and summer representative Maebashi Shougyou lost in the round of 16 to Nishi-Oura 10-6, who in turn got shutout against Kiryuu Dai-ichi 7-0. They'll face Maebashi Ikuei in one semi.
The other semifinal has Takasaki Kenkou Fukushidai Takasaki versus Takasaki Shougyou.
Saitama (2 bids to the Kanto Super-Regionals)
Saitama has finished the 2nd round of their prefectural tournament reaching the round of 16. Summer participant Honjyou Dai-ichi had drawn a seeded spot opposite Kasukabe Kyouei, yet fell to Oomiya Higashi 1-0 in their first game!
Ageo and Urawa Gakuin were the seeded teams on the other side of the bracket. And Ageo would also fall in the first round, losing to Keiou Shiki 7-6.
Other notable teams who had made it to prefecturals were Honjyou (who will face Kasukabe Kyouei in the next round), Hanasaki Tokuharu (who lost to Shiritsu Kawagoe 8-2), and Seibou Gakuin (who will face the aforementioned Shiritsu Kawagoe).
Chiba (2 bids to the Kanto Super-Regionals)
Well, if we're talking about Chiba, the first team I always talk about is Narashino.
Sadly, they lost to Senshuudai Matsudo 1-0 in the round of 16... Bah.
Narita, without ace Nakagawa, lost in the 2nd round to Seibudai Chiba 4-3. They'll face Toukaidai Urayasu. On the same side sits Chiba Meitoku and Chiba Keizaidai Fuzoku.
On the other side we have Kisaradzu Sougou vs. Chiba Eiwa (who had a 4-4 tie against then defeated Shiritsu Kashiwa 6-5) and the aforementioned Senshuudai Matsudo vs. Chiba Kokusai.
Tokyo (1 automatic bid)
All 24 blocks have their bids in for the Tokyo Super-Regional. Teams that have qualified are (Notable in bold):
Block 1 - Waseda Gakuin, Toritsu Katakura
Block 2 - Eimeikan, Toritsu Chitosegaoka
Block 3 - Meijidai Nakano, Toua Gakuen
Block 4 - Ikubunkan, Meijidai Nakano-Hachiouji
Block 5 - Nichidai-san, Toritsu Fujimori
Block 6 - Nissho Gakushadai Fuzoku, Toritsu Shouwa
Block 7 - Toritsu Houya, Hachiouji Jissen
Block 8 - Souka, Kokugakuin Kugayama
Block 9 - Nichidai-ni, Adachi Gakuen
Block 10 - Setagaya Gakuen, Nichidai Buzan
Block 11 - Kousei Gakuen, Toritsu Dai-yon Shougyou
Block 12 - Shuutoku, Seiritsu Gakuen
Block 13 - Jissen Gakuen, Tokyo Shidai Fuzoku
Block 14 - Meijidai Meiji, St. Paul Gakuen
Block 15 - Houseidai, Komaba Gakuen
Block 16 - Obirin (Oberlin), Toritsu Akagawa Shougyou
Block 17 - Teikyou, Toritsu Sakuramachi
Block 18 - Kanto Dai-ichi, Chuodai Suginami
Block 19 - Toritsu Fussa, Seikei
Block 20 - Toukaidai Sugao, Toritsu Choufu Kita
Block 21 - Toukaidai Takanawadai, Toritsu Ooizumi
Block 22 - Tortitsu Edogawa, Toritsu Katsushikano
Block 23 - Hachiouji, Yasuda Gakuen
Block 24 - Toritsu Kunitachi, Kokushikan
But wait, what about Waseda Jitsugyou? Well, they lost in the first round in block 3B to Toua Gakuen 8-7.
Kanagawa (2 bids to the Kanto Super-Regionals)
Kanagawa is in the best 4, and with 2 bids, they could go to the favorites. Toukaidai Sagami has not lost a step without ace Hifumi, reaching the semifinals with ease. Tourei Fujisawa is the only thing standing in their way of a spot in the super-regionals. Meanwhile, Yokohama looks to breakthrough finally with a win over Yokohama Shoudai. Games will be played next weekend.
Yamanashi (2 bids to the Kanto Super-Regionals)
Yamanashi is in the Best 4, and my favorite team from here, Nihon Koukuu, is still in it (Hooray!). They meet Toukaidai Koufu in the semifinal who is no pushover. They defeated seeded Hikawa and Nichidai Meisei.
In the other semifinal Teikyou Dai-san looks to reach the super-regional with a win over Koufu Kougyou (who upset seeded Minobu and Yamanashi Gakuindai Fuzoku).
Shizuoka (3 bids to the Tokai Super-Regionals - Seisei/Iwata Higashi)
Shizuoka is in the Best 4. Sadly, the prefectural draw prevented an all-Tokoha final as they were on the same side. And then summer representative Tachibana fell to Nirayama 6-4 in the 2nd round, and Kikugawa was not that far behind, losing to Seisei 4-2 in the quarterfinals.
Seisei would edge out Nirayama 1-0 in the semifinals, clinching a super-regional bid. On the other side, relative unknown Iwata Higashi defeated Shizuoka 3-1 to give them an bid.
That leaves Shizuoka and Nirayama to battle it out for the last bid.
Nagano (3 bids to the Hokushinetsu Super-Regionals)
Nagano's field of 16 is set although the draw hasn't been done yet. Teams that have qualified are (in order of finish, important teams in bold):
Hokushinchihou - Nagano, Shinonoi, Nagano Shougyou, Iiyama Kita
Toushinchihou - Saku Chousei, Ueda Nishi, Chikyuu Kankyou, Ueda Someyaoka
Chuushinshihou - Toukai Dai-san, Ina Yayoigaoka, Okaya Minami, Matsukawa
Nanshinchihou - Matsushou Gakuen, Oomachi (Yay!), Matsumoto Dai-ichi, Tokyo Shidai Shiojiri
As for Matsumoto Kougyou, they lost in their second game to Oomachi 7-5.
Niigata (3 bids to the Hokushinetsu Super-Regionals)
Niigata is in the quarterfinal stages. Summer representative Niigata Meikun made it to the round of 16, but lost to Nagaoka Oote 3-2.
Facing Nagaoka Oote will be Hokuetsu. Other matchups include Nihon Bunri against Niitsu Minami, Shibata Nougyou versus Tookamachi, and Teikyou Nagaoka squaring off against Sado.
Aichi (3 bids to the Toukai Super-Regionals - Aikoudai Meiden/Kyouei)
Chuukyoudai Chuukyou after their manager announced his retirement loses in the 3rd round to finalist Kyouei 8-7. That actually would the be only speed bump for Kyouei as they breezed through the rest of their games, culminating in a 13-1 win over Toyota Nishi for an automatic bid. Battling for bragging rights will be Ichiro's Aikoudai Meiden, who had a close call with Obu in the 2nd round winning 7-6, but cruising otherwise. Aichi will square off with Toyota Nishi for the final bid.
Gifu (3 bids to the Toukai Super-Regionals - Oogaki Nichidai, Gifu Dai-ichi, Chuukyou)
In an interesting turn of events, both Kenritsu and Shiritsu Gifu Shougyou lost in the first round of the prefectural tournament (Gifu is different in that their regionals are round-robin which couldn't be done in most prefectures due to the sheer numbers of teams).
That left the brackets open and Oogaki Nichidai walked right in, yielding only one run up until the final. Gifu Dai-ichi was the other beneficiary, not having to deal with any major competition. Oogaki Nichidai would win it's 2nd fall title defeating Gifu Dai-ichi 4-2. The final team to benefit would be Chuukyou, who lost to Oogaki Nichidai (ace Kassai not yielding a walk), but defeated Gifu Kougyou 2-0 for the last spot.
Toki Shougyou by the way, was one of Oogaki Nichidai's victims, although they only lost 2-0.
Mie (3 bids to the Toukai Super-Regionals)
As documented last year, Mie is also a different case where teams have multiple elimination stages. This allows for a lot of the regulars a good opportunity to advance, as evidenced by teams such as Mie, summer representative Inabe Sougou Gakuen, Uji-Yamada Shougyou, and Komono. As expected, all of these teams advanced to the quarterfinals. Joining them is Yokkaichi, Yokkaichi Minami, Matsuzaka, and Shiroko.
Toyama (4 bids to the Hokushinetsu Super-Regionals - Shin-Minato/Sakurai, Fukuoka/Toyama Dai-ichi)
Since Toyama is hosting the Hokushinetsu Super-Regionals, they get an extra bid. And while they haven't finished the prefecturals we have our 4 participants.
Summer representative Tonami Kougyou couldn't get out of the 3rd round, losing to Kureha 8-3 who in turn lost in a barnburner to seeded Fukuoka 11-10 which game them an automatic bid.
Takaoka Shougyou was probably a favorite to advance, but they were shutdown by Shin-Minato 4-1 to give them an automatic bid. A 15-8 win over Fukuoka gives them the opportunity for an easy 1st round.
On the other side, unseeded Sakurai had the benefit of a weak bracket and advanced to the semifinals (and an automatic bid) with an 11-3 win over Takaoka Dai-ichi. But then they shocked Takaoka Dai-ichi 6-3 for a chance at the prefecture title.
Ishikawa (4 bids to the Hokushinetsu Super-Regional)
Ishikawa is only in the round of 16, but of those 16 summer participant Yuugakukan is still alive. Of course, with only 49 teams, they've only played one game against Kanazawa Hokuryou, winning 15-1.
Other notable teams include Komatsu and Kanazawa.
Fukui (3 bids to the Hokushinetsu Super-Regional)
Fukui is already in the Best 4 having only 29 teams and all. Man, really?? I'm amazed at how population movements have severely affected rural prefectures...
Anyway... 3 of the 4 teams are household names - Tsuruga Kehi, Fukui Shougyou, and Fukui Koudai Fukui. The 4th? Nyuu. No, this isn't like nya~~~n like Azu-nyan, it really is a school name.
Shiga (2 bids to the Kinki Super-Regional)
It's tough being in the Kinki region. While most are allowed 3 teams, you generally want the top spot, because heaven forbid you face a team like Fukuchiyama Seibi.
We're in the best 4 now, and none of them is summer participant Kita-Ootsu. In fact, they lost in the first round to Hieizan 3-2! Hikone Higashi made it to the quarterfinals, but lost to Minakuchi 4-3. They'll face surprise team Hachiman Shougyou who defeated Hieizan on the way to the semifinals.
On the other side sits Murayama, who made a deep run in the summer but lost to eventual representative Kita-Ootsu, and relative unknown Kousen. They too lost to Kita-Ootsu in the summer 14-4. But they can't be just lucky though, as they defeated Oumi 13-0. 13-0!
Kyoto (3 bids to the Kinki Super-Regional)
Kyoto gets back Fukuchiyama Seibi, who self-imposed sanctions prevented them from participating in the summer. You know they're motivated to kick some tail.
Sure enough, they are in the Best 8 with little trouble.
One of my irrationally favorite teams, Kyoto Subaru, made it to the "A" zone final only to lose to Hokuryou and then lose to Kyoto Ryouyou in the repechage (Kyoto uses zones and a double-elimination format to determine who advances).
Going back to the Best 8, the other teams joining Fukuchiyama Seibi are the aforementioned Hokuryou, Tounan, Momoyama, Kyoto Seishou, Kyoto Shouei, Kita-Saga and the summer representative Kyoto Gaidai Nishi.
Osaka (3 bids to the Kinki Super-Regional)
Osaka also divvies up the brackets to 4 regions, with the winners of each region advancing. Riseisha is still in it and is in a relatively easy bracket. Only possible challenger is Toukaidai Gyousei.
Other teams looking for a spot on include Haruhigaoka, Tennoji, Konkou Osaka and Osaka Touin.
Hyogo (3 bids to the Kinki Super-Regional)
OMG! My Nishinomiya Kita made it to the prefectural tournament! Sure they lost to Tatsuno 6-4 in the 1st round, but perhaps there's a Haruhi effect... eh? Eh?....
Never mind...
Houtoku Gakuen gets a free pass to the prefecturals and have not had much trouble advancing through the bracket and are a part of the Best 8. They will face Ikawadani next.
Joining them is Kakogawa Kita (who will face Akashi), Shinkou Gakuen and Touyoudai Himeji (who will face each other), and Kobe Kokusaidai Fuzoku (who will face Sumoto).
Nara (2 teams to the Kinki Super-Regional)
Nara gets part of the short end, receiving only 2 bids.
Hopefully Tenri is one of them, having outscored their opponents 57-0 in their 3 games. Tomigaoka will look to avoid the same fate...
The other 2 contenders are Chiben Gakuen (who won their first game and will face Takatori Kokusai), and Kooriyama (who also won their first game and will meet Houryuuji Kokusai next).
It's almost not worth mentioning other teams because those three have dominated the scene in Nara.
Wakayama (2 teams to the Kinki Super-Regional)
Wakayama's format allows the top 4 teams as determined by the federation to advance to the Best 8. So Chiben Wakayama, Shiritsu Wakayama, Ito, and Kinkidai Shinguu get a free pass.
Minoshima only got through one game in A Block before losing to Keifu. Wakayama Kougyou would advance out of the block. Kouyou was in a barnburned in B Block against Taikyuu winning 16-10, but lost to Kiokan 4-2. Naga would advance out of B Block. Wakayama Shougyou and Kasada advanced out of C & D Blocks.
Chiben Wakayama is almost always a shoe-in to make it, but they will have to face either Kinkidai Shinguu or Wakayama Shougyou in the semis. Probably the winner of the Shiritsu Wakayama and Wakayama Kougyou game will earn the other bid from the other half of the bracket.
Tottori (3 teams to the Chuugoku Super-Regionals - Tottori Ikuei, Yazu, Tottori Shougyou)
As I was looking through the field, I thought, "Wonder how Kurayoshi Kita is doing..." But they weren't anywhere to be seen. Truth be told, they weren't in the summer tournament either. Turns out that they were suspended for the entire year as punishment for violence within the team. There had to be serious things going on for them to receive a full-year ban.
Summer participant Yazu had only one hiccup on their way to the finals, and that was a game against Kurayoshi Higashi whom they tied 2-2 before finally winning 3-2 the next day.
Tottori Ikuei had the benefit of Tottori Jyouhoku being upset by Tottori Shougyou and was able to run the table to the finals. Tottori Ikuei used a 3-run 7th inning to defeat Yazu and take the top spot. Tottori Shougyou earns the last spot with a 5-4 win over Yonago Higashi.
Shimane (4 teams to the Chuugoku Super-Regionals - Matsue Shougyou, Taisha, Izumo, Yasugi)
Kaisei, who is now in their first full year without Nonomura-kantoku, does not get off to a good start, losing to Yagami 1-0 in their first game. Iwamichisuikan suffers the same fate in a 5-4 loss to Taisha.
With those two teams gone, the field opens up. The final 2 teams in the Best 4 in the summer, Ooda and Hamada lost in the 2nd flight of games, Ooda to Izumo 13-0, and Hamada to Matsue Shougyou 4-3.
Taisha and Yasugi advance out of the 2nd flight as well, guaranteeing all 4 teams a spot in the Super-Regionals.
The only question that remained was order. Taisha rallied from down 2-0 to tie it in the bottom of the 9th, and won in the 10th inning. Matsue Shougyou had no trouble with Izumo, scoring 4 in the 1st and never looking back, winning 10-3.
And in the final, Taisha gave Matsue Shougyou a run for its money, but Matsue Shougyou pulled away late to win 7-5 and take their 1st title in 16 years. In fact all the teams who qualified have not been in more than 15 years, with the exception of Izumo who last went 6 years ago. For Yasugi, it's only their 2nd trip, their 1st being 55 years ago! Even more impressive is that they only have 20 members!
Okayama (3 teams to the Chuugoku Super-Regionals)
Okayama is almost done with their prefectural tournament. Summer participant Kurashiki Kougyou easily made it out of round-robin play, but lost in the first round to Soushi Gakuen 5-3. They will face Okayama Gakugeikan who had a Best 4 run in the summer.
Kurashiki Kougyou also made it to prefecturals, but lost in the quarterfinals to Okayama Kyousei 7-5. Okayama Kyousei will face hard-luck Kanzei in their semifinal.
Hiroshima (3 teams to the Chuugoku Super-Regionals - Onomichi, Hiroshima Kokusai Gakuin, Hiroshima Sougou Gijyutsu)
By reading who qualified, you can tell that neither of the major teams, Kouryou or Jyousuikan, made it to the Super-Regionals. That's a bit surprising.
Now, it's not that they were utter failures. Jyousuikan advanced into the Best 8, but was stonewalled by Hiroshima Kokusai Gakuin 7-4. Kouryou took it one step further, reaching the Best 4, but too lost to Hiroshima Kokusai Gakuin by a score of 5-4! This run comes after losing to Jyousuikan in the 3rd round of the summer tournament 5-0.
With both of the powerhouses on the same side of the bracket, that meant that a lucky team would get an automatic bid.
It would be the perfect situation for Onomichi, who has been a solid team in the last couple of years, but never able to break through. After a shaky 6-5 win over Kinkidai Fukuyama in the 2nd round, Onomichi rolled through the field reaching the finals with a 16-6 win over Hiroshima Sougou Gijyutsu.
And in the finals, Onomichi used a 3-run 2nd inning to win 4-2 and take their first ever fall title, and will go to the Chuugoku super-regional for only the 2nd time. Their last appearance was in 1973.
But perhaps the biggest surprise was the 3rd place game where Hiroshima Sougou Gijyutsu upset Kouryou 4-3 to take the 3rd bid!
Yamaguchi (3 teams to the Chuugoku Super-Regionals)
Nanyou Kougyou was ousted in the 2nd round of the regionals to Iwakuni, getting shutout 7-0. Iwakuni and Ube Shougyou are probably the two notable names to advance out of the regionals. Most of the teams that had advanced did not fare well in the summer save for perhaps Ube Koujyou who was a seeded team in the summer and reach the Best 8.
Teams looking for a chance are Tokuyama Shoukou, Iwakuni Shougyou, Yamaguchi Koujyou, Yanai and Ube Kougyou.
Kagawa (3 teams to the Shikoku Super-Regionals)
Well, in Shikoku, things are pretty much straightforward. 4 prefectures, 3 teams each, top seeds get a bye.
Eimei is out to make a return appearance to Koushien, and has done well so far reaching the Best 8, but the road will get tougher as they face Sangawa in the quarterfinals. Sangawa has steamrolled their opponents by a score of 38-5.
Truth be told, I find it surprising that the Best 4 in the summer is still alive in the tournament. In addition to Eimei, Marugame Jyousai will meet Takamatsu Kita, Takamatsu Shougyou will face Kagawa Nishi, and Kanonji Chuo will play Mitoyo Kougyou for a spot in the semis. Should they win, they'll play either Jinsei Gakuen or Takamatsu Dai-ichi.
Ehime (3 teams to the Shikoku Super-Regionals - Nitta, Imabari Nishi, Matsuyama Shougyou)
Uwajima Higashi had made their 1st ever trip to Koushien this summer. And they were out to make their 2nd appearance.
Things looked good. They got out of regional play, and then defeated Saibi 6-5 - not a small feat. And after a 7-0 win over Kawanoishi in the quarterfinals, they were one win away from reaching the super-regionals. Imabari Nishi stood in their way. Yet after 6 innings they led 2-0. But Imabari would rally, tying the game in the 8th and sending it into extras. And in general, when you're the underdog, the later you go, the lesser your chances. And in the 13th, Imabari Nishi would score the sayonara run.
Still, they had a chance to take the 3rd spot by defeating Matsuyama Shougyou. A quick search on them shows an amazing throw home to complete a double play back in the 1996 final to keep the game going.
Anyways, I don't have the box score, but Uwajima Higashi would fall short, losing 7-6 and ending their run at making their 2nd consecutive appearance.
Perhaps the surprise team was a surprise in the summer. Niita who reached the Best 4, continued the run in the fall. Advancing out of their small pool play with a 10-0 win, they won their next games 10-7 and 10-5. Against Matsuyama Shougyou, they finally faced resistance. Taking a 2-0 lead in the bottom of the 5th, Matsuyama tied the game. Niita though scored the go-ahead run in the bottom of the 8th to advance to the final.
And just like the semi-final, Imabari Nishi would respond every time Niita tried to pull away. Up 1-0, they would trade a run in the 4th and 2 in the 6th. Still up by one late, Imabari Nishi would tie it up in the bottom of the 8th. For Imabari Nishi, this would be their 2nd enchousen game in 2 days. Even for the best teams, that is still a tough task to ask a team to do. And in the 11th, the pitching would collapse, giving up 6 runs and losing 10-4.
Tokushima (3 teams to the Shikoku Super-Regionals - Jyounan/Tokushima Shougyou)
Interestingly, even with their Natsu Koshien appearance, Naruto did not earn a seed in the fall tournament. But perhaps it was justified as they lost in the 2nd round to Anan Tousen 1-0.
3 of the 4 seeded teams - Jyounan, Komatsushima and Tokushima Shougyou all advanced to the Best 4. Only Jyounan though had little trouble. Komatsushima barely handled Anabuki 6-5 in the 2nd round. Tokushima Shougyou defeated Naruto Kougyou 8-6 in the 1st round, and 2-1 over Tokushima Kagaku Gijyutsu.
In the semifinals, Jyounan down 3-0 scores 5 runs in the 4th and 5th innings against Komatsushima. But Komatsushima would come back to level the game at 5 in the top of the 8th. And in what seems like a continuing trend in Shikoku, Jyounan scores a run in the bottom of the 8th to win 6-5. The other semifinal was dominated by Tokushima Shougyou who mercy ruled Tokushima Kita 10-3 in 7 innings.
And so Jyounan and Tokushima Shougyou will battle for placement, while Tokushima Kita and Komatsushima will battle for the final spot.
Kochi (3 teams to the Shikoku Super-Regionals)
Meitoku Gijyuku earned a 2nd seed in the fall tournament, and hasn't disappointed so far yielding only 1 run in their 1st 2 games. They have yet to play their quarterfinal game. The same goes for Kochi Shougyou, who also has had little trouble in their first 2 games.
On the other side, Kochi has reached the semifinals dominating the 3 matches by a total score of 30-1. The final seeded team, Okou, couldn't get past Tosa in the quarterfinals, losing 7-4.
Fukuoka (3 teams to the Kyushu Super-Regionals)
Fukuoka's tournament is another deviation from the norm. They split the field into north and south. The winners face off for the 1st and 2nd seeds, while the 2nd place teams meet for the last spot. I suppose you could think of it as one bracket with each region on each side, but this is how they show it.
Summer representative Nishi Nippon Tankidai Fuzoku couldn't repeat their success, losing in the 3rd round of the Minami Regionals to Fukushima 2-1.
There has be some level of parity in Fukuoka because the finalists in each prefecture are relative unknown save for one. The other Best 4 from the summer, Higashi-Fukuoka, Iidzuka and Teikyou Dai-go, have all been eliminated. Higashi-Fukuoka lost 2-1 to Itoshima in the 2nd round and Teikyou Dai-go lost in the 4th round 4-2 to Ukiha Kyuushinkan.
Each region has had a dominant performance by a team, and while they haven't secured a bid, they appear to be the favorites to claim an automatic bid.
In the Kita Regionals, that team should be a familiar one. It's Kyushu Kokusaidai Fuzoku - the same team managed by former Tohoku manager Wakou-kantoku. They have scored 10 or more runs in all but the semifinal game. Their regional final will not be against Iidzuka though as perhaps most people have thought. Iidzuka lost to Touchiku 3-2 after going up 2-0 after their first 2 innings.
In the Minami Regionals, the team that is poised to make the super-regionals is Chikuyou Gakuen. They had lost to Iidzuka in the summer, but had quality wins against Fukuoka Koudai Jyoutou, the aforementioned Fukushima, then shutting out Fukuoka Sangkyoudai Fukuoka 6-0 in the semifinal.
With the aforementioned Higashi-Fukuoka out of the bracket on the other side, it allowed the other seeded team in that half, Kurume Shougyou after a slow start against Yanagigawa in their first game, reached the regional final with a 2-1 win over Fukuokadai Oohori.
Saga (2 bids to the Kyushu Super-Regionals - Karatsu Shougyou, Ryuukoku)
Saga tends to have it's teams in the air, and this year is no different.
Saga Gakuen though tried to bring some stability by qualifying to the super-regionals. They made it to the quarterfinals, but were foiled by Ryuukoku 4-3. Saga Kita lost in the first round to Saga Higashi 5-3. Saga Shougyou was another candidiate, but they were surprised by Karatsu Shougyou 6-2. Karatsu then defeated Saga Kougyou 6-4 after being down 4-1 after 7.
So it was Karatsu Shougyou versus Ryuukoku for the top seed. And Karatsu would win their 8th final and 1st in 46 years with a 4-0 shutout. For Ryuukoku, I'm sure they'd like the title, but making the super-regional for the first time in school history.
Nagasaki (2 bids to the Kyushu Super-Regionals)
Summer participant Nagasaki Nichidai is looking for another bid but they have slowed down. But while they did qualify for the prefectural tournament, they barely edged Shimabara before losing to Souseikan 4-3 in the central regional final.
Seihou also had a similar road in the Sasebo regionals, edging Kyushu Bunka Gakuen 6-5 before losing to Hasami 4-3. And in the Nagasaki regionals, unseeded Nagasaki Nanzan surprises the field by winning the region, defeating Kaisei 4-3.
Kumamoto (4 bids to the Kyushu Super-Regionals)
Kumamoto is hosting the super-regionals, which means that they will have the benefit of 4 bids. And that means merely making the semifinals will guarantee an automatic bid.
Two of those 4 have already been determined. Summer participant (and seeded) Kyushu Gakuin breezed through their 3 games and have earned a spot. Oddly enough, they'll face Kumomoto Kokufu in the semifinals, it's interesting because they played in the quarterfinals and Kyushu prevailed 4-1. This game may not matter except for seeding (which in and of itself may be important), but I'm sure Kokufu would like to give it back to Kyushu Gakuin.
On the other side, Senshuudai Tamana looks to make another run but to claim an automatic bid, they'll have to get through Kumamoto Nishi first. The last spot will go to either Hitsuyuukan and Shuugakukan.
Oita (2 teams to the Kyushu Super-Regionals)
Oita Kougyou joins the list of teams unable to make another run losing to Oita in the 3rd round. For other notable teams, Hita Rinkou lost to recent senbatsu participant Oita Uenogaoka 11-7. Meihou scrapped through the first couple of games, and reached the Best 4.
After taking a 3-0 lead in the 1st Touin scored 4 in the bottom of the 2nd. But runs in the 3rd through 5th innings gave Meihou the lead once again. Touin would score 2 in the bottom of the 6th to tie the game and in the bottom of the 9th to send Meihou home packing.
And as for Oita, they were in a pitcher's duel for 11 innings against Nihon Bunridai Fuzoku winning 1-0. So Touin and Oita will qualify for the super-regionals.
Miyazaki (2 teams to the Kyushu Super-Regionals)
Miyazaki looks to return to some sort of normalcy after their summer qualifying was delayed due to the foot-and-mouth disease that was going around in the prefecture.
Summer participant Nobeoka Gakuen is still alive after an 8-7 win over St. Ursula and will face Miyakonojyou for a spot in the semifinals.
One team has reached the semifinals, and that team is Saito Shougyou. They defeated Nichinan Gakuen 7-3 to reach the semis.
The other quarterfinal matches to be determined are between Miyazaki Nichidai and Miyazaki Kita, and Miyakonojyou Izumigaoka and Houshou. It's interesting because you've certainly heard of Miyazaki Nichidai and Miyakonojyou Izumigaoka, but as for the other two schools, they were eliminated in the 1st round during the summer.
Kagoshima (2 teams to the Kyushu Super-Regionals)
Kagoshima oddly has not yet reached the round of 16. Kagoshima Jitsugyou has survived the first couple of rounds, and will face Kanoya Chuo next. It's still too early to tell anything, but notable teams Shounan and Kagoshima Shougyou are still in it.
Okinawa (2 teams to the Kyushu Super-Regionals)
So perhaps the final (and fitting) question is, "What about Kounan?"
Well...
It appears that while Shimabukuro is gone, there seems to be a lot of depth at the school. Kounan was actually full of 3rd years, and not as young as they were a while ago. Nonetheless, they have blown through the prefecture. They have reached the finals defeating Shuri Higashi 7-0 behind former #18 Takara Kazuki. They will face a well-known foe in Okinawa Shogaku, who was involved in multiple low scoring affairs before defeating Miyako 7-3 to reach the final.
Although I have finished the recap on Oct 3, I will have to go back tomorrow and recap again as multiple teams have finished up prefectural play.
Monday, September 27, 2010
Saturday, August 21, 2010
Day 15 - Championship - Toukaidai Sagami (Kanagawa) vs. Kounan (Okinawa)
14 days and 47 games and we're finally here at the championship game. And our matchup here is certainly one that has been hoped for and anticipated, and voila! We stand here today with 2 very good teams to square off for the 92nd Natsu Koushien title.
Kounan is looking for the 1st Haru-Natsu victory since 1998 when the famous Matsuzaka Daisuke led Yokohama to the feat.
To see were we got to this point we go back a year to last spring, when a 2nd year pitcher by the name of Shimabukuro Yousuke took the hill against Toyama Shougyou. The team would lose in 10 innings when Toyama would break a 0-0 deadlock in the 10th, but that wasn't the point. In those 10 innings, he struck out 19 batters while walking just 1. Then in the summer, he faced against title contender (and eventual Best 8 participant) Meihou, he struck out 9 while giving up again only 1 walk in a 4-3 loss.
With 11 of 18 players underclassmen, there was certainly a good possibility we would see them again next year. And come the fall tournament, they finished 2nd in the Kyushu Super-Regionals to surprise Kadena.
Of the 11 underclassmen, 8 were put into the starting 9 again headlined by ace Shimabukuro. With a stronger offense behind him they dominated senbatsu outscoring the opposition 26-3 on the road to the finals, defeating teams such as Chiben Wakayama, Teikyou and Oogaki Nichidai.
Their last opponent was to be Nichidai-san. After falling behind 3-1, it was perhaps thought that he had finally run out of steam. But the team picked him up scoring 4 to take the lead, only to see Shimabukuro give it right back. The game would go into extras, and with each inning Shimabukuro continued to pitch, it seemed like he might finally give up. Instead, it was Nichidai reliever Yoshizawa who caved in the 12th no thanks to an error with 2 down and runners on 1st and 2nd. Kounan would win senbatsu with a 10-5 victory.
In 46 IP, Shimabukuro struck out 49, while yielding only 35 hits and walking 15.
With such a performance, we wondered if they would get back to Koushien. Outscoring their opposition 47-3, there was no question that they were back to try for the sweep.
With the same fervor that they attacked the prefecturals, they mowed down team after team at Koushien taking down teams left and right. Shimabukuro was never challenged in the early going, but there were times in each game where he suddenly became hittable. And in those innings he would yield a run or two.
Things all came to a head against Houtoku Gakuen in the semifinals. Already down 1-0, he would give up 4 runs in the 2nd inning, thanks in part to 2 walks and a bases clearing triple. He was throwing primarily fastballs and his offspeed offerings weren't finding the strike zone. Down 5-0, the team seemed all but lost.
But things changed in the 5th when the team finally got itself in order and scored 3 runs thanks to an error. Down just 2 now, the team felt like it was possible to come back. 2 innings later, they had completed the comeback pulling ahead by the final margin of 6-5.
Even with that last game, Shimabukuro's performance has been stellar:
That equates to a 2.35 ERA with a 1.24 WHIP. His 3 ratios are 8.14 H/9, 10.5 K/9 and 3 BB/9.
The biggest questions for Shimabukuro is whether he can have control of his other offerings. We all know that he can throw the fastball hard - what he needs to be able to do is to keep the batters honest with his slider, curve and forkball.
As I noted above, his success isn't dependent just on him, it has a lot to do with the better offense he has backing him up.
Leading the way is leadoff batter Kuniyoshi Tairiku. As the leadoff batter, he has hit 12-21 with a 3B and a HR, while walking 3 times and striking out just once! That's a .571/.625/.810 from a leadoff batter!!
In fact, the top of the lineup has been very successful for Kounan. The trio of Kuniyoshi, Ketashiro and Ganeko have combined for the following:
A key for the team may rest in their cleanup batter Maehira. He has struggled the entire tournament, sporting a terrible line of 4-21, 4 GIDP and 2 K. They've been able to get by without him, but it certainly wouldn't hurt for him to stand and deliver when the batters ahead of him are hitting and getting on base the way they are.
As a team they are 51-143 with 6-2B, 4-3B, 2 HR, 15 K, 10 BB, HBP and a .357/.403/.497 line.
Standing in Kounan's way is by now well known Toukaidai Sagami. They came into senbatsu as one of the most hyped teams of the tournament led by senior Shinta Hifumi. But when it came to playing on the field, the team flopped. In an attempt to reinvent himself he went from an overhand delivery to a sidearm delivery for the summer. It is very odd for such a top prospect to change his delivery this late in his kokoyakyu career. Some had hypothesized that it was to improve his command. Others said that the sidearm delivery allows him to have a natural pitch that can come in or right-handed batters.
While the latter may be true, the former is by far certainly not. If anything he has become more of a jekyll-and-hyde pitcher. Here are his lines from the games here at Koushien:
That equates to a 3.28 ERA, but a WHIP of 1.63, a K/9 of just 5.55, and a ghastly 7.07 BB/9 (including dead balls)!!
I was fortunate enough to take a look at Hifumi in the Kanagawa prefecturals, and it stunned me that his control was so lacking and he was walking a ton of batters.
And throughout the tournament, I wondered why no opponent had taken the strategy of just letting Hifumi hang himself. Make him throw a strike, don't make his job any easier. And if he ever "wised up" and put one right in the zone for a strike, go ahead and punish it to keep him honest, then go back to taking pitches again.
That's what Narita did in their game against Hifumi. Unfortunately for them, their ace was out of gas and couldn't keep the team in the game.
What has saved Toukaidai Sagami has been the offense. They have scored 34 runs in 4 games, and that includes the 3-0 win over Toki Shougyou.
If Hifumi doesn't work out as a pitcher, which may be more and more likely, he'll have a future as a position player, much like Doubayashi Shouta (Chuukyoudai Chuukyou) from last year. His batting lines?
As a team they are 51-143 with 14-2B, 2-3B, HR, 12 K, 5 BB, 4 HBP and a .357/.395/.503 line.
Two well-deserving teams will take the field here with everything on the line. Only one will be able to call themselves Natsu Koushien champions... who will it be?
Toukaidai Sagami (Kanagawa)
RF Watanabe Masaru
LF Ijyuuin Jyun
2B Tanaka Shinta
C Ooshiro Takumi
P Hifumi Shinta
3B Fukuyama Ryou
SS Someya Ryuutarou
1B Ooshiro Kenji
CF Idzichi Akira (#18)
Kounan (Okinawa)
2B Kuniyoshi Tairiku
CF Ketashiro Kai
3B Ganeko Moritsugu
1B Maehira Daiki
RF Mekaru Keisuke
C Yamakawa Daisuke
LF Irei Shinya
P Shimabukuro Yousuke
SS Ooshiro Kouji
～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～
13:00 - First Pitch!
Top 1st
Shimabukuro doesn't look too bad to start. The pitches don't seem as wild as before.
But Watanabe takes a 96 kph slow curve and singles back up the middle. Monma will play for the run early on.
The battery is determined to establish the offspeed pitches early on, but Shimabukuro is missing. Tanaka walks on 5 pitches.
Sink or swim, Shimabukuro will not throw the fastball. Two forkballs and Takumi swings on both.
He hits a grounder to 2nd! Tairiku to Ooshiro for one! Relay to Maehira... double play!!!
Shimabukuro gets through the 1st thanks to his defense!
Bottom 1st
Tairiku trying to get a walk from Hifumi, but he won't give in. Hifumi prevails in round 1 by getting him to ground to short.
Ketashiro picks him up with a single past the outstretched glove of a diving Someya!
And on the 1-0 count he takes off for 2nd! Takumi with the throw, AH!!
Takumi throws it away!! Ketashiro goes to 3rd and Kounan has an opportunity!
SQUEEZE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Ganeko lays down the squeeze! Hifumi over and looking to let it roll foul... and at the last minute it does!! Count goes to 2-2 and Hifumi gets another chance.
But a waste pitch and another that misses outside give Ganeko the walk.
It's not a bad thing as Maehira steps in. Gakiya-kantoku, whether trying to show confidence, being superstitious, or just being plain stubborn bats him at cleanup.
Maehira showing bunt, but taking pitches.
Hit and run!!! Ganeko is sent in motion, but Maehira fouls it off!
And Maehira pops the ball up! Someya behind 2nd makes the catch. At least it isn't a double play...
Mekaru grounds to 3rd and a チャンスー situation for Kounan goes begging...
Top 2nd
Hifumi showing off the bat again as he singles through the left side! Sagami plays for the single run again.
Someya with a hard hit ball to center! But it's hit right at Ketashiro for the 2nd out.
AH!!!
Shimabukuro catches Hifumi off the bag! Snap throw to 2nd and they nail him for the 3rd out! Sagami doesn't get their 2nd chance to get the run in!
Bottom 2nd
Kounan is not giving Hifumi time to throw a ball!
Yamakawa swings on the first pitch and it a grounder just to the left of 2nd. Someya right there to make the play.
Irei swinging away and goes down swinging on 3 straight!
And Shimabukuro swings on the 1-0 pitch and hits a grounder wide of 1st. Kenji fields it, makes a very high toss to Hifumi, but he snags it and tags the bag just before Shimabukuro gets there.
Top 3rd
Shimabukuro still throwing everything but a fastball it seems.
One down and Kenji is hit by such a ball.
Watanabe singles on a fastball (2 seam maybe?) and singles to left! Runners on 1st and 2nd with one down!
Ijyuuin takes 2 strikes and has to swing away. He hits a fly ball right to Irei for the 2nd out.
And Shimabukuro gets ahead of Tanaka 0-2 and he gets him to ground out to 1st!
That 140+ fastball is nowhere to be found, and surprising yet, he's throwing his offspeed pitches for strikes!!!!
I have to wonder if there was some strategy in last game. I believed he was tiring and couldn't throw anything but fastballs for strikes, and now here is is throwing almost exclusively offspeed and hitting!
Perhaps Kounan was letting us all, and more importantly Toukaidai Sagami on?
Botttom 3rd
One down and Tairiku is hit on the foot by Hifumi! Gakiya-kantoku will play for the run as well.
But the bunt leaves an interesting question. Walk Ganeko to get to Maehira?
No! They're going after him and Ganeko fouls off a pitch down the 1st base side.
Ganeko with a good shot at 3rd, but Fukuyama is there for the play, 3 out!
Top 4th
Shimabukuro is doing a great job at keeping the batters off balance. He's barely throwing the 4-seamer and mixing in all his other pitches. As a result, Takumi hits a lazy fly to center, Hifumi grounds out to 3rd, and Fukuyama flies out to left to end the inning.
Bottom 4th
Maehira very patient at the plate, works the count full and draws a walk!
Mekaru with the bunt. Hifumi a bit slow to get to it, but he throws at 2nd! Maehira is out by a good margin. Man, I didn't think he had time, but instead he had plenty!
Hit and run!!!
Mekaru takes off and Yamakawa hits a grounder up the middle! Tanaka can't get to it and Mekaru bolts to 3rd! Runners at the corners!
Irei up, no bunt!
And now he lines one up the middle! It's past Hifumi's glove and into center!! Mekaru scores and Kounan is on the board! 1-0!!!
Shimabukuro up to help his own cause!
SQUEEZE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
But it's a pitchout!!! Takumi with it, throws to 3rd! AHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Takumi throws it away!!!!!!!!!!!
Yamakawa scores and it's 2-0 Kounan!
Shimabukuro with a grounder to 2nd. Tanaka fumbles with it, but makes the out at 1st.
AHHHHH!!!
First pitch from Hifumi to Ooshiro goes behind him!!!
And now Ooshiro with a grounder through to left! Irei scores! It's 3-0 Kounan!!!
Tairiku with a grounder up the middle! Ooshiro advances to 3rd!
Ketashiro with a drive to right center!!! Watanabe running back to it... dives...
OFF THE GLOVE!!!!!
It goes off the glove and everyone will score! Ooshiro scores! Tairiku comes all the way around from 1st, and it's 5-0 Kounan!!!!
The replay shows that that pitch from Hifumi was hung out to dry like the laundry.
Ganeko hits a grounder to short... and Tanaka can't find the handle on the ball again! He gets it, but it's too late!! He bends over in frustration as Ketashiro scores, making it 6-0 Kounan!!
MAEHIRA WITH A LASER TO RIGHT!!!!!
Watanabe plays it off the fence!!
Ganeko comes in to score on Maehira's triple and it's 7-0!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Mekaru strikes out swinging to end the inning, but Kounan sends 11 people to the mound and completely undressed Hifumi to the tone of 7 runs!!!
Top 5th
Toukaidai Sagami's offense continues to be silent.
One down, and Kenji gets Sagami's 4th hit of the day as he hits a grounder to right.
Idzichi flies out to left and Kenji takes the bold tag up to 2nd and gets there!
But Watanabe goes down swinging on a slider to end the inning.
And that's Shimabukuro's 1st K of the day!!!!!
Bottom 5th
One down and the hit parade continues! Irei with a drive to center! Idzichi has to play it off the wall and Irei's in with a double!
Shimabukuro grounds out to short, but advances to 3rd.
Ooshiro hits a hard grounder to short! Someya backhands it, but it's off the glove! The momentum takes him away from the ball and everyone's safe! It's 8-0 Kounan!!!!!
Ooshiro tries to steal 2nd on the first pitch, but Yamakawa makes an accurate throw and guns him down.
But that's another run that Sagami has to make up as we head to the break!!
Top 6th
One down and Tanaka hits a grounder up the middle! Tairiku with the diving stop! Throw to 1st... not in time!
AH!!! First pitch to Takumi is lost by Yamakawa and Tanaka advances to 2nd.
He tags up to 3rd on a flyout to deep left center.
Karaburi sanshin!!!
Hifumi goes down swinging on a forkball to end the inning!
Bottom 6th
Tairiku with his 2nd hit! He singles to left! Ketashir follows that with a grounder past the glove of Tanaka into right!
UWAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
GANEKO WITH A DRIVE TO LEFT!!!! IJYUUIN RUNNING TO THE WALL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
HAITAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Ganeko with a 3-run homerun on another hanging pitch from Hifumi and it's 11-0!!!!!!!!!!
Monma-kantoku calls time, but it's way past too late...
Maehira connects with a ball, but flies out to center.
Mekaru connects with a ball and drives one to left! Ijyuuin plays that off the wall for a double!
Yamakawa grounds out to short for the 2nd out. Mekaru holds.
Irei with a drive to right!!! Watanabe running back... IT'S OFF THE END OF HIS GLOVE AGAIN!!!!
Mekaru scores as Irei slides into 3rd!!! 12-0!!!
Shimabukuro with a grounder to the right side! Tanaka tries to run it down but can't! Irei scores and it's 13-0!!
With that single, everyone on Kounan now has a hit!
Ooshiro grounds out to 3rd to end the inning. But Kounan sends 9 more batters to the plate and has completely blown it wide open!
Top 7th
Fukuyama makes good contact with a Shimabukuro pitch but lines one right to Maehira.
Someya with a weak grounder to 1st. And there's quickly 2 down.
Kenji with a single to center. Ketashiro to field it, but loses the handle on the ball! Kenji takes 2nd on the error!
Idzichi with a single to left! Kenji rounds third and the throw is cut off! Sagami on the board at 13-1.
Watanabe hits a weak chopper to Shimabukuro for the 3rd out, but Toukaidai Sagami has avoided the shutout.
Bottom 7th
And Hifumi has finally been relieved of his misery. #10 Egawa Kyousuke replaces him and takes the hill.
Tairiku with a hard liner, but right at Tanaka.
Ketashiro with a chopper past Egawa's glove! Tanaka dives but can't get it! Goes into center for a base hit!
Ganeko with a single to left, and it seems like the hit parade will keep on going!
Maehira strikes out swinging for the 2nd out. The runners were taking off and Takumi makes a good throw to 3rd to get the lead runner for the 3rd out.
Top 8th
Shimabukuro continues to induce contact from the Sagami batters!
Ijyuuin and Tanaka both ground out to 3rd before Takumi sinlges to center.
Egawa, behind 1-2, fouls a couple of pitches off before hitting a single to right!
Karaburi sanshin!!!!!!!!!!
Shimabukuro records just his 3rd K in Fukuyama with a rare fastball up and away!
Bottom 8th
One down and Yamakawa singles through to left.
#16 Agena Shun comes in to PH for Irei.
He strikes out swinging and Yamakawa is thrown out easily stealing 2nd.
Top 9th
#15 Kiyota Riku comes in to PH for Someya.
Kenji first pinch grounds to 1st... Maehira takes it to the bag for the out! 2 down!!
#14 Miyazaki Daisuke the last chance for Toukaidai Sagami as he comes in for Idzichi.
KARABURI SANSHIN!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
As befitting an end, Shimabukro strikes out Miyazaki swinging on a 142 kph fastball to end the game!!!
興南！ 春夏連覇！！！！！！ (Kounan! Haru-Natsu renpa!!!!)
THEY'VE DONE IT! KOUNAN HAS COMPLETED THE 6TH HARU-NATSU KOUSHIEN SWEEP AND GIVEN OKINAWA THEIR FIRST EVER NATSU KOUSHIEN CHAMPIONSHIP!!!!!!!!!!!
(And while I'm happy, I wonder to think that I could have been there to see it all.... *sighs*)
And understandably, while Kounan celebrates, Toukaidai Sagami is understandably sad. Many of them are crying because they lost, and perhaps in some ways the manner in which they lost. For as much as they succeeded in getting to this point, to lose here in this way is bittersweet. For Hifumi Shinta, he will certainly still get drafted into NPB should he decide to do so, but to finish his kokoyakyu career in this manner must be frustrating.
And as the awards are given out, the teams march around the field and the flags are lowered, we close the door on another year of baseball. It certainly has been a memorable one as we have been treated to the 6th haru-natsu championship, led by an amazing ace in Shimabukuro Yousuke.
But while this door ends, the door opens on the 2011 season as the Fall tournament in some places are underway which will determine the 2011 senbatsu participants.
So... who will next year's heroes be?
Kounan is looking for the 1st Haru-Natsu victory since 1998 when the famous Matsuzaka Daisuke led Yokohama to the feat.
To see were we got to this point we go back a year to last spring, when a 2nd year pitcher by the name of Shimabukuro Yousuke took the hill against Toyama Shougyou. The team would lose in 10 innings when Toyama would break a 0-0 deadlock in the 10th, but that wasn't the point. In those 10 innings, he struck out 19 batters while walking just 1. Then in the summer, he faced against title contender (and eventual Best 8 participant) Meihou, he struck out 9 while giving up again only 1 walk in a 4-3 loss.
With 11 of 18 players underclassmen, there was certainly a good possibility we would see them again next year. And come the fall tournament, they finished 2nd in the Kyushu Super-Regionals to surprise Kadena.
Of the 11 underclassmen, 8 were put into the starting 9 again headlined by ace Shimabukuro. With a stronger offense behind him they dominated senbatsu outscoring the opposition 26-3 on the road to the finals, defeating teams such as Chiben Wakayama, Teikyou and Oogaki Nichidai.
Their last opponent was to be Nichidai-san. After falling behind 3-1, it was perhaps thought that he had finally run out of steam. But the team picked him up scoring 4 to take the lead, only to see Shimabukuro give it right back. The game would go into extras, and with each inning Shimabukuro continued to pitch, it seemed like he might finally give up. Instead, it was Nichidai reliever Yoshizawa who caved in the 12th no thanks to an error with 2 down and runners on 1st and 2nd. Kounan would win senbatsu with a 10-5 victory.
In 46 IP, Shimabukuro struck out 49, while yielding only 35 hits and walking 15.
With such a performance, we wondered if they would get back to Koushien. Outscoring their opposition 47-3, there was no question that they were back to try for the sweep.
With the same fervor that they attacked the prefecturals, they mowed down team after team at Koushien taking down teams left and right. Shimabukuro was never challenged in the early going, but there were times in each game where he suddenly became hittable. And in those innings he would yield a run or two.
Things all came to a head against Houtoku Gakuen in the semifinals. Already down 1-0, he would give up 4 runs in the 2nd inning, thanks in part to 2 walks and a bases clearing triple. He was throwing primarily fastballs and his offspeed offerings weren't finding the strike zone. Down 5-0, the team seemed all but lost.
But things changed in the 5th when the team finally got itself in order and scored 3 runs thanks to an error. Down just 2 now, the team felt like it was possible to come back. 2 innings later, they had completed the comeback pulling ahead by the final margin of 6-5.
Even with that last game, Shimabukuro's performance has been stellar:
- Round 1 - 8/10 vs. Naruto - 7 IP - 29 Batters Faced (BF), 0 ER, 5 H, 7 K, 3 BB
- Round 2 - 8/15 vs. Meitoku Gijyuku - CG, 2 ER, 38 BF, 2 ER, 8 H, 12 K, 3 BB
- Round 3 - 8/17 vs. Sendai Ikuei - CG, 35 BF, 1 ER, 6 H, 10 K, 3 BB
- Quarterfinals - 8/18 vs. Seikou Gakuin - 8 IP, 33 BF, 3 ER, 9 H, 8 K, 0 BB
- Semifinals - 8/20 vs. Houtoku Gakuen - CG, 40 BF, 5 ER, 10 H, 12 K, 4 BB, HBP
That equates to a 2.35 ERA with a 1.24 WHIP. His 3 ratios are 8.14 H/9, 10.5 K/9 and 3 BB/9.
The biggest questions for Shimabukuro is whether he can have control of his other offerings. We all know that he can throw the fastball hard - what he needs to be able to do is to keep the batters honest with his slider, curve and forkball.
As I noted above, his success isn't dependent just on him, it has a lot to do with the better offense he has backing him up.
Leading the way is leadoff batter Kuniyoshi Tairiku. As the leadoff batter, he has hit 12-21 with a 3B and a HR, while walking 3 times and striking out just once! That's a .571/.625/.810 from a leadoff batter!!
In fact, the top of the lineup has been very successful for Kounan. The trio of Kuniyoshi, Ketashiro and Ganeko have combined for the following:
- 28-57, 2B, 3-3B, HR, 13 R, 15 RBI, 7 BB, HBP, 3 K
A key for the team may rest in their cleanup batter Maehira. He has struggled the entire tournament, sporting a terrible line of 4-21, 4 GIDP and 2 K. They've been able to get by without him, but it certainly wouldn't hurt for him to stand and deliver when the batters ahead of him are hitting and getting on base the way they are.
As a team they are 51-143 with 6-2B, 4-3B, 2 HR, 15 K, 10 BB, HBP and a .357/.403/.497 line.
Standing in Kounan's way is by now well known Toukaidai Sagami. They came into senbatsu as one of the most hyped teams of the tournament led by senior Shinta Hifumi. But when it came to playing on the field, the team flopped. In an attempt to reinvent himself he went from an overhand delivery to a sidearm delivery for the summer. It is very odd for such a top prospect to change his delivery this late in his kokoyakyu career. Some had hypothesized that it was to improve his command. Others said that the sidearm delivery allows him to have a natural pitch that can come in or right-handed batters.
While the latter may be true, the former is by far certainly not. If anything he has become more of a jekyll-and-hyde pitcher. Here are his lines from the games here at Koushien:
- Round 2 - 8/11 vs. Suijyou - 8.2 IP - 38 BF, 3 ER, 6 H, 3 K, 6 BB, 2 HBP
- Round 3 - 8/16 vs. Toki Shougyou - CG, 32 BF, 0 ER, 1 H, 6 K, 3 BB, HBP
- Quarterfinals - 8/19 vs. Kyushu Gakuin - CG, 41 BF, 3 ER, 9 H, 9 K, 2 BB, 2 HBP
- Semifinals - 8/20 vs. Narita - CG, 47 BF, 7 ER, 14 H, 4 K, 7 BB, 2 HBP
That equates to a 3.28 ERA, but a WHIP of 1.63, a K/9 of just 5.55, and a ghastly 7.07 BB/9 (including dead balls)!!
I was fortunate enough to take a look at Hifumi in the Kanagawa prefecturals, and it stunned me that his control was so lacking and he was walking a ton of batters.
And throughout the tournament, I wondered why no opponent had taken the strategy of just letting Hifumi hang himself. Make him throw a strike, don't make his job any easier. And if he ever "wised up" and put one right in the zone for a strike, go ahead and punish it to keep him honest, then go back to taking pitches again.
That's what Narita did in their game against Hifumi. Unfortunately for them, their ace was out of gas and couldn't keep the team in the game.
What has saved Toukaidai Sagami has been the offense. They have scored 34 runs in 4 games, and that includes the 3-0 win over Toki Shougyou.
If Hifumi doesn't work out as a pitcher, which may be more and more likely, he'll have a future as a position player, much like Doubayashi Shouta (Chuukyoudai Chuukyou) from last year. His batting lines?
- Round 2 - 8/11 vs. Suijyou - 4-5, 2B, HR, R, 3 RBI
- Round 3 - 8/16 vs. Toki Shougyou - 2-4, 2B, R, 2 K
- Quarterfinals - 8/19 vs. Kyushu Gakuin - 1-4, R, RBI, K
- Semifinals - 8/20 vs. Narita - 4-5, 2B, RBI, K
As a team they are 51-143 with 14-2B, 2-3B, HR, 12 K, 5 BB, 4 HBP and a .357/.395/.503 line.
Two well-deserving teams will take the field here with everything on the line. Only one will be able to call themselves Natsu Koushien champions... who will it be?
Toukaidai Sagami (Kanagawa)
RF Watanabe Masaru
LF Ijyuuin Jyun
2B Tanaka Shinta
C Ooshiro Takumi
P Hifumi Shinta
3B Fukuyama Ryou
SS Someya Ryuutarou
1B Ooshiro Kenji
CF Idzichi Akira (#18)
Kounan (Okinawa)
2B Kuniyoshi Tairiku
CF Ketashiro Kai
3B Ganeko Moritsugu
1B Maehira Daiki
RF Mekaru Keisuke
C Yamakawa Daisuke
LF Irei Shinya
P Shimabukuro Yousuke
SS Ooshiro Kouji
～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～
13:00 - First Pitch!
Top 1st
Shimabukuro doesn't look too bad to start. The pitches don't seem as wild as before.
But Watanabe takes a 96 kph slow curve and singles back up the middle. Monma will play for the run early on.
The battery is determined to establish the offspeed pitches early on, but Shimabukuro is missing. Tanaka walks on 5 pitches.
Sink or swim, Shimabukuro will not throw the fastball. Two forkballs and Takumi swings on both.
He hits a grounder to 2nd! Tairiku to Ooshiro for one! Relay to Maehira... double play!!!
Shimabukuro gets through the 1st thanks to his defense!
Bottom 1st
Tairiku trying to get a walk from Hifumi, but he won't give in. Hifumi prevails in round 1 by getting him to ground to short.
Ketashiro picks him up with a single past the outstretched glove of a diving Someya!
And on the 1-0 count he takes off for 2nd! Takumi with the throw, AH!!
Takumi throws it away!! Ketashiro goes to 3rd and Kounan has an opportunity!
SQUEEZE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Ganeko lays down the squeeze! Hifumi over and looking to let it roll foul... and at the last minute it does!! Count goes to 2-2 and Hifumi gets another chance.
But a waste pitch and another that misses outside give Ganeko the walk.
It's not a bad thing as Maehira steps in. Gakiya-kantoku, whether trying to show confidence, being superstitious, or just being plain stubborn bats him at cleanup.
Maehira showing bunt, but taking pitches.
Hit and run!!! Ganeko is sent in motion, but Maehira fouls it off!
And Maehira pops the ball up! Someya behind 2nd makes the catch. At least it isn't a double play...
Mekaru grounds to 3rd and a チャンスー situation for Kounan goes begging...
Top 2nd
Hifumi showing off the bat again as he singles through the left side! Sagami plays for the single run again.
Someya with a hard hit ball to center! But it's hit right at Ketashiro for the 2nd out.
AH!!!
Shimabukuro catches Hifumi off the bag! Snap throw to 2nd and they nail him for the 3rd out! Sagami doesn't get their 2nd chance to get the run in!
Bottom 2nd
Kounan is not giving Hifumi time to throw a ball!
Yamakawa swings on the first pitch and it a grounder just to the left of 2nd. Someya right there to make the play.
Irei swinging away and goes down swinging on 3 straight!
And Shimabukuro swings on the 1-0 pitch and hits a grounder wide of 1st. Kenji fields it, makes a very high toss to Hifumi, but he snags it and tags the bag just before Shimabukuro gets there.
Top 3rd
Shimabukuro still throwing everything but a fastball it seems.
One down and Kenji is hit by such a ball.
Watanabe singles on a fastball (2 seam maybe?) and singles to left! Runners on 1st and 2nd with one down!
Ijyuuin takes 2 strikes and has to swing away. He hits a fly ball right to Irei for the 2nd out.
And Shimabukuro gets ahead of Tanaka 0-2 and he gets him to ground out to 1st!
That 140+ fastball is nowhere to be found, and surprising yet, he's throwing his offspeed pitches for strikes!!!!
I have to wonder if there was some strategy in last game. I believed he was tiring and couldn't throw anything but fastballs for strikes, and now here is is throwing almost exclusively offspeed and hitting!
Perhaps Kounan was letting us all, and more importantly Toukaidai Sagami on?
Botttom 3rd
One down and Tairiku is hit on the foot by Hifumi! Gakiya-kantoku will play for the run as well.
But the bunt leaves an interesting question. Walk Ganeko to get to Maehira?
No! They're going after him and Ganeko fouls off a pitch down the 1st base side.
Ganeko with a good shot at 3rd, but Fukuyama is there for the play, 3 out!
Top 4th
Shimabukuro is doing a great job at keeping the batters off balance. He's barely throwing the 4-seamer and mixing in all his other pitches. As a result, Takumi hits a lazy fly to center, Hifumi grounds out to 3rd, and Fukuyama flies out to left to end the inning.
Bottom 4th
Maehira very patient at the plate, works the count full and draws a walk!
Mekaru with the bunt. Hifumi a bit slow to get to it, but he throws at 2nd! Maehira is out by a good margin. Man, I didn't think he had time, but instead he had plenty!
Hit and run!!!
Mekaru takes off and Yamakawa hits a grounder up the middle! Tanaka can't get to it and Mekaru bolts to 3rd! Runners at the corners!
Irei up, no bunt!
And now he lines one up the middle! It's past Hifumi's glove and into center!! Mekaru scores and Kounan is on the board! 1-0!!!
Shimabukuro up to help his own cause!
SQUEEZE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
But it's a pitchout!!! Takumi with it, throws to 3rd! AHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Takumi throws it away!!!!!!!!!!!
Yamakawa scores and it's 2-0 Kounan!
Shimabukuro with a grounder to 2nd. Tanaka fumbles with it, but makes the out at 1st.
AHHHHH!!!
First pitch from Hifumi to Ooshiro goes behind him!!!
And now Ooshiro with a grounder through to left! Irei scores! It's 3-0 Kounan!!!
Tairiku with a grounder up the middle! Ooshiro advances to 3rd!
Ketashiro with a drive to right center!!! Watanabe running back to it... dives...
OFF THE GLOVE!!!!!
It goes off the glove and everyone will score! Ooshiro scores! Tairiku comes all the way around from 1st, and it's 5-0 Kounan!!!!
The replay shows that that pitch from Hifumi was hung out to dry like the laundry.
Ganeko hits a grounder to short... and Tanaka can't find the handle on the ball again! He gets it, but it's too late!! He bends over in frustration as Ketashiro scores, making it 6-0 Kounan!!
MAEHIRA WITH A LASER TO RIGHT!!!!!
Watanabe plays it off the fence!!
Ganeko comes in to score on Maehira's triple and it's 7-0!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Mekaru strikes out swinging to end the inning, but Kounan sends 11 people to the mound and completely undressed Hifumi to the tone of 7 runs!!!
Top 5th
Toukaidai Sagami's offense continues to be silent.
One down, and Kenji gets Sagami's 4th hit of the day as he hits a grounder to right.
Idzichi flies out to left and Kenji takes the bold tag up to 2nd and gets there!
But Watanabe goes down swinging on a slider to end the inning.
And that's Shimabukuro's 1st K of the day!!!!!
Bottom 5th
One down and the hit parade continues! Irei with a drive to center! Idzichi has to play it off the wall and Irei's in with a double!
Shimabukuro grounds out to short, but advances to 3rd.
Ooshiro hits a hard grounder to short! Someya backhands it, but it's off the glove! The momentum takes him away from the ball and everyone's safe! It's 8-0 Kounan!!!!!
Ooshiro tries to steal 2nd on the first pitch, but Yamakawa makes an accurate throw and guns him down.
But that's another run that Sagami has to make up as we head to the break!!
Top 6th
One down and Tanaka hits a grounder up the middle! Tairiku with the diving stop! Throw to 1st... not in time!
AH!!! First pitch to Takumi is lost by Yamakawa and Tanaka advances to 2nd.
He tags up to 3rd on a flyout to deep left center.
Karaburi sanshin!!!
Hifumi goes down swinging on a forkball to end the inning!
Bottom 6th
Tairiku with his 2nd hit! He singles to left! Ketashir follows that with a grounder past the glove of Tanaka into right!
UWAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
GANEKO WITH A DRIVE TO LEFT!!!! IJYUUIN RUNNING TO THE WALL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
HAITAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Ganeko with a 3-run homerun on another hanging pitch from Hifumi and it's 11-0!!!!!!!!!!
Monma-kantoku calls time, but it's way past too late...
Maehira connects with a ball, but flies out to center.
Mekaru connects with a ball and drives one to left! Ijyuuin plays that off the wall for a double!
Yamakawa grounds out to short for the 2nd out. Mekaru holds.
Irei with a drive to right!!! Watanabe running back... IT'S OFF THE END OF HIS GLOVE AGAIN!!!!
Mekaru scores as Irei slides into 3rd!!! 12-0!!!
Shimabukuro with a grounder to the right side! Tanaka tries to run it down but can't! Irei scores and it's 13-0!!
With that single, everyone on Kounan now has a hit!
Ooshiro grounds out to 3rd to end the inning. But Kounan sends 9 more batters to the plate and has completely blown it wide open!
Top 7th
Fukuyama makes good contact with a Shimabukuro pitch but lines one right to Maehira.
Someya with a weak grounder to 1st. And there's quickly 2 down.
Kenji with a single to center. Ketashiro to field it, but loses the handle on the ball! Kenji takes 2nd on the error!
Idzichi with a single to left! Kenji rounds third and the throw is cut off! Sagami on the board at 13-1.
Watanabe hits a weak chopper to Shimabukuro for the 3rd out, but Toukaidai Sagami has avoided the shutout.
Bottom 7th
And Hifumi has finally been relieved of his misery. #10 Egawa Kyousuke replaces him and takes the hill.
Tairiku with a hard liner, but right at Tanaka.
Ketashiro with a chopper past Egawa's glove! Tanaka dives but can't get it! Goes into center for a base hit!
Ganeko with a single to left, and it seems like the hit parade will keep on going!
Maehira strikes out swinging for the 2nd out. The runners were taking off and Takumi makes a good throw to 3rd to get the lead runner for the 3rd out.
Top 8th
Shimabukuro continues to induce contact from the Sagami batters!
Ijyuuin and Tanaka both ground out to 3rd before Takumi sinlges to center.
Egawa, behind 1-2, fouls a couple of pitches off before hitting a single to right!
Karaburi sanshin!!!!!!!!!!
Shimabukuro records just his 3rd K in Fukuyama with a rare fastball up and away!
Bottom 8th
One down and Yamakawa singles through to left.
#16 Agena Shun comes in to PH for Irei.
He strikes out swinging and Yamakawa is thrown out easily stealing 2nd.
Top 9th
#15 Kiyota Riku comes in to PH for Someya.
Kenji first pinch grounds to 1st... Maehira takes it to the bag for the out! 2 down!!
#14 Miyazaki Daisuke the last chance for Toukaidai Sagami as he comes in for Idzichi.
KARABURI SANSHIN!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
As befitting an end, Shimabukro strikes out Miyazaki swinging on a 142 kph fastball to end the game!!!
興南！ 春夏連覇！！！！！！ (Kounan! Haru-Natsu renpa!!!!)
THEY'VE DONE IT! KOUNAN HAS COMPLETED THE 6TH HARU-NATSU KOUSHIEN SWEEP AND GIVEN OKINAWA THEIR FIRST EVER NATSU KOUSHIEN CHAMPIONSHIP!!!!!!!!!!!
(And while I'm happy, I wonder to think that I could have been there to see it all.... *sighs*)
And understandably, while Kounan celebrates, Toukaidai Sagami is understandably sad. Many of them are crying because they lost, and perhaps in some ways the manner in which they lost. For as much as they succeeded in getting to this point, to lose here in this way is bittersweet. For Hifumi Shinta, he will certainly still get drafted into NPB should he decide to do so, but to finish his kokoyakyu career in this manner must be frustrating.
And as the awards are given out, the teams march around the field and the flags are lowered, we close the door on another year of baseball. It certainly has been a memorable one as we have been treated to the 6th haru-natsu championship, led by an amazing ace in Shimabukuro Yousuke.
But while this door ends, the door opens on the 2011 season as the Fall tournament in some places are underway which will determine the 2011 senbatsu participants.
So... who will next year's heroes be?
Friday, August 20, 2010
Day 14 - Semifinal 2 - Toukaidai Sagami (Kanagawa) vs. Narita (Chiba)
So Kounan has advanced to the finals with a chance for the haru-natsu sweep. But the question is now, who will they face?
Toukaidai Sagami has had what can only be considered an interesting run to the Best 4.
Ace Hifumi showed a lot of wildness so far, walking and hitting quite a few batters. And yet, he throws a 1-hitter against Toki Shougyou. It's hard what to make of him because he is still considered the top prospect and it could be argued that he's effectively wild, but unless someone's able to fix his control issues, it's hard to see him as a top of the rotation pitcher.
Fortunately for him, his offense is trying to do a good imitation of Teikyou's offense, scoring enough runs to make his pitching a non-issue.
But what happens when you face another good pitcher? That's what Nakagawa Ryou represents from Narita. For those that saw their run in the Chiba prefecturals, you had to figure there was something special there - especially his 1-hit performance in the finals.
He's continued his dominating style into Natsu Koushien. Taking a good look at him with the crooked hat and the emotion he shows, he kind of reminds me of a Felix Hernandez when he's dialed in.
A good chunk of his success I believe has been his splitter. Because pitch recognition may not be developed for a lot of the players out there, this could be a very effective pitch if thrown correctly - and in Nakagawa's case seems to be used with very good results.
But now he's facing off against a very good offense. Will he have the same success as he has had against everyone else?
Toukaidai Sagami (Kanagawa)
RF Watanabe Masaru
LF Ijyuuin Jyun
2B Tanaka Shinta
C Ooshiro Takumi
P Hifumi Shinta
3B Fukuyama Ryou
SS Someya Ryuutarou
1B Ooshiro Kenji
CF Idzichi Akira (#18)
Narita (Chiba)
2B Oogi Ryouta
CF Oka Michiya
1B Kaneko (Yasuhiro)
C Kondou ?
LF Takahashi (Kyuu)
SS Kimura Yuuji
RF Katsuda Yuuto
3B Anzui Daiki
P Nakagawa Ryou
～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～
13:41 - First Pitch!
Top 1st
Watanabe with a grounder to short. Kimura with the stop but he fumbles the ball! Watanabe is given an infield hit. Ijyuuin bunts him over to 2nd.
Tanaka lines one into the left center field gap! Watanabe rounding 3rd and he scores! Sagami on the board quickly at 1-0!
Takumi with a single to right! Tanaka comes around to score and it's 2-0 Sagami!!
AH!! Takumi takes off for 2nd before the pitch and Nakagawa has him picked off! Throws to Kimura and he's out!
Hifumi with a single through the right side! 4 hits off Nakagawa here in the 1st!
Fukuyama grounds into a fielder's choice at short to end the inning, but Sagami's offense quickly puts Narita in a hole here in the 1st!
Bottom 1st
Oogi with a chopper over Hifumi's head! Tanaka goes over to field it, but it goes under his glove and Oogi's in with a leadoff single!
Oka goes down 1-2, but manages to lay the bunt down.
Kaneko with a swinging bunt. Takumi picks it up in front of home and throws to 1st for the out. Oogi doesn't advance.
Cleanup batter Kondou becomes Hifumi's first walk of the day.
And then Takahshi becomes Hifumi's 2nd walk! Manrui for Narita!
AHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Hifumi throws behind Kimura for ball 1!
And Kimura swings on the next pitch??!! He hits a fly to center! Idzichi under it for the 3rd out!
I though Narita was getting it in that they needed to let Hifumi work hard and get walks off of him... and then Kimura goes and does that....
Top 2nd
Nakagawa settling down after that rough first inning. He retires the bottom 3 of the order with little difficulty which should build some confidence.
Bottom 2nd
Hifumi records his first K as he gets Katsuta swinging to start the 2nd.
Anzui with a liner just above Hifumi's glove into center!
No bunt from Nakagawa, but he pops it up! Tanaka with it for the 2nd out.
And Oogi can't check his swing and goes down for the 3rd out.
Top 3rd
Watanabe tries for the bunt single, but Anzui comes in and his throw to 1st is just in time for the out!
Ijyuuin gets his first hit of the game as he singles to the right of 2nd.
AH!!!!!! Wild pitch from Nakagawa goes off Kondou's glove and to the 3rd base dugout! Ijyuuin advances to 2nd!
Tanaka though flies out to left for the 2nd out.
Takumi with another timely hit as he takes an easy swing into center to score Ijyuuin. 3-0 Sagami!
Hifumi goes down swinging for the 3rd out, but Toukaidai Sagami adds on to their lead!
Bottom 3rd
Oka with a single to right to lead off the 3rd for Narita! He's bunted over to try and cut the deficit.
Kondou with a hard liner to right for a single! Too hard as Oka has to hold!
Takahashi with a single to right! Oka scores! Narita is on the board at 3-1!
And Kimura is given a dead ball? It seemed like a swing, but the home plate umpire calls a dead ball! It's manrui for Narita!
Katsuta up and they're back to taking pitches. He takes ball 4, and Kondou comes in to make it a 3-2 ballgame!!
SQUEEZE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Anzui with the push bunt squeeze and both Kenji and Tanaka converge on the ball, and no one's covering 1st!
All safe!
EH?????????
Kenji sees that Kimura was trying to score from 2nd! He throws to 3rd as he's trying to scramble back and he's caught in a rundown! He's tagged out, but allows Katsuta enough time to advance to 3rd. But, Takahashi's run means that Narita has
Nakagawa with a drive to right center! That's past the outfielders and to the wall!!!!!!!!!
Katsuta scores! Anzui all the way from 1st, he scores on Nakagawa double!! 逆転！！！！！ Narita has come back and taken a 5-3 lead!!!!!
And now Oogi walks!!!! That's Hifumi's 5th walk/dead ball on the day!
AHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Oka with a drive to right, goes just right of the right field foul pole!!!
Hifumi finally gets Oka to ground to 2nd to end the inning, but not before Narita finally finds a way to take advantage of Hifumi's wildness to the tune of 5 runs!!!
Top 4th
Fukuyama with a single to right for a leadoff single. Someya bunts him along to get a run back.
Kenji first pitch swings and grounds to 2nd. Kimura's throw is a bit offline, but Kaneko makes the tag for the out.
Karaburi sanshin!!!!!!!!!!
Idzichi waves badly at a slider in the opposite batter's box for the 3rd out!
Bottom 4th
Kaneko with Narita's 8th hit of the day, a grounder through the right side for a single.
But Kondou wipes it out! He hits a ball back to Hifumi who starts the 1-6-3 double play!! 2 outs!
Takahashi with a drive to center. Idzichi running back, running back....
HAITAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!
Takahashi with the homerun to dead center field off Hifumi!!!!!!!!!!! It's 6-3 Narita!
Kimura grounds out to 3rd and the side is retired. But Narita plays add on, and will need to against this offensive squad!
Top 5th
Watanabe hit by Nakagawa on the 3-2 pitch, giving Sagami a leadoff runner.
And now Ijyuuin draws a walk! Runners on 1st and 2nd with no outs for Sagami!
Hit and run! Monma calls for the hit and run, but Tanaka fouls the 1-1 pitch off!
1-2 and he lays the bunt down! Runners advance 90 feet for Takumi.
Pop up in foul territory! Kaneko to the camera well... and tumbles in! He doesn't make the catch, but more importantly, he's ok.
And he hits a ball to deep center! That'll get the run in as Oka makes the catch.
EHHHHHHHH??????????????????
Oka drops the ball on the transition! The 3rd base coach is furiously sending Ijyuuin home!! He scores!! The miscue costs Narita a run as Sagami pulls within one! It's 6-5!!!!!
Hifumi with a single through to left and the rally keeps going!
Fukuyama follows that with a single back up the middle!! Gyakuten runner on for Sagami!
Soomeya with a liner to right! Katsuta charging in, dives....
AND THE BALL GOES UNDER HIS GLOVE!!!!!!
The ball goes under his glove and all the way to the wall!!! Hifumi scores!!!! 動転！！！！！ Fukuyama comes around 3rd.. he scores!!!!!! 逆転！！！！！！！！！！
Toukaidai Sagami has come back from down 6-3 to lead 7-6 here in the 5th!!!
Kenji flies out to left to end the inning, but we have one heck of a ballgame on our hands!!!
Bottom 5th
Back with a second chance to hold the lead, Hifumi does a good job in the 5th retiring the bottom 3 batters in 10 pitches.
We're at the break, and boy do we need a breather! The lead has switched hands twice on big innings on both sides! We're barely through the midway point and 13 runs have been scored in this semifinal!!!!
Top 6th
Idzichi with a drive to center! That's over Oka's head! One hops to the wall and he's on with a leadoff double!
Watanabe with no bunt, but grounds to 3rd effectively acting as a bunt.
They don't need it!!! Ijyuuin takes a 1-0 curve deep to left! That's over Takahashi's head and takes a hop to the wall! Idzichi scores and it's now 8-6 Sagami!!!!
Tanaka moves him over to 3rd as he grounds out to short.
Takumi with a pop fly in the left field foul territory. Anzui has a beat on it, but misses! And Kimura falls down and almost rolls on Anzui's legs! But they're both fine. Another foul fly and Kaneko goes tiptoe on the camera well wall to try and catch it but can't get it.
And now Takumi with a shot down the left field line, FAIR! Ijyuuin comes home for the 3rd time this game and it's 9-6!!!!
Grounder to 3rd by Hifumi, and Anzui stabs at the ball, but he misses and it goes by him into left! Takumi scores and it's 10-6 now for Sagami!
Fukuyama with a hit to center! Oka goes to 3rd with the throw, but it's not in time to get Hifumi and Fukuyama advances to 2nd!
Ojima-kantoku with a conference...
Someya flies out to left to end the inning, but Narita finds themselves down more than when the whirlwind of action started!!!
Bottom 6th
Top of the order for Narita, and Oogi takes a walk!
Oka swinging away grounds to 1st! Kenji to 2nd for the AHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
He throws it wide of Someya and it's off his glove!!! All safe!!!
Kaneko tries to lay down the bunt, but he can't! He swings away at the 1-2 pitch and grounds to 2nd! Tanaka flips to Someya for one, throw to Kenji... double play!!!
Bad break for Narita as an ideal scoring situation now has them behind the eight ball! 2 down and runner on 3rd for Kondou.
But Hifumi walks Kondou! Runners on the corners for Takahashi who hit the HR in the 4th!
Liner by Takahashi! But it's right at Watanabe for the 3rd out! Narita loses a great scoring opportunity and they're down to the final third of the game...
Top 7th
Kenji with a single past a diving Oogi into center.
Idzichi with the three bunt, but the ball just goes foul before stopping and he's out.
Watanabe with a liner to center! Oka back up, reaches his glove and make a near snocone catch!
あぶね～～～～～～～～～～～～
Ijyuuin with a hot liner as well, but that's right at Katsuta for the 3rd out.
Bottom 7th
Katsuta with a one out single to left center.
Anzui in a good battle with Hifumi pops one up in foul territory down the right field line. Tanaka and Watanabe converge on the ball. AH!
Tanaka makes the catch and they just avoid colliding!
Nakagawa with a hard shot at Kenji, but he blocks it and steps on the bag for the 3rd out.
Top 8th
One down and Kaneko makes a great diving stop! He races Takumi to the bag and just beats him out!
Hifumi won't let Sagami go quietly in the 8th as he lines one down the left field line for a double!
But after a stubborn 8-pitch AB, Nakagawa gets Fukuyama to ground out to short.
Bottom 8th
Oogi with a chopper to the left side. Fukuyama can't field it and while Someya runs it down, Oogi easily beats out the throw.
Kaneko up, but he hits another grounder to 2nd! Tanaka starts the 4-6 3 double play and that's the 2nd consecutive DP he's hit into!
Kondou first pitch lines a single to right!
Takahashi first pitch swinging lines a single to left!!
And now Kimura is hit on the hands!!! Manrui for Narita!!!
The players gather together on the mound as Monma-kantoku calls a conference.
Katsuta steps in, hoping to atone for his error.
But he hits a grounder to 3rd! Fukuyama takes it to the bag and the inning is over! Could that have been Narita's last real chance??
Top 9th
Someya with a grounder to 1st. Kaneko with the great diving stop! Flips to Nakagawa, but Someya slides ahead of Nakagawa's foot!
Monma, not satisfied with a 3-run lead (and who couldn't blame him?) has him bunted over to 2nd.
Idzuchi with a ball right back to Nakagawa. He turns to Someya and catches him off the bag! They run him down, but Idzichi replaces Someya at 2nd.
Watanabe with a drive to center! Oka goes back to the wall, but the ball beats him to it! Idzichi scores! Watanabe heading to 3rd! Relay throw from Kimura nails him at 3rd for the 3rd out!
But Sagami adds one more insurance run to make it 11-7!!
Bottom 9th
#14 Takatsuka Ryouta comes in to PH for Ishii. First pitch swinging hits a drive to deep left center! But it hangs up and Ijyuuin catches it for the first out.
Nagakawa first pitch swings and he flies out center. 2 quick outs for Narita!
But Oogi doesn't give up! He draws a walk!
Oka up to try and keep the game going...
Karaburi sanshin!!!!!!!
Hifumi strikes out Oka to end the ball game!
In a back and forth game, Toukaidai Sagami gets the last word as they rally in the 5th and 6th innings to retake the lead for good.
While the performance today was a bit sloppy on both sides, it also speaks to the drive that the teams had to fight past the fatigue, past the tiredness, all for the chance to win the Natsu Koushien.
Narita certainly gave the tournament a run for their money as the surprise team out of Chiba charged through the brackets making it all the way to the best 4. And while they certainly had a chance here against Toukaidai Sagami and fell short, it certainly was a deserving team that made it this far. They may be disappointed, but should also be applauded for their efforts.
For Toukaidai Sagami, they'll have less than a 24 hour turnaround before they face Kounan for the title. However, they suffer from the same problems as Kounan with an pitcher possibly suffering from fatigue with little time to recover...
Toukaidai Sagami has had what can only be considered an interesting run to the Best 4.
Ace Hifumi showed a lot of wildness so far, walking and hitting quite a few batters. And yet, he throws a 1-hitter against Toki Shougyou. It's hard what to make of him because he is still considered the top prospect and it could be argued that he's effectively wild, but unless someone's able to fix his control issues, it's hard to see him as a top of the rotation pitcher.
Fortunately for him, his offense is trying to do a good imitation of Teikyou's offense, scoring enough runs to make his pitching a non-issue.
But what happens when you face another good pitcher? That's what Nakagawa Ryou represents from Narita. For those that saw their run in the Chiba prefecturals, you had to figure there was something special there - especially his 1-hit performance in the finals.
He's continued his dominating style into Natsu Koushien. Taking a good look at him with the crooked hat and the emotion he shows, he kind of reminds me of a Felix Hernandez when he's dialed in.
A good chunk of his success I believe has been his splitter. Because pitch recognition may not be developed for a lot of the players out there, this could be a very effective pitch if thrown correctly - and in Nakagawa's case seems to be used with very good results.
But now he's facing off against a very good offense. Will he have the same success as he has had against everyone else?
Toukaidai Sagami (Kanagawa)
RF Watanabe Masaru
LF Ijyuuin Jyun
2B Tanaka Shinta
C Ooshiro Takumi
P Hifumi Shinta
3B Fukuyama Ryou
SS Someya Ryuutarou
1B Ooshiro Kenji
CF Idzichi Akira (#18)
Narita (Chiba)
2B Oogi Ryouta
CF Oka Michiya
1B Kaneko (Yasuhiro)
C Kondou ?
LF Takahashi (Kyuu)
SS Kimura Yuuji
RF Katsuda Yuuto
3B Anzui Daiki
P Nakagawa Ryou
～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～
13:41 - First Pitch!
Top 1st
Watanabe with a grounder to short. Kimura with the stop but he fumbles the ball! Watanabe is given an infield hit. Ijyuuin bunts him over to 2nd.
Tanaka lines one into the left center field gap! Watanabe rounding 3rd and he scores! Sagami on the board quickly at 1-0!
Takumi with a single to right! Tanaka comes around to score and it's 2-0 Sagami!!
AH!! Takumi takes off for 2nd before the pitch and Nakagawa has him picked off! Throws to Kimura and he's out!
Hifumi with a single through the right side! 4 hits off Nakagawa here in the 1st!
Fukuyama grounds into a fielder's choice at short to end the inning, but Sagami's offense quickly puts Narita in a hole here in the 1st!
Bottom 1st
Oogi with a chopper over Hifumi's head! Tanaka goes over to field it, but it goes under his glove and Oogi's in with a leadoff single!
Oka goes down 1-2, but manages to lay the bunt down.
Kaneko with a swinging bunt. Takumi picks it up in front of home and throws to 1st for the out. Oogi doesn't advance.
Cleanup batter Kondou becomes Hifumi's first walk of the day.
And then Takahshi becomes Hifumi's 2nd walk! Manrui for Narita!
AHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Hifumi throws behind Kimura for ball 1!
And Kimura swings on the next pitch??!! He hits a fly to center! Idzichi under it for the 3rd out!
I though Narita was getting it in that they needed to let Hifumi work hard and get walks off of him... and then Kimura goes and does that....
Top 2nd
Nakagawa settling down after that rough first inning. He retires the bottom 3 of the order with little difficulty which should build some confidence.
Bottom 2nd
Hifumi records his first K as he gets Katsuta swinging to start the 2nd.
Anzui with a liner just above Hifumi's glove into center!
No bunt from Nakagawa, but he pops it up! Tanaka with it for the 2nd out.
And Oogi can't check his swing and goes down for the 3rd out.
Top 3rd
Watanabe tries for the bunt single, but Anzui comes in and his throw to 1st is just in time for the out!
Ijyuuin gets his first hit of the game as he singles to the right of 2nd.
AH!!!!!! Wild pitch from Nakagawa goes off Kondou's glove and to the 3rd base dugout! Ijyuuin advances to 2nd!
Tanaka though flies out to left for the 2nd out.
Takumi with another timely hit as he takes an easy swing into center to score Ijyuuin. 3-0 Sagami!
Hifumi goes down swinging for the 3rd out, but Toukaidai Sagami adds on to their lead!
Bottom 3rd
Oka with a single to right to lead off the 3rd for Narita! He's bunted over to try and cut the deficit.
Kondou with a hard liner to right for a single! Too hard as Oka has to hold!
Takahashi with a single to right! Oka scores! Narita is on the board at 3-1!
And Kimura is given a dead ball? It seemed like a swing, but the home plate umpire calls a dead ball! It's manrui for Narita!
Katsuta up and they're back to taking pitches. He takes ball 4, and Kondou comes in to make it a 3-2 ballgame!!
SQUEEZE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Anzui with the push bunt squeeze and both Kenji and Tanaka converge on the ball, and no one's covering 1st!
All safe!
EH?????????
Kenji sees that Kimura was trying to score from 2nd! He throws to 3rd as he's trying to scramble back and he's caught in a rundown! He's tagged out, but allows Katsuta enough time to advance to 3rd. But, Takahashi's run means that Narita has
Nakagawa with a drive to right center! That's past the outfielders and to the wall!!!!!!!!!
Katsuta scores! Anzui all the way from 1st, he scores on Nakagawa double!! 逆転！！！！！ Narita has come back and taken a 5-3 lead!!!!!
And now Oogi walks!!!! That's Hifumi's 5th walk/dead ball on the day!
AHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Oka with a drive to right, goes just right of the right field foul pole!!!
Hifumi finally gets Oka to ground to 2nd to end the inning, but not before Narita finally finds a way to take advantage of Hifumi's wildness to the tune of 5 runs!!!
Top 4th
Fukuyama with a single to right for a leadoff single. Someya bunts him along to get a run back.
Kenji first pitch swings and grounds to 2nd. Kimura's throw is a bit offline, but Kaneko makes the tag for the out.
Karaburi sanshin!!!!!!!!!!
Idzichi waves badly at a slider in the opposite batter's box for the 3rd out!
Bottom 4th
Kaneko with Narita's 8th hit of the day, a grounder through the right side for a single.
But Kondou wipes it out! He hits a ball back to Hifumi who starts the 1-6-3 double play!! 2 outs!
Takahashi with a drive to center. Idzichi running back, running back....
HAITAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!
Takahashi with the homerun to dead center field off Hifumi!!!!!!!!!!! It's 6-3 Narita!
Kimura grounds out to 3rd and the side is retired. But Narita plays add on, and will need to against this offensive squad!
Top 5th
Watanabe hit by Nakagawa on the 3-2 pitch, giving Sagami a leadoff runner.
And now Ijyuuin draws a walk! Runners on 1st and 2nd with no outs for Sagami!
Hit and run! Monma calls for the hit and run, but Tanaka fouls the 1-1 pitch off!
1-2 and he lays the bunt down! Runners advance 90 feet for Takumi.
Pop up in foul territory! Kaneko to the camera well... and tumbles in! He doesn't make the catch, but more importantly, he's ok.
And he hits a ball to deep center! That'll get the run in as Oka makes the catch.
EHHHHHHHH??????????????????
Oka drops the ball on the transition! The 3rd base coach is furiously sending Ijyuuin home!! He scores!! The miscue costs Narita a run as Sagami pulls within one! It's 6-5!!!!!
Hifumi with a single through to left and the rally keeps going!
Fukuyama follows that with a single back up the middle!! Gyakuten runner on for Sagami!
Soomeya with a liner to right! Katsuta charging in, dives....
AND THE BALL GOES UNDER HIS GLOVE!!!!!!
The ball goes under his glove and all the way to the wall!!! Hifumi scores!!!! 動転！！！！！ Fukuyama comes around 3rd.. he scores!!!!!! 逆転！！！！！！！！！！
Toukaidai Sagami has come back from down 6-3 to lead 7-6 here in the 5th!!!
Kenji flies out to left to end the inning, but we have one heck of a ballgame on our hands!!!
Bottom 5th
Back with a second chance to hold the lead, Hifumi does a good job in the 5th retiring the bottom 3 batters in 10 pitches.
We're at the break, and boy do we need a breather! The lead has switched hands twice on big innings on both sides! We're barely through the midway point and 13 runs have been scored in this semifinal!!!!
Top 6th
Idzichi with a drive to center! That's over Oka's head! One hops to the wall and he's on with a leadoff double!
Watanabe with no bunt, but grounds to 3rd effectively acting as a bunt.
They don't need it!!! Ijyuuin takes a 1-0 curve deep to left! That's over Takahashi's head and takes a hop to the wall! Idzichi scores and it's now 8-6 Sagami!!!!
Tanaka moves him over to 3rd as he grounds out to short.
Takumi with a pop fly in the left field foul territory. Anzui has a beat on it, but misses! And Kimura falls down and almost rolls on Anzui's legs! But they're both fine. Another foul fly and Kaneko goes tiptoe on the camera well wall to try and catch it but can't get it.
And now Takumi with a shot down the left field line, FAIR! Ijyuuin comes home for the 3rd time this game and it's 9-6!!!!
Grounder to 3rd by Hifumi, and Anzui stabs at the ball, but he misses and it goes by him into left! Takumi scores and it's 10-6 now for Sagami!
Fukuyama with a hit to center! Oka goes to 3rd with the throw, but it's not in time to get Hifumi and Fukuyama advances to 2nd!
Ojima-kantoku with a conference...
Someya flies out to left to end the inning, but Narita finds themselves down more than when the whirlwind of action started!!!
Bottom 6th
Top of the order for Narita, and Oogi takes a walk!
Oka swinging away grounds to 1st! Kenji to 2nd for the AHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
He throws it wide of Someya and it's off his glove!!! All safe!!!
Kaneko tries to lay down the bunt, but he can't! He swings away at the 1-2 pitch and grounds to 2nd! Tanaka flips to Someya for one, throw to Kenji... double play!!!
Bad break for Narita as an ideal scoring situation now has them behind the eight ball! 2 down and runner on 3rd for Kondou.
But Hifumi walks Kondou! Runners on the corners for Takahashi who hit the HR in the 4th!
Liner by Takahashi! But it's right at Watanabe for the 3rd out! Narita loses a great scoring opportunity and they're down to the final third of the game...
Top 7th
Kenji with a single past a diving Oogi into center.
Idzichi with the three bunt, but the ball just goes foul before stopping and he's out.
Watanabe with a liner to center! Oka back up, reaches his glove and make a near snocone catch!
あぶね～～～～～～～～～～～～
Ijyuuin with a hot liner as well, but that's right at Katsuta for the 3rd out.
Bottom 7th
Katsuta with a one out single to left center.
Anzui in a good battle with Hifumi pops one up in foul territory down the right field line. Tanaka and Watanabe converge on the ball. AH!
Tanaka makes the catch and they just avoid colliding!
Nakagawa with a hard shot at Kenji, but he blocks it and steps on the bag for the 3rd out.
Top 8th
One down and Kaneko makes a great diving stop! He races Takumi to the bag and just beats him out!
Hifumi won't let Sagami go quietly in the 8th as he lines one down the left field line for a double!
But after a stubborn 8-pitch AB, Nakagawa gets Fukuyama to ground out to short.
Bottom 8th
Oogi with a chopper to the left side. Fukuyama can't field it and while Someya runs it down, Oogi easily beats out the throw.
Kaneko up, but he hits another grounder to 2nd! Tanaka starts the 4-6 3 double play and that's the 2nd consecutive DP he's hit into!
Kondou first pitch lines a single to right!
Takahashi first pitch swinging lines a single to left!!
And now Kimura is hit on the hands!!! Manrui for Narita!!!
The players gather together on the mound as Monma-kantoku calls a conference.
Katsuta steps in, hoping to atone for his error.
But he hits a grounder to 3rd! Fukuyama takes it to the bag and the inning is over! Could that have been Narita's last real chance??
Top 9th
Someya with a grounder to 1st. Kaneko with the great diving stop! Flips to Nakagawa, but Someya slides ahead of Nakagawa's foot!
Monma, not satisfied with a 3-run lead (and who couldn't blame him?) has him bunted over to 2nd.
Idzuchi with a ball right back to Nakagawa. He turns to Someya and catches him off the bag! They run him down, but Idzichi replaces Someya at 2nd.
Watanabe with a drive to center! Oka goes back to the wall, but the ball beats him to it! Idzichi scores! Watanabe heading to 3rd! Relay throw from Kimura nails him at 3rd for the 3rd out!
But Sagami adds one more insurance run to make it 11-7!!
Bottom 9th
#14 Takatsuka Ryouta comes in to PH for Ishii. First pitch swinging hits a drive to deep left center! But it hangs up and Ijyuuin catches it for the first out.
Nagakawa first pitch swings and he flies out center. 2 quick outs for Narita!
But Oogi doesn't give up! He draws a walk!
Oka up to try and keep the game going...
Karaburi sanshin!!!!!!!
Hifumi strikes out Oka to end the ball game!
In a back and forth game, Toukaidai Sagami gets the last word as they rally in the 5th and 6th innings to retake the lead for good.
While the performance today was a bit sloppy on both sides, it also speaks to the drive that the teams had to fight past the fatigue, past the tiredness, all for the chance to win the Natsu Koushien.
Narita certainly gave the tournament a run for their money as the surprise team out of Chiba charged through the brackets making it all the way to the best 4. And while they certainly had a chance here against Toukaidai Sagami and fell short, it certainly was a deserving team that made it this far. They may be disappointed, but should also be applauded for their efforts.
For Toukaidai Sagami, they'll have less than a 24 hour turnaround before they face Kounan for the title. However, they suffer from the same problems as Kounan with an pitcher possibly suffering from fatigue with little time to recover...
Day 14 - Semifinal 1 - Kounan (Okinawa) vs. Houtoku Gakuen (Hyogo)
We're down to our best 4 teams, and the way the draw has gone, you could almost call it either a battle of Kanto vs. everyone else, or one of Nishi vs. Higashi Japan.
This game will feature the teams not from the Kanto region, that is Kounan and Houtoku Gakuen.
6 teams from Okinawa have gotten this far, and only twice has a team made it to the championship game (Okinawa Suisan, 1990-91, lost both). Kounan was one of those team to make it this far, 42 years ago.
This team, who wan senbatsu, has a good chance of finally giving the prefecture their first Natsu Koushien winner. With Shimabukuro on the mound combined with a well-balanced (yet powerful) offense, there is little in the way of weaknesses for Kounan.
Houtoku Gakuen is no stranger to being here, having won it all back in 1981 (although they've only reached this stage one other time in Natsu Koushien).
Outside of the Saga Gakuen game, Houtoku depends highly on their pitching tandem of ace Oonishi Kazunari and 1st-year Tamura Ichirou as their offense is a bit lacking. With Tamura having pitched primarily in yesterday's win, chances are they will be leaning on Ooshiro today.
Kounan (Okinawa)
2B Kuniyoshi Tairiku
CF Ketashiro Kai
3B Ganeko Moritsugu
1B Maehira Daiki
RF Mekaru Keisuke
C Yamakawa Daisuke
LF Irei Shinya
P Shimabukuro Yousuke
SS Ooshiro Kouji
Houtoku Gakuen (Hyogo)
CF Yashiro Kazuma
2B Tani Koushirou
3B Nakashima ?
1B Koshii Yuuki
C Morita Kouki
RF Urasaki Hiromasa
LF Kinoshita Yuuki
P Oonishi Kazunari
SS Haseba Takashi
～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～
11:00 - First Pitch!
Top 1st
Tairiku continues his hot hitting at Koushien with a grounder to left for a leadoff single!
It's a hit and run! Ketashiro pokes it through the right side, and Kounan has runners at the corners!
Again no bunt! Ganeko with a grounder to 1st. Koshii goes home and Tairiku is tagged out at the plate!
Maehira, comebacker to Oonishi! Goes to Haseba for one, relay to Koshii, double play!!!
Oonishi gets out of a no down, runners at the corners pinch here in the first!!!!!
Bottom 1st
Yashiro opens Houtoku's offense with a single to center and is bunted along.
Nakashima with a hard grounder to 1st. It bounces off of Maehira and into right! Mekaru charges in to the ball, but Yashiro rounds 3rd and will score the opening run of the game! Houtoku leads 1-0!!
Nakashima off for 2nd! Koshii swings and the ball gets away from Yamakawa! No chance for a throw!
Koshii trying to continue the inning works the count full, but looks at a called strike 3 on the outside corner!
AH! Shimabukuro hits Morita! Runners on 1st and 2nd!
Karaburi sanshin! Urasaki strikes out on a 144 kph fastball to end the inning! But Houtoku has struck first against senbatsu champions Kounan!
Top 2nd
Kounan's batters forced to be aggressive at the plate as Oonishi throws strikes.
3 batters + 6 pitches + 6 strikes = 3 outs
Bottom 2nd
Shimabukuro gives up another leadoff hit! Kinoshita singles to center!
He's moved along to 2nd. And now Yamakawa has him stuck between 2nd and 3rd! He's going to throw to 2nd, but last second bounces it in the dirt towards 3rd when he sees Kinoshita breaking for 3rd! Ganeko goes down the 3rd base line to field it, and can't get back in time to tag Kinoshita!
What Yamakawa should have done was to charge the runner like we've seen some heads-up teams do to close the distance.
And now last batter Hasebe draws a walk on a 3-2 pitch just outside! Shimabukuro in trouble again!!
SQUEEZE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Yashiro with the squeeze on the 1-1 pitch, but it goes foul!
And now Shimabukuro can't seem to find the plate with his offspeed pitches! Ahead 1-2, he walks Yashiro to load the bases!
We saw a lot of fastballs at the beginning of last game, could it be that he has lost the feel of his offspeed pitches??
Karaburi sanshin!!!!
Shimabukuro goes back to the fastball with a 144 kph fastball, and a 145 kph fastball for the 2nd out!
It's more fastballs to Nakashima, the count goes to 2-2...
Nakashima with a drive to left center!! Ketashiro chases after it, dives... but it's no use!! The ball goes way above his head and bounces to the wall!! Everyone's going to score! The throw comes in as Nakashima slides into 3rd!
IT'S 4-0 HOUTOKU GAKUEN!!!!!
Now Koshii gets a hold of a hanging forkball and hits a grounder to right! Nakashima scores and the score is 5-0!!!!!
Morita flies out to right to end the inning, but Kounan is in serious trouble. Shimabukuro seems to have no control of any of his offspeed offerings, and Houtoku is looking dead red! There's no way Kounan has a chance if he can't figure it out!
Top 3rd
How does Kounan respond to this?
Again, Oonishi is throwing strikes and forcing the batters to swing. Shimabukuro and Ooshiro both groundout.
Tairiku with a grounder to 2nd, but Tani boots it! Runner on for Kounan.
Ketashiro with a fly deep down the left field line. Kinoshita jumps on top of the padded wall and climbs the fence trying to make the catch! That's reminiscent of Akamatsu's catch for the Hiroshima Carp!
And now Ketashiro is hit by Oonishi! Runners on 1st and 2nd!
Ganeko steps in. But Maehira is on deck, and he's been practically ineffective the entire tournament (3-17, 2 K, HBP). I would actually consider walking Ganeko to get to Maehira.
Ganeko with a hard liner to right! It's in for a base hit, but Tairiku has to hold at 3rd!
And so Maehira steps in...
... and grounds out to 2nd to end the inning...
Bottom 3rd
Kinoshita with a grounder up the middle. Shimabukuro trying for the kick save, but misses!
And now Kinoshita is trying for 2! But Yamagawa makes a strong throw to 2nd and Kinoshita pops up and walks back towards the dugout before the call is even made.
Oonishi strikes out to end the inning. Shimabukuro has 4 K's, but is down 5.
Top 4th
Kounan's offense almost seems to be fully pressing down 5, they've been totally thrown off now that they find themselves behind by a wide margin! 8 pitches and Oonishi is back in the dugout!!
Bottom 4th
One down, and Yashiro gets on for his 3rd time today, this time a single to center. And now Tani walks!
Kounan cannot afford to go down any further here!
Nakashima flies out to center for the 2nd out...
Karaburi sanshin!!!
Shimabukuro gets Koshii on a fastball high and away for the 3rd out!
Top 5th
Shimabukuro with a grounder past a diving Tani into center!
Ooshiro with a grounder to 3rd! Nakashima with the great pick!
AHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
He throws it away going to 2nd!! Shimabukuro advances to 3rd! Chance for Kounan!!
Tairiku is finally retired! Oonishi gets him out swinging for the first out!
Ketashiro with a hit to left! Shimabukuro scores. Kinoshita fumbles with the ball and Ooshiro is being sent home! Throw comes in, and Ooshiro goes outside and slides around the tag!!! He's safe! Kounan on the board at 5-2!
Nagata-kantoku with a conference with Ganeko up to bat and 1st base open. I'd still consider walking him to get to Maehira.
Ganeko with a single up the middle! Ketashiro being sent home! He has to!!!!
Throw from Yashiro goes to Tani, his throw home is in time, but Ketashiro slides outside again and misses the tag! 5-3 Houtoku!!
And that brings up Maehira. Can he break his slump?
No! Grounds to 2nd! Tani to Haseba for one, his throw to Koshii, more than in time for the double play!
Maehira's struggles continue and have killed 2 opportunities by Kounan!
Bottom 5th
One down and Urasaki draws a 4-pitch walk.
Kinoshita not bunting, but hits a comebacker to Shimabukuro! He goes to Ooshiro for one, AH!!!!!!!!
His throw to 1st is high and goes to the camera well! E6 and the runner advances to 2nd!
Oonishi with a liner, but it's right to Irei for the 3rd out.
As we head to the break, Kounan has been able to cut into the early deficit Shimabukuro put them in, but they still trail by 2 and Shimabukuro is far from being back to normal.
Top 6th
Mekaru with a grounder to 3rd. Nakashima with the nice pick, twirls, but his throw to 1st is wide and Koshii's stretch can't get the ball!
Yamakawa looks to bunt him, but he three bunts and there's one down!
So Mekaru takes matters into his own hands! He takes off for 2nd! Throw from Morita is wide and he's in safely!
But Irei grounds out to 2nd and there's 2 down with Mekaru standing 90 feet away from home.
Shimabukuro looking for a base hit to help his cause...
He pokes one through the left side! Mekaru scores and Kounan has pulled within 1!! It's 5-4!!!!!
Ooshiro grounds out to Koshii to end the inning, but a 5-0 lead for Houtoku has almost all but evaporated!!
Bottom 6th
One down for Houtoku and Yashiro hits a ball to the left center field gap! That gets by the fielders and all the way to the wall! Yashiro rounding 2nd, heading for 3rd!! Relay throw from Ooshiro...
OUT!!!!!!!!!!!!
Yashiro perhaps pressing a bit tries to stretch the double and is thrown out!
Tani flies out to Irei in left and the inning is over!
Top 7th
Tamura warming up again, no choice now for Nagata-kantoku as Kounan has almost equalized. My guess is that he tried to hold him out as long as possible, being a 1st year and throwing 7+ innings yesterday.
Top of the order and Tairiku. He singles back up the middle! Ketashiro bunts the douten run to 2nd.
Ganeko with a drive to right center! Yashiro running over, but the ball gets past him! That'll go all the way to the wall! Tairiku scores, 動転！！！
Kounan has come all the way back to tie the game!! And the gyakuten run in Ganeko stands just 90 feet away!!
Nagata-kantoku has no choice, he sends in Tamura Ichirou to take the hill with no room for error... Did he wait too long???
...and in steps Maehira... 3-20 for the tournament and in another key spot...
Grounder up the middle! That's through the infield! Ganeko scores!! 逆転！！！！！
Kounan has come back all the way from down 5-0 to take the lead here in the 7th!!!
It's not over yet! Mekaru lays down a bunt and sprints for 1st! Nakashima with the throw, but it's late! Runners on 1st and 2nd, and still only one down!
Yamakawa flies out to right for the 2nd out, but Maehira advances to 3rd.
But Tamura finally closes the door as Irei pops one up to Koshii on the 1st base line to end the inning.
However, Kounan has come back from the dead to take the lead with just 2 innings left to go!
Bottom 7th
How will Houtoku respond now that they're down 1?
They're swinging early perhaps pressing... Nakashima grounds to 2nd, and Koshii quickly flies to left.
Morita first pitch swinging grounds one through to left. But Urasaki hits a grounder to 2nd. Tairiku goes to 2nd and that ends the inning!
Top 8th
Tamura doing a good job in relief retiring the 8-9-1 batters with little issue, getting his team back in the dugout to pick up the sticks again...
Bottom 8th
Shimobukuro giving it all he's got!
Karaburi sanshin!!!
Kinoshita goes down swinging on a high fastball!
Tamura up now..
Sanshin!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Tamura looks at a fastball on the outside corner for the 2nd K.
Karaburi sanshin!!!
Haseba strikes out on another high fastball and Shimabukuro has struck out the side here in the 8th!!!!!
Top 9th
One down for Kounan and Ganeko singles to right! That's brings up Maehira, what will he do?
He bunts the runner along! They're going for the one-timer!
Karaburi sanshin!!!
Mekaru goes down after an 8 pitch AB! 3 outs!!! Tamura's done all he can do now....
Bottom 9th
...it's up to the offense to deliver....
Yashiro with a grounder to the right side....
Tairiku dives and his glove just gets the ball! Gets up, throws to 1st... One down!!! A fine play by by Tairiku here in the 9th!!!!!
Tani singles through the right side! Douten runner on for Houtoku Gakuen!
Nakashima up for Houtoku, he had the bases clearing triple in the 2nd, but has been silent since.
Karaburi sanshin!!!!! Nakashima swings at a high fastball for out number 2! Tani on the hits and run! Yamakawa throws to 2nd...
AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Yamakawa throws it away!!!!! The ball goes into the outfield and Tani heads to 3rd!!!!!!!!!!!
Last chance in cleanup batter Koshii... Haseba goes over to talk to him before he heads to the plate...
First pitch outside border for a strike...
...then a fastball down and away, ball 1!
Fastball swung on and missed, 1-2!!!
Fastball high... 2-2!
KARABURI SANSHIN!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Koshii foul tips the fastball into Yamakawa's glove and he hangs on! Kounan wins!! Kounan wins!!!
Kounan comes from down 0-5 to come back and win against the hometown team of Houtoku Gakuen!
Kounan runs onto the field to celebrate, while Houtoku Gakuen is crushed... After the playing of Kounan's song, you can see the pain in the Houtoku players as they are just crushed after losing 6-5... and who can blame them? They had the favorite to win it all on the ropes, and it slipped away from them. It's is a bitter and painful defeat, and many are crying and some cannot get themselves to walk back to the dugout. Their performance on the field was well deserving of their run this year, but it will end here in the best 4. Tip your hat to the hometown 18, they still had a run to remember.
Kounan has a big issue going into tomorrow's game, and that is ace Shimabukuro. His control issues are ever real now, and he'll only have 24 hours to recover. Will he be okay for the final??
This game will feature the teams not from the Kanto region, that is Kounan and Houtoku Gakuen.
6 teams from Okinawa have gotten this far, and only twice has a team made it to the championship game (Okinawa Suisan, 1990-91, lost both). Kounan was one of those team to make it this far, 42 years ago.
This team, who wan senbatsu, has a good chance of finally giving the prefecture their first Natsu Koushien winner. With Shimabukuro on the mound combined with a well-balanced (yet powerful) offense, there is little in the way of weaknesses for Kounan.
Houtoku Gakuen is no stranger to being here, having won it all back in 1981 (although they've only reached this stage one other time in Natsu Koushien).
Outside of the Saga Gakuen game, Houtoku depends highly on their pitching tandem of ace Oonishi Kazunari and 1st-year Tamura Ichirou as their offense is a bit lacking. With Tamura having pitched primarily in yesterday's win, chances are they will be leaning on Ooshiro today.
Kounan (Okinawa)
2B Kuniyoshi Tairiku
CF Ketashiro Kai
3B Ganeko Moritsugu
1B Maehira Daiki
RF Mekaru Keisuke
C Yamakawa Daisuke
LF Irei Shinya
P Shimabukuro Yousuke
SS Ooshiro Kouji
Houtoku Gakuen (Hyogo)
CF Yashiro Kazuma
2B Tani Koushirou
3B Nakashima ?
1B Koshii Yuuki
C Morita Kouki
RF Urasaki Hiromasa
LF Kinoshita Yuuki
P Oonishi Kazunari
SS Haseba Takashi
～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～～
11:00 - First Pitch!
Top 1st
Tairiku continues his hot hitting at Koushien with a grounder to left for a leadoff single!
It's a hit and run! Ketashiro pokes it through the right side, and Kounan has runners at the corners!
Again no bunt! Ganeko with a grounder to 1st. Koshii goes home and Tairiku is tagged out at the plate!
Maehira, comebacker to Oonishi! Goes to Haseba for one, relay to Koshii, double play!!!
Oonishi gets out of a no down, runners at the corners pinch here in the first!!!!!
Bottom 1st
Yashiro opens Houtoku's offense with a single to center and is bunted along.
Nakashima with a hard grounder to 1st. It bounces off of Maehira and into right! Mekaru charges in to the ball, but Yashiro rounds 3rd and will score the opening run of the game! Houtoku leads 1-0!!
Nakashima off for 2nd! Koshii swings and the ball gets away from Yamakawa! No chance for a throw!
Koshii trying to continue the inning works the count full, but looks at a called strike 3 on the outside corner!
AH! Shimabukuro hits Morita! Runners on 1st and 2nd!
Karaburi sanshin! Urasaki strikes out on a 144 kph fastball to end the inning! But Houtoku has struck first against senbatsu champions Kounan!
Top 2nd
Kounan's batters forced to be aggressive at the plate as Oonishi throws strikes.
3 batters + 6 pitches + 6 strikes = 3 outs
Bottom 2nd
Shimabukuro gives up another leadoff hit! Kinoshita singles to center!
He's moved along to 2nd. And now Yamakawa has him stuck between 2nd and 3rd! He's going to throw to 2nd, but last second bounces it in the dirt towards 3rd when he sees Kinoshita breaking for 3rd! Ganeko goes down the 3rd base line to field it, and can't get back in time to tag Kinoshita!
What Yamakawa should have done was to charge the runner like we've seen some heads-up teams do to close the distance.
And now last batter Hasebe draws a walk on a 3-2 pitch just outside! Shimabukuro in trouble again!!
SQUEEZE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Yashiro with the squeeze on the 1-1 pitch, but it goes foul!
And now Shimabukuro can't seem to find the plate with his offspeed pitches! Ahead 1-2, he walks Yashiro to load the bases!
We saw a lot of fastballs at the beginning of last game, could it be that he has lost the feel of his offspeed pitches??
Karaburi sanshin!!!!
Shimabukuro goes back to the fastball with a 144 kph fastball, and a 145 kph fastball for the 2nd out!
It's more fastballs to Nakashima, the count goes to 2-2...
Nakashima with a drive to left center!! Ketashiro chases after it, dives... but it's no use!! The ball goes way above his head and bounces to the wall!! Everyone's going to score! The throw comes in as Nakashima slides into 3rd!
IT'S 4-0 HOUTOKU GAKUEN!!!!!
Now Koshii gets a hold of a hanging forkball and hits a grounder to right! Nakashima scores and the score is 5-0!!!!!
Morita flies out to right to end the inning, but Kounan is in serious trouble. Shimabukuro seems to have no control of any of his offspeed offerings, and Houtoku is looking dead red! There's no way Kounan has a chance if he can't figure it out!
Top 3rd
How does Kounan respond to this?
Again, Oonishi is throwing strikes and forcing the batters to swing. Shimabukuro and Ooshiro both groundout.
Tairiku with a grounder to 2nd, but Tani boots it! Runner on for Kounan.
Ketashiro with a fly deep down the left field line. Kinoshita jumps on top of the padded wall and climbs the fence trying to make the catch! That's reminiscent of Akamatsu's catch for the Hiroshima Carp!
And now Ketashiro is hit by Oonishi! Runners on 1st and 2nd!
Ganeko steps in. But Maehira is on deck, and he's been practically ineffective the entire tournament (3-17, 2 K, HBP). I would actually consider walking Ganeko to get to Maehira.
Ganeko with a hard liner to right! It's in for a base hit, but Tairiku has to hold at 3rd!
And so Maehira steps in...
... and grounds out to 2nd to end the inning...
Bottom 3rd
Kinoshita with a grounder up the middle. Shimabukuro trying for the kick save, but misses!
And now Kinoshita is trying for 2! But Yamagawa makes a strong throw to 2nd and Kinoshita pops up and walks back towards the dugout before the call is even made.
Oonishi strikes out to end the inning. Shimabukuro has 4 K's, but is down 5.
Top 4th
Kounan's offense almost seems to be fully pressing down 5, they've been totally thrown off now that they find themselves behind by a wide margin! 8 pitches and Oonishi is back in the dugout!!
Bottom 4th
One down, and Yashiro gets on for his 3rd time today, this time a single to center. And now Tani walks!
Kounan cannot afford to go down any further here!
Nakashima flies out to center for the 2nd out...
Karaburi sanshin!!!
Shimabukuro gets Koshii on a fastball high and away for the 3rd out!
Top 5th
Shimabukuro with a grounder past a diving Tani into center!
Ooshiro with a grounder to 3rd! Nakashima with the great pick!
AHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
He throws it away going to 2nd!! Shimabukuro advances to 3rd! Chance for Kounan!!
Tairiku is finally retired! Oonishi gets him out swinging for the first out!
Ketashiro with a hit to left! Shimabukuro scores. Kinoshita fumbles with the ball and Ooshiro is being sent home! Throw comes in, and Ooshiro goes outside and slides around the tag!!! He's safe! Kounan on the board at 5-2!
Nagata-kantoku with a conference with Ganeko up to bat and 1st base open. I'd still consider walking him to get to Maehira.
Ganeko with a single up the middle! Ketashiro being sent home! He has to!!!!
Throw from Yashiro goes to Tani, his throw home is in time, but Ketashiro slides outside again and misses the tag! 5-3 Houtoku!!
And that brings up Maehira. Can he break his slump?
No! Grounds to 2nd! Tani to Haseba for one, his throw to Koshii, more than in time for the double play!
Maehira's struggles continue and have killed 2 opportunities by Kounan!
Bottom 5th
One down and Urasaki draws a 4-pitch walk.
Kinoshita not bunting, but hits a comebacker to Shimabukuro! He goes to Ooshiro for one, AH!!!!!!!!
His throw to 1st is high and goes to the camera well! E6 and the runner advances to 2nd!
Oonishi with a liner, but it's right to Irei for the 3rd out.
As we head to the break, Kounan has been able to cut into the early deficit Shimabukuro put them in, but they still trail by 2 and Shimabukuro is far from being back to normal.
Top 6th
Mekaru with a grounder to 3rd. Nakashima with the nice pick, twirls, but his throw to 1st is wide and Koshii's stretch can't get the ball!
Yamakawa looks to bunt him, but he three bunts and there's one down!
So Mekaru takes matters into his own hands! He takes off for 2nd! Throw from Morita is wide and he's in safely!
But Irei grounds out to 2nd and there's 2 down with Mekaru standing 90 feet away from home.
Shimabukuro looking for a base hit to help his cause...
He pokes one through the left side! Mekaru scores and Kounan has pulled within 1!! It's 5-4!!!!!
Ooshiro grounds out to Koshii to end the inning, but a 5-0 lead for Houtoku has almost all but evaporated!!
Bottom 6th
One down for Houtoku and Yashiro hits a ball to the left center field gap! That gets by the fielders and all the way to the wall! Yashiro rounding 2nd, heading for 3rd!! Relay throw from Ooshiro...
OUT!!!!!!!!!!!!
Yashiro perhaps pressing a bit tries to stretch the double and is thrown out!
Tani flies out to Irei in left and the inning is over!
Top 7th
Tamura warming up again, no choice now for Nagata-kantoku as Kounan has almost equalized. My guess is that he tried to hold him out as long as possible, being a 1st year and throwing 7+ innings yesterday.
Top of the order and Tairiku. He singles back up the middle! Ketashiro bunts the douten run to 2nd.
Ganeko with a drive to right center! Yashiro running over, but the ball gets past him! That'll go all the way to the wall! Tairiku scores, 動転！！！
Kounan has come all the way back to tie the game!! And the gyakuten run in Ganeko stands just 90 feet away!!
Nagata-kantoku has no choice, he sends in Tamura Ichirou to take the hill with no room for error... Did he wait too long???
...and in steps Maehira... 3-20 for the tournament and in another key spot...
Grounder up the middle! That's through the infield! Ganeko scores!! 逆転！！！！！
Kounan has come back all the way from down 5-0 to take the lead here in the 7th!!!
It's not over yet! Mekaru lays down a bunt and sprints for 1st! Nakashima with the throw, but it's late! Runners on 1st and 2nd, and still only one down!
Yamakawa flies out to right for the 2nd out, but Maehira advances to 3rd.
But Tamura finally closes the door as Irei pops one up to Koshii on the 1st base line to end the inning.
However, Kounan has come back from the dead to take the lead with just 2 innings left to go!
Bottom 7th
How will Houtoku respond now that they're down 1?
They're swinging early perhaps pressing... Nakashima grounds to 2nd, and Koshii quickly flies to left.
Morita first pitch swinging grounds one through to left. But Urasaki hits a grounder to 2nd. Tairiku goes to 2nd and that ends the inning!
Top 8th
Tamura doing a good job in relief retiring the 8-9-1 batters with little issue, getting his team back in the dugout to pick up the sticks again...
Bottom 8th
Shimobukuro giving it all he's got!
Karaburi sanshin!!!
Kinoshita goes down swinging on a high fastball!
Tamura up now..
Sanshin!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Tamura looks at a fastball on the outside corner for the 2nd K.
Karaburi sanshin!!!
Haseba strikes out on another high fastball and Shimabukuro has struck out the side here in the 8th!!!!!
Top 9th
One down for Kounan and Ganeko singles to right! That's brings up Maehira, what will he do?
He bunts the runner along! They're going for the one-timer!
Karaburi sanshin!!!
Mekaru goes down after an 8 pitch AB! 3 outs!!! Tamura's done all he can do now....
Bottom 9th
...it's up to the offense to deliver....
Yashiro with a grounder to the right side....
Tairiku dives and his glove just gets the ball! Gets up, throws to 1st... One down!!! A fine play by by Tairiku here in the 9th!!!!!
Tani singles through the right side! Douten runner on for Houtoku Gakuen!
Nakashima up for Houtoku, he had the bases clearing triple in the 2nd, but has been silent since.
Karaburi sanshin!!!!! Nakashima swings at a high fastball for out number 2! Tani on the hits and run! Yamakawa throws to 2nd...
AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Yamakawa throws it away!!!!! The ball goes into the outfield and Tani heads to 3rd!!!!!!!!!!!
Last chance in cleanup batter Koshii... Haseba goes over to talk to him before he heads to the plate...
First pitch outside border for a strike...
...then a fastball down and away, ball 1!
Fastball swung on and missed, 1-2!!!
Fastball high... 2-2!
KARABURI SANSHIN!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Koshii foul tips the fastball into Yamakawa's glove and he hangs on! Kounan wins!! Kounan wins!!!
Kounan comes from down 0-5 to come back and win against the hometown team of Houtoku Gakuen!
Kounan runs onto the field to celebrate, while Houtoku Gakuen is crushed... After the playing of Kounan's song, you can see the pain in the Houtoku players as they are just crushed after losing 6-5... and who can blame them? They had the favorite to win it all on the ropes, and it slipped away from them. It's is a bitter and painful defeat, and many are crying and some cannot get themselves to walk back to the dugout. Their performance on the field was well deserving of their run this year, but it will end here in the best 4. Tip your hat to the hometown 18, they still had a run to remember.
Kounan has a big issue going into tomorrow's game, and that is ace Shimabukuro. His control issues are ever real now, and he'll only have 24 hours to recover. Will he be okay for the final??
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