Went to the Orioles game last night to see King Felix and Ichiro play the Orioles. It was a great game (I’ll get into that later), but we were super amused by the fact that Ichiro’s name was listed on the All-Star ballot for the Home Run Derby. Ichiro? The Great Singles Hitter (TM)? At one at bat I motivated him by screaming “Ganbare!” and “Kettobase!”. He promptly responded by hitting a home run. You’re welcome, Ichiro. ...
[caption id="" align=“aligncenter” width=“500” caption=“No witty captions today, sorry.”] [/caption] 9 April NPB Hiroshima Carp (0) at Yokohama Baystars (5). Not the outcome I would have expected, but Yokohama is deceptively strong at times (and Hiroshima is pretty weak this year). Orix Buffaloes (8) at Rakuten Eagles (3). Orix made some serious upgrades in the off-season, but I wonder if they can keep this pace up all season. MLB Toronto Blue Jays (7) at Baltimore Orioles (6). The Orioles blow their home opener and not many are surprised. Tough break for the (orange) birds. ...
[caption id="" align=“aligncenter” width=“450” caption=“They may not be able to get the president to toss the first pitch out in Japan, but I don’t think they mind.”][/caption] 8 April 2010 NPB Hiroshima Carp (4) at Yakult Swallows (0). Another fine start for Kenta Maeda who is proving to be their best pitcher. Also their first shut out of an opposing team. The Carp rise to 3-8-0 and actually have some hope of getting out of last for once if they can take their upcoming series against the Baystars. ...
[caption id="" align=“aligncenter” width=“500” caption=“160 games in for some teams.”] [/caption] Words cannot describe how great it is to FINALLY have the 2010 season underway for both leagues! Since we had an MLB-only post last week, we’ll start with the NPB. [caption id="" align=“aligncenter” width=“300” caption=“Sorry Min”] [/caption] What an unfortunate week it’s been for me to root for the Carp and the Eagles. Both teams put together three wins over the last week, which is pretty shameful. ...
It’s time for Wednesday Morning Quarterback, your weekly sports round-up. It’s that time of year again, the MLB All-Star game is upon us! Last night was the Home Run Derby and, despite being in his team’s stadium, Albert Pujols did not quite manage to make it to the third round. Instead the final competition was between Prince Fielder, of the Milwaukee Brewers, and Nelson Cruz, of the Texas Rangers. In the end, Fielder took it and even bashed in a homer over 500 feet. ...
It’s time for Wednesday Morning Quarterback, your weekly sports round-up. It doesn’t take a sports guru to know that a seven game losing streak is a BAD THING. Back the Marlins up to 19 April and you see a team five games ahead in the AL East with a record of 11-1. Just ten days later the team is sitting half a game up on the Phillies with a 12-8 record. Yeah, it’s been that kind of week for me, haha. The Fish were FINALLY able to bang together a win last night against the dreaded Mets, but will this momentum start to carry the team forward? They face Johan Santana tonight on the mound, a guy with a sub 1.0 ERA and who they only managed to beat last time thanks to a Daniel Murphy error in left creating two unearned runs. Luckily for the Fish, they’ve got Josh Johnson to trot out onto the mound, but he’s not gonna be able to do much unless he gets some run support. ...