What’s this I see? Not one, but TWO victories versus the Fighters? Indeed, what you have heard is true, as this week the first place Nippon Ham Fighters swaggered in to town but took two out of three on the chin from our plucky Marines. It is – quite obviously, as anyone who follows Lotte …
Nishimura-Kantoku
The news that everyone expected to hear was made official today – Lotte coach Norifumi Nishimura will be the new Kantoku for Lotte in 2010. I don’t think I am over-exaggerating to say that all of Lotte fandom is very sad indeed to see our beloved Valentine-Kantoku leave at the end of the year (I’ve …
Daiei Delight
Yet again I am behind in my blogging. Who knew that going to games, coming home late at night, and working all day would leave you precious little time to blog these games? For the last week in August Daiei rumbled in to town for a series with our beloved Marines. The Hawks were on …
Live Blog: Lotte vs Seibu, 23 August
As I mentioned in yesterday’s live blog I intended to go to Tokorozawa for today’s game. Clearly I am not there (for reasons too complicated to explain) so I’m kicking out another live blog. On the hill today is the always-interesting Karakawa. As I’ve mentioned repeatedly this season he has to be the hardest-luck pitcher …
Live Blog: Lotte vs Seibu, 22 August
This blog should be renamed “We Love Marines, but We’ve Spent Almost no Time at Home Lately and Haven’t Had a Chance to Blog in Ages.” Catchy, no? In honor of a baseball watchin’ weekend and to make up for my busy work week-induced silence, it’s live blog time! Today is Lotte on the road …
Good News and Bad News
I lied; there is no good news. How can there be good news when the pen blows a game to the hated Lions? The pen didn’t blow a lead, but they did blow a tie – twice – and the second time was unrecoverable as Seibu beats Lotte the second night in a row, 5-3. …
A Good Start Wasted
If I told you that Kobayashi Hiroyuki – the starter who was great prior to last year but only went 5-12 with an ERA above 5 in 2008 and is 2-9 with a 4.67 ERA in 2009 and has lost 5 of his last 6 starts – wait, that’s too long of an aside. If …
Live Blog: Lotte vs Orix, 9 August
I had made plans to go to Lotte Urawa today for the ni-gun game but changed my mind this morning. Instead, I’ll be blogging the Lotte-Orix tilt as it happens. Orix took the first game of the series on Friday 5-1, and Lotte evened the series with a big 9th inning on Saturday to win …
A Ham-Free Weekend, Part 2
The Ham-Free Weekend rolled on in utterly brilliant and heart-stopping fashion as both Saturday and Sunday’s games went all the way to the last frames as the visiting Golden Eagles of Rakuten battled our beloved Chiba Lotte Marines. In both games Lotte overcame adversity and missed opportunities only to make the game-winning play. On Saturday …
A Ham-Free Weekend, Part 1
On an unseasonably cool summer night the relief from the recent Lotte troubles showed up at Makuhari (the moon really was that beautiful tonight – that’s an actual picture from the game). Over the last three weeks Lotte has dropped 14 or 16, including 9 in a row to Nippon Ham, but tonight good ol’ …