Do NOT be fooled by the relatively close final score – Our Marines get beat down solidly at Seibu Dome this afternoon. Not even having this season’s ace Nishino on the hill could stop the bleeding today. Nishino got shelled. The bullpen – not good. The offense – non existent. This all added up to a 7-3 loss to the Lions.
Tonight at the Seibu Dome, Lotte bats launched a 7-hit barrage against Seibu starter Yusei Kikuchi – 2 doubles, 5 singles, and throwing in 5 walks for good measure. Seth Greisinger took the mound for Our Marines, looking at times super sharp, holding Seibu to hits in only two innings and going 17 batters in a row without giving up a hit at one point. I don’t even have to tell you how this one ended up, do I? Seibu 7, Lotte 2. Egads.
Our Marines traveled to Sendai for a three game set with the second place Rakuten Golden Eagles, bringing with them a two game lead over Rakuten in the Pacific League. Two blowout losses (by a combined score of 15-4) and a rain-out later, and we are now no longer in sole possession of first place. Two poor outings by Lotte starting pitching are in part what allowed the Eagles to stake their claim for a share of the top spot in the PL. At nearly the half way point of the season, the two teams now find themselves tied with 40-30 records – Lotte has played one additional game resulting in a tie (40-30-1).
Forget all that stuff that happened on Friday – we are all about good news at We Love Marines, and we want to celebrate the great weekend Our Marines put together! On Saturday, Lotte got a sayonara single from Saburo in the bottom of the 9th to walk away with a 3-2 victory. And on Sunday, Lotte bats beat the heck out of Softbank arms to the tune of 11 runs on 17 hits, cruising to a 11-3 win. This makes Our Marines the first Pacific League team to 40 wins!
