2009 Japan Series - AbsoluteAstronomy.com

Summary

Game 1

Saturday, October 31, 2009 at Sapporo Dome

Sapporo Dome

The is a stadium located in Toyohira-ku, Sapporo, Japan, and is primarily used for baseball and football. It is the home field of the baseball team Hokkaido Nippon Ham Fighters and the football club Consadole Sapporo.-History:...

in Sapporo, Hokkaidō

Hokkaido

, formerly known as Ezo, Yezo, Yeso, or Yesso, is Japan's second largest island; it is also the largest and northernmost of Japan's 47 prefectural-level subdivisions. The Tsugaru Strait separates Hokkaido from Honshu, although the two islands are connected by the underwater railway Seikan Tunnel...

After a scoreless first inning, Yoshitomo Tani hit a home run off of Fighters' starter Masaru Takeda to put the Giants up 1–0 in the top of the second inning. During the bottom half of the inning, however, Terrmel Sledge tied the game after hitting a solo home run off of Giants' starter Dicky Gonzalez. Hayato Sakamoto

Hayato Sakamoto

is a Japanese shortstop with the Yomiuri Giants.In , Sakamoto became the first player in Giants franchise history to start a season opener while under the age of 20 since Hideki Matsui...

broke the tie in the fifth inning when he hit a double off the left field wall, scoring Tani and Shinnosuke Abe

Shinnosuke Abe

is a professional baseball player with the Yomiuri Giants in Japan's Nippon Professional Baseball. He has played for the Japanese national team since 1999 as a catcher. In the 2009 Japan Series, he was named the Most Valuable Player.-Career statistics:...

, who singled to open the inning.

Gonzalez was relived by Tetsuya Yamaguchi

Tetsuya Yamaguchi

is a Japanese Nippon Professional Baseball player with the Yomiuri Giants in Japan's Central League. He was playing in the Missoula Osprey before he was drafted by Giants in 2005....

in the sixth inning after he allowed Fighters' hitters to reach first and second with one out. The Giants' lead was then cut to one after Yamaguchi gave up an RBI single to Tomohiro Nioka

Tomohiro Nioka

Tomohiro Nioka is a Japanese professional baseball player for the Hokkaido Nippon Ham Fighters. Nioka bats and throws right-handed.-Early career:...

before retiring the next two batters. The Giants responded when Yoshinori Tateyama

Yoshinori Tateyama

is a Japanese Major League Baseball pitcher for the Texas Rangers.As a sidearm pitcher Tateyama combines a fastball that averages 87 mph with a curveball, and he also pitches a screwball against lefties. While his strikeout totals were average, he got hitters out with his control .On November...

relieved Takeda to start the seventh inning. Tateyama gave up a single to Tani before being replaced by Masanori Hayashi who immediately gave up a single to Abe. With runners at first and third, Noriyoshi Omichi was brought in as a pinch hitter, and Fighters' manager Masataka Nashida

Masataka Nashida

Masataka Nashida is the current manager of the Hokkaido Nippon Ham Fighters baseball team in Japan's Nippon Professional Baseball. Before his career as a manager, he played for the Kintetsu Buffaloes from to .-External links:...

responded by bringing in Shintaro Ejiri. After this pitching change, Giants' manager Tatsunori Hara

Tatsunori Hara

is the current manager for the Yomiuri Giants baseball team in Nippon Professional Baseball. He also played for the Yomiuri Giants during his professional baseball career from to . Hara led the Japan national baseball team to victory in the final of the 2009 World Baseball Classic.- External links :...

switched pinch hitters and sent Lee Seung-Yeop to the plate instead of Omichi. Ejiri gave up an RBI single to Lee then retired the next two batters, finishing out the top half of the inning with the Giants leading 4–2. Ejiri continued to pitch through a scoreless eight inning and was followed up by Naoki Miyanishi

Naoki Miyanishi

is a Nippon Professional Baseball pitcher for the Hokkaido Nippon Ham Fighters in Japan's Pacific League.-External links:...

, who kept the Giants hitless in the ninth.

After Yamaguchi pitched through a scoreless seventh inning, Daisuke Ochi

Daisuke Ochi

is a Japanese Nippon Professional Baseball player with the Yomiuri Giants in Japan's Central League. As a rookie in 2008, Ochi was a key member of a young Giants bullpen that came within three outs of a Japan Series title. Ochi was the losing pitcher in Game 7 of that series against the Saitama...

put together a hitless eighth. In the ninth inning, the Fighters put the leadoff man on first against Giants' closer Marc Kroon. With two outs, Shinji Takahashi cut the Giants' lead to one run when he doubled off the wall in center. Kroon then put the winning on first after he walked Sledge but earned a save after striking out the next batter, resulting in Gonzalez's first career postseason win.

Game 2

Sunday, November 1, 2009 at Sapporo Dome in Sapporo, Hokkaidō

Despite experiencing back soreness and shoulder fatigue, Yu Darvish started Game 2 for the Fighters. Darvish had not pitched since September 20, 43 days before his surprising Game 2 start. A week before the series, trainer Seiichiro Nakagaki stated that it would be "virtually impossible for him to pitch in the series". Pitching coach Masato Yoshii

Masato Yoshii

is a retired Japanese baseball player who is currently a pitching coach for the Hokkaido Nippon Ham Fighters in the Japanese Pacific League. He pitched in the Major Leagues from to .-Biography:...

echoed this belief when he stated that he would require a "miraculous recovery" to pitch in time for the series. Darvish was seen practicing before Saturday's series opener, however, prompting some speculation that he would make an appearance in the series. During the game, spectators noticed that Darvish had altered his pitching form—he shortened his stride to prevent aggravating his lower back injury. After the series, Darvish assessed his health and believed that he was "about 50 percent".

The Giants' started Tetsuya Utsumi, who had not pitched since a regular season game on October 12. He pitched into the third inning, where, with two outs, he gave up a solo home run to Atsunori Inaba. Shinji Takahashi then doubled and quickly scored on an RBI single by the next batter, Terrmel Sledge

Terrmel Sledge

Terrmel Sledge is a former outfielder in Major League Baseball, who currently plays for the Yokohama BayStars of Nippon Professional Baseball in Japan. Sledge's career began in with the Montreal Expos. He moved with the team to Washington, D.C...

. The Fighters continued to produce offense as Eiichi Koyano

Eiichi Koyano

is a Japanese professional baseball player for the Hokkaido Nippon Ham Fighters in Japan's Nippon Professional Baseball League. He is a native of Edogawa, Tokyo, Japan.- External links :*...

reached base on an infield single. Sledge and Koyano both scored on Yoshio Itoi

Yoshio Itoi

is a Japanese professional baseball player for the Hokkaido Nippon Ham Fighters. Itoi bats left-hitter throws right-handed.- External links :...

's right field double. Utsumi was then relived by Shun Tono, who ended the Fighters' four-run third inning. The Giants cut the Fighters' lead in half by scoring two runs in the top of the fourth inning. With two outs, Alex Ramírez

Alex Ramírez

Alexander Ramón Ramírez is a former Major League Baseball outfielder who currently plays for the Yomiuri Giants of Nippon Professional Baseball. He played in Major League Baseball for the Cleveland Indians and Pittsburgh Pirates...

singled before Yoshiyuki Kamei hit a home run off the left field foul pole.

Darvish continued to pitch into the sixth inning after getting out of a fifth inning bases-loaded situation by striking out former teammate Michihiro Ogasawara

Michihiro Ogasawara

Michihiro Ogasawara is a Japanese professional baseball player. He currently plays first base for the Yomiuri Giants in Japan's Central League . He played with the Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters from to .-Career:Ogasawara is one of the most consistent hitters in Japanese baseball...

. Relieving Darvish at the start of the seventh inning, Naoki Miyanishi

Naoki Miyanishi

is a Nippon Professional Baseball pitcher for the Hokkaido Nippon Ham Fighters in Japan's Pacific League.-External links:...

pitched a scoreless inning, while Takayuki Kanamori followed it up with a scoreless inning of his own. Closer Hisashi Takeda then earned a save after completing a scoreless ninth to secure the win for the Fighters 4–2.

Game 3

Tuesday, November 3, 2009 at Tokyo Dome

Tokyo Dome

Tokyo Dome is a 55,000-seat baseball stadium located in Bunkyo Ward of Tokyo, Japan.The stadium opened for business on March 17, 1988. It was built on the site of the Velodrome which was next door to the site of the predecessor ballpark, Kōrakuen Stadium...

in Bunkyō, Tokyo

Bunkyo, Tokyo

is one of the 23 special wards of Tokyo, Japan. Situated in the middle of the ward area, Bunkyō is a residential and educational center. Beginning in the Meiji period, literati like Natsume Sōseki, as well as scholars and politicians have lived there...

Wearing a Giants' jacket, former U.S. President

President of the United States

The President of the United States of America is the head of state and head of government of the United States. The president leads the executive branch of the federal government and is the commander-in-chief of the United States Armed Forces....

and US Major League Baseball

Texas Rangers (baseball)

The Texas Rangers are a professional baseball team in the Dallas-Fort Worth Metroplex, based in Arlington, Texas. The Rangers are a member of the Western Division of Major League Baseball's American League, and are the reigning A.L. Western Division and A.L. Champions. Since , the Rangers have...

team owner George W. Bush

George W. Bush

George Walker Bush is an American politician who served as the 43rd President of the United States, from 2001 to 2009. Before that, he was the 46th Governor of Texas, having served from 1995 to 2000....

threw the ceremonial first pitch

Ceremonial first pitch

The ceremonial first ball is a longstanding ritual of American baseball in which a guest of honor throws a ball to mark the end of pregame festivities and the start of the game. Originally, the guest threw a ball from his/her place in the grandstand to the pitcher or catcher of the home team...

to Giants' catcher Shinnosuke Abe

Shinnosuke Abe

prior to Game 3. Bush watched the game from a private box with former Japanese Prime Minister

Prime Minister of Japan

The is the head of government of Japan. He is appointed by the Emperor of Japan after being designated by the Diet from among its members, and must enjoy the confidence of the House of Representatives to remain in office...

Junichiro Koizumi

is a Japanese politician who served as Prime Minister of Japan from 2001 to 2006. He retired from politics when his term in parliament ended.Widely seen as a maverick leader of the Liberal Democratic Party , he became known as an economic reformer, focusing on Japan's government debt and the...

, U.S. Ambassador

United States Ambassador to Japan

The United States Ambassador to Japan is the ambassador extraordinary and plenipotentiary from the United States to Japan. Since the opening of Japan by Commodore Matthew C. Perry, in 1854, the U.S. maintained diplomatic relations with Japan, except for the ten-year period following the attack on...

John Roos

John Victor Roos is the United States Ambassador to Japan. Before accepting the ambassadorship from President Barack Obama, Roos was the CEO of Silicon Valley-based law firm Wilson Sonsini Goodrich & Rosati....

and former Giants' player and manager Sadaharu Oh

Sadaharu Oh

Sadaharu Oh, or Wang Chenchih , is a retired Japanese-Taiwanese baseball player and manager. He batted and threw left-handed and primarily played first base. Oh, who was born in Sumida, Tokyo the son of a Taiwanese father and a Japanese mother, had originally signed with the powerhouse Yomiuri...

.

In the first inning, Atsunori Inaba hit a solo home run off Giants' starter Wirfin Obispo. Eiichi Koyano put the Fighters up 2–0 with a solo home run of his own in the second. The home runs continued during the Giants' half of the inning when both Lee Seung-Yeop and Shinnosuke Abe hit solo shots off Fighters' starter Keisaku Itokazu. A Michihiro Ogasawara-home run then gave the Giants a one-run lead in the bottom of the third. After a scoreless fourth inning, Kensuke Tanaka tied it up with the game's final home run in the fifth. Both teams' combined six home runs narrowly missed tying the Japan Series record of seven achieved by the Giants and Kintetsu Buffaloes

Kintetsu Buffaloes

The was a Nippon Professional Baseball team based in Osaka, Japan, which were in the Pacific League. The team was owned by Kinki Nippon Railway Co. and later sold to the Orix Group, the owner of the Orix BlueWave baseball team, in 2004...

during 1989's

1989 Japan Series

-Game 1:-Game 2:-Game 3:-Game 4:-Game 5:-Game 6:-Game 7:-External links:* --Official website...

Game 7.

With two outs in the bottom of the fifth inning, Itokazu walked Hayato Sakamoto

Hayato Sakamoto

is a Japanese shortstop with the Yomiuri Giants.In , Sakamoto became the first player in Giants franchise history to start a season opener while under the age of 20 since Hideki Matsui...

then gave up a single to Tetsuya Matsumoto

Tetsuya Matsumoto

is a Nippon Professional Baseball player for the Yomiuri Giants in Japan's Central League. He was named the 2009 Central League Rookie of the Year.-Career statistics:Statistics current as of July 22, 2011-External links:...

. Ogasawara brought in both runners when he doubled to left-center field, putting the Giants up 5-3. Masanori Hayashi replaced Itokazu at the start of the sixth to retire three straight Giants' batters. After reliving Obispo to start the seventh, Daisuke Ochi

Daisuke Ochi

pitched a scoreless half-inning. Brought in to pitch in the eighth inning, Tetsuya Yamaguchi

Tetsuya Yamaguchi

is a Japanese Nippon Professional Baseball player with the Yomiuri Giants in Japan's Central League. He was playing in the Missoula Osprey before he was drafted by Giants in 2005....

hit

Hit by pitch

In baseball, hit by pitch , or hit batsman , is a batter or his equipment being hit in some part of his body by a pitch from the pitcher.-Official rule:...

the first batter, Tanaka; two consecutive errors

Error (baseball)

In baseball statistics, an error is the act, in the judgment of the official scorer, of a fielder misplaying a ball in a manner that allows a batter or baserunner to reach one or more additional bases, when such an advance would have been prevented given ordinary effort by the fielder.The term ...

then allowed Tanaka to score, cutting the Giants' lead to one.

Fighters' pitcher Kazumasa Kikuchi, who had pitched a scoreless seventh inning, was relieved by Shintaro Ejiri in the eighth after putting two batters on base. Abe gave the Giants' two insurance runs when he drove home both of Ejiri's inherited runners with a two-out single. Kroon was brought in to start the ninth; despite allowing a base runner on the Giants' third error of the game, Kroon preserved the team's three-run lead. The win marked the Giants' 100th Series victory in franchise history.

Game 4

Wednesday, November 4, 2009 at Tokyo Dome in Bunkyō, Tokyo

Game 5

Thursday, November 5, 2009 at Tokyo Dome in Bunkyō, Tokyo

Game 6

Saturday, November 7, 2009 at Sapporo Dome in Sapporo, Hokkaidō
For Game 6, the Giants decided to skip starting pitcher Tetsuya Utsumi after he allowed four runs in two and two-thirds innings in game two; pitcher Shun Tono started the game in his place. However, after facing four batters, Tono was forced to leave the game in the first inning after a hit by Shinji Takahashi

Shinji Takahashi (baseball)

is a Nippon Professional Baseball catcher for the Yomiuri Giants in Japan's Central League.-External links:...

struck him on his right wrist. Inheriting runners on second and third with two outs, Utsumi entered the game and retired Terrmel Sledge

Terrmel Sledge

for the final out of the inning.

In the top of the second inning, Yoshiyuki Kamei

Yoshiyuki Kamei (baseball)

is a Japanese professional baseball player for the Yomiuri Giants in Japan's Nippon Professional Baseball.-Career statistics:Statistics current as of July 22, 2011-External links:...

reached base with a one-out double off of Fighters' starter Masaru Takeda and advanced to third base on a Yoshitomo Tani

Yoshitomo Tani

Yoshitomo Tani is a Japanese professional baseball player from Higashiōsaka, Osaka, Japan. He currently plays as an outfielder for the Yomiuri Giants....

-ground out. Kamei then scored on when Shinnosuke Abe

Shinnosuke Abe

doubled to deep center field, giving the Giants the lead. In the top of the sixth inning, Takeda gave up a two-out single to Tetsuya Matsumoto

Tetsuya Matsumoto

. Fighters' right fielder Atsunori Inaba

Atsunori Inaba

Atsunori Inaba is a Japanese professional baseball player for the Hokkaido Nippon Ham Fighters in Japan's Nippon Professional Baseball. He was the Most Valuable Player of the 2006 Japan Series....

then fell down while attempting to field a ball hit by Michihiro Ogasawara

Michihiro Ogasawara

, resulting in the game's only error

Error (baseball)

. This error allowed Matsumoto to score from first base. Utsumi continued to pitch into the bottom of the inning until he was relieved by Kiyoshi Toyoda

Kiyoshi Toyoda

Kiyoshi Toyoda is a Japanese professional baseball player. He is currently with the Hiroshima Toyo Carp in Japan's Nippon Professional Baseball.-External links:...

. Utsumi's scoreless four and two-thirds innings (eventually resulting in a win) was seen as a redemption after his short Game 2 outing and four previous Japan Series losses.

Takeda pitched a scoreless seventh inning, followed by Giants' reliever Tetsuya Yamaguchi

Tetsuya Yamaguchi

is a Japanese Nippon Professional Baseball player with the Yomiuri Giants in Japan's Central League. He was playing in the Missoula Osprey before he was drafted by Giants in 2005....

who did the same in the bottom of the inning. Takeda pitched into the eighth inning until he was relieved by Shintaro Ejiri, who closed out the top of the inning. In the bottom of the inning, Daisuke Ochi

Daisuke Ochi

surrendered a leadoff single followed by two strikeouts and a walk. Kroon was then brought in to face pinch hitter

Pinch hitter

In baseball, a pinch hitter is a substitute batter. Batters can be substituted at any time while the ball is dead ; the manager may use any player that has not yet entered the game as a substitute...

Tomochika Tsuboi

Tomochika Tsuboi is a Japanese baseball outfielder for the Orix Buffaloes. He played for Hanshin Tigers from 1998 to 2002, but he was traded for Toshihiro Noguchi after the 2002 season.-Career statistics :...

who grounded out to finish the eight inning. After Fighters' closer Masanori Hayashi held the Giants to two runs in the final inning, Kroon gave up a leadoff double to Tomohiro Nioka

Tomohiro Nioka

Tomohiro Nioka is a Japanese professional baseball player for the Hokkaido Nippon Ham Fighters. Nioka bats and throws right-handed.-Early career:...

and allowed the pinch runner to reach third later in the inning. He then struck out Inaba and Takahashi to achieve the four-out save and secure the series. Despite having runners on base every inning and leaving a total of 13 on base, the Giants completed a six-pitcher shutout.

External links

Nippon Professional Baseball--Official website (in English)

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