MLB vs NPB Exhibition Thread

[Gilligan]

Has anyone seen any MLB activity (gatherings of fans, special promotions of some kind) around Tokyo? I was out at the Tokyo Dome yesterday but there wasn't much going on. The JRA betting booths seemed to be attracting more interest.

Was there even that much hype about the teams coming over here before they came? I had completely forgotten they were coming until about a week ago when a buddy of mine in Boston asked me about what the reaction here was.

[GuyJean]

.. A's-Tigers from 3:00 to 4:25..

Figures. It's not even live.

The A's lead the Tigers 5 to 1 in the middle of the 3rd.. And it's 1:02pm..

But there is a wide array of talentos slurping umai food on network TV at the moment!..

GJ

[Gilligan]

The A's lead the Tigers 5 to 1 in the middle of the 3rd.. And it's 1:02pm..

Thanks for the heads up GJ. I just pulled it up on Gameday.

[GuyJean]

Hey Captain, have you tried asking about activities at JapaneseBaseball.com? It seems like this thread has had recent activity..

http://www.japanesebaseball.com/forum/forum.jsp?forum=2

Did NPB season start this weekend? There's actually a few games being broadcast now..

Didn't Bobby V say the timing for the MLB was terrible because of the start of regular season?

GJ

[Captain Japan]

Did NPB season start this weekend? There's actually a few games being broadcast now..

Yes. Check here.

Didn't Bobby V say the timing for the MLB was terrible because of the start of regular season?

It's under the kanji thread, which has kind of become the Tokyo hooker thread.

[IkemenTommy]

More interesting if the games were

Gomiuri Giants vs. San Francisco Giants

Hanshin Tigers vs. Detroit Tigers


Or would that be too confusing to watch?

[Gilligan]

Wow, Foulke made quick work of the Tigers in the bottom of the 6th. 9 pitches for a strike-out and a pair of fly outs. Not bad for a guy who I thought had retired. Although I see he's given up 7 runs in 4 innings so far this spring. Maybe he'll make a return trip if the A's release him or send him down when they break camp.

[Gilligan]

And here's the kind of guy, Jeff Williams, pitching now for the Tigers, who always makes me wonder about Japanese baseball. He's pitched for Hanshin for the last three years and has put up better numbers (ERA, K / 9, WHIP, etc.) than he put in any of the 4-5 years he pitched in AAA or the majors.

I'm not trying to be critical of him or NPB, but I can never seem to get a good feel for comparing NPB or its players to MLB.

[GuyJean]

Jeff didn't do so hot; 3 hits, 5 runs.. Ouch..

Maybe he's charisma man in Japan..

GJ

[Gilligan]

I was just flipping around on the TV for the game, and when I couldn't find it, I re-checked the Japan Times; it turns out that they didn't even show either Tigers game in Nagoya--only showed the A's-Giants game last night and will show the Sox-Giants game tonight.

[Greji]

[quote="Gilligan"]I was just flipping around on the TV for the game, and when I couldn't find it, I re-checked the Japan Times]

Tigers made mincemeat out of the As. Just couldn't score more than two runs.
hehehe....

[Greji]

[quote="Gilligan"]I was just flipping around on the TV for the game, and when I couldn't find it, I re-checked the Japan Times]

Yeah, and Yomiuri TV was happy as usual to shut it off at 21:00 sharp. Thank God for MLB.com. They must have found out GJ was watching!

[GuyJean]

The Giants look a little confused with Wakefield.. Does Japan 'do' knuckle balls?

Oh, he just plunked the second batter..

GJ

[kusai Jijii]

Isnt Jeff from Canberra, Oz? You know one thing Oz aint famous for, and thats Yakyu!:p

[GuyJean]

Top of the 6th, 1 out, bases loaded. JD Drew just hit a grand slam..

Oh! About 1 minute left in the broadcast! Joy!

GJ

[Greji]

The Giants look a little confused with Wakefield.. Does Japan 'do' knuckle balls?

Oh, he just plunked the second batter..

GJ

J.D. Drew just hit a grand slam to put the sox up 4-2. Thank heaven he hit it before 9:00. Now they cut the broadcast off....

[hodensaft]

I was actually at this game. My sister flew out from California (she went to school within spitting distance of Fenway Park) to see the Red Sox. She repeatedly stood up and screamed, garnering stares from about five rows forward and back.

The row of guys behind us who were screaming "Yankees suck" were far more interesting though, IMO.

[Gilligan]

The row of guys behind us who were screaming "Yankees suck" were far more interesting though, IMO.

Sound like a bunch of bandwagon Red Sox fans.

Any TRUE Boston fan would have known enough to have thrown in the obligatory, "...and A-Rod swalllows."

I hope you enjoyed the game.

[Bucky]

As a Mariners fan I hate to crash the party but both the Red Sox and the Yankees suck.

[Gilligan]

As a Mariners fan....

Not to spoil the mood or anything, but thanks for Adam Jones and friends. How's Erik Bedard working out for you so far this spring? (Nothing personal, Bucky, but it's sucked so much being an O's fan over the past 10 years that I'll do anything to crush other fans' spirits.)

[Greji]

Isnt Jeff from Canberra, Oz? You know one thing Oz aint famous for, and thats Yakyu!:p

Spoken like a true cricket fan. Anything to do with Rounders, or Yakyu (Yagu in Korean, for Take's benefit), is tabu!:p

Might you recall, the Oz taking a metal in the last Olympics, counting among their victims, the Mighty Nippon. Since the Red Sox are in town, I will just mention them. Their director of scounting for the Asian Region (you know the area where Matsuzaka and Okajima come from[along with YBF] is an Ozzie!

There have been and are Ozzies playing in the Dai League pros right now. Your neighboring home town team in NPB, the Hanshin Tiggers (formerly Tigers until the played Oakland) had a stand-out Ozzie catcher a couple years back. They would have signed him again, except he pissed them off when he went back to Oz to play for the National team in the Olympics.

Yet, when you meet an Ozzie in the pub and mention baseball, your receive the blank look and a plea to please talk about something refined like "Aussie Rules!" or some off color remark followed by "your shout mate!"

Can't Y'all admit you got some good baseball and players? Could this just be because it was invented by a couple of Poms?

[Greji]

[quote="Gilligan"]Not to spoil the mood or anything, but thanks for Adam Jones and friends. How's Erik Bedard working out for you so far this spring? ]

I just personally went to the shrine today to pray that Seattle, NY and the O's shall consider to suck for another successive season.

The Dodgers rule (coming from the midwest, that has been very hard for me to learn how to say, but now I like the ring to it!):p .

[kurohinge1]

. . . the Hanshin Tiggers (formerly Tigers until the played Oakland) had a stand-out Ozzie catcher a couple years back. They would have signed him again, except he pissed them off when he went back to Oz to play for the National team in the Olympics . . .

A catcher too, eh? How come the south-paw closer Jeff Williamsgot signed again? He also went back to play in the national team. Just curious.

And, yes, Kusai Jijii, Canberra is in Oz.

I was after a Williams shirt last time I was over there but they were only selling about 4 players' shirts out of the whole team, and their closer wasn't one of them.

[Greji]

And, yes, Kusai Jijii, Canberra is in Oz.

Canberra's a Perth suburb right?

[gkanai]

I was at the Red Sox vs. Hanshin game, 8th row behind the Sox dugout. Awesome seats! Really good game too.

[Greji]

If you look at the sports newspapers today, you see some great shots and articles on Okajima's one inning relief stint. Candid's of Matsuzaka in the dugout and walking around scratching his crouth. Shots of each of the five batters swinging at or looking at the third strike from Utsomi (actually that was in fact the outstanding performance of the game IMNSHO).

But, you really have to search if you want to find the final score!

On J-radio last night (was forced on to that when YTV hit their usual 21:00 curfew) all they could talk about was the difference in the baseball. How the US ball that the Sox were using is deader than the "live" Japanese ball that the Gi-ants were using. The insinuation was that the different ball was the only reason that the J-stars were not hitting home runs and (even) the US team's scrubs were going deep.

They pointed out it was dead, which they claimed is also the reason Matsuzaka couldn't throw his good folk ball, which caused him to give up so many down-towners last year. (No, Capt'n, they didn't mention his famed Gyro ball).

I wonder if J-announcers know of any pitch other than a fork ball. It's almost it they are disappointed when a pitcher trys to throw a suchureto (fast ball).

But at any rate, the radio was a hoot with the million and one excuses being proffered as to why the Giants and Tigers had received such monumental asskickings. Surprisingly, they didn't attribute to much to the FG pitching for the Giants (Burnside) who loaded the bases and then gave up the dinger to J.D. Drew. I figured as an FG, he would be a natural to be fronted as the automatic goat (:drool5: ) to explain why the mighty Nippon Nine lost.

[Blah Pete]

I am surprised they weren't harder on Burnside either since there wasn't much life in the game after the grand slam he gave up.
The excuses the announcers were coming up with was just more JDS.

[Captain Japan]

If you look at the sports newspapers today, you see some great shots and articles on Okajima's one inning relief stint. Candid's of Matsuzaka in the dugout and walking around scratching his crouth. Shots of each of the five batters swinging at or looking at the third strike from Utsomi (actually that was in fact the outstanding performance of the game IMNSHO).

Next to each player's photo is the guy's career HR total! Osaka-based Daily Sports has multiple shots of Lou Ford (of Hanshin) making a catch up against the wall.

They pointed out it was dead, which they claimed is also the reason Matsuzaka couldn't throw his good folk ball, which caused him to give up so many down-towners last year. (No, Capt'n, they didn't mention his famed Gyro ball).

Don't worry - the gyro will be unleashed tomorrow night.

[Gilligan]

Can't Y'all admit you got some good baseball and players? Could this just be because it was invented by a couple of Poms?

Just for S & Gs here's a listof Australians who have played in / are playing in the majors -- in my opinion, the most successful was probably Graeme Lloyd (definitely wasn't Damian Moss).

[kusai Jijii]

And, yes, Kusai Jijii, Canberra is in Oz.

No shit. I'm Australian.