Comment by Garrett DeOrio

April 4, 2008 @ 6:26 pm

I take back two things I said: First, Yokohama Stadium is not nearly as nice as I remembered it being. I went there on Tuesday evening for the first time in years and found that it is, in fact, not very nice at all except that it’s small and intimate - important, but not enough to outshine the speakers aimed at fans’ heads, the lack of event halfway decent food near the bleachers, and the fact that it is basically a small concrete bowl that leaves one with a feeling of claustrophobia as much as intimacy. It get further strikes for having the bullpen under the stands, out of sight, and a secondary scoreboard that lists only the count and the score - nothing else. The line-up would be nice.

Second, the Giants suck. All-Stars at every position is most definitely not a good indicator of success, especially when so many of them are apparently unaware that they’re supposed to play defense. They’re like a bad caricature of themselves: fat, slow, aging, overpaid, and dramatically overhyped. (OK, not fat. I take that back.)

Even though i’ve just finished Michael Lewis’s Moneyball and found the ideas in it brilliant, I can’t help but think that Takada’s Swallows this season are making a strong case for speed and solid fielding as well as the all-important OBP. Turning close plays into hits, singles into doubles, and doubles into triples puts guys in better position to do the only thing that matters - score.

A little more power would be nice, though. In Tokyo’s only loss, 9-6 to Yokohama on Tuesday night, they left quite a few runners stranded - that could have made a big difference. That and not giving up three or four base hits in a row to shallow left field.

Comment by Christopher Pellegrini

April 4, 2008 @ 9:25 pm

Maybe we’re just spoiled at Jingu. This season we’re definitely heading out to Chiba to check that stadium out.

The game on Tuesday was miserable. It was windy, cold, and our pitching caved in (which felt a whole lot like last season). We were scoring at will for a while, but then there was one throwing error, and everything went downhill from there.

But Tokyo beat Chunichi tonight, which is really not what I expected them to do, and scored another six runs in the process. Muranaka, it should also be pointed out, only gave up three hits in seven innings of work.

6 wins, 1 loss. I have no idea what’s going on. Oh, and the Giants lost again.

Comment by Ken

April 6, 2008 @ 12:35 am

Thanks guys, lots of good stuff in here.

Garrett, I think you were conflating popularity with quality. I know, the Swallows are out to a great start, but I don’t see how they could compete in MLB - aside from maybe the NL Central and West.

Certainly, it will take a lot of time before a sort of “Little League World Series” happens. I like the idea of it being a “Champions League.”

You do realize the Red Sox were taking it easy when t hey came over, right? They just wait until the World Series and then sweep, sweep, sweep. Maybe we’ll be able to sweep the Cubs this year.

Comment by Garrett DeOrio

April 6, 2008 @ 10:01 pm

Unfortunately, the Swallows would not be the team to do NPB proud in the States, but I stand by my comment that the gap is shrinking between NPB and MLB in terms of quality. It’s not equal yet and, were there to be an “Asian League” alongside the American and National Leagues in MLB, it would not fare well. The point, though, is that such a prospect is no longer far-fetched. Bobby Valentine’s challenge was, I think, more than an empty, risible boast.

The Red Sox must have been taking it easy when they played Yomiuri. The Giants looked all right against the Sox, but are unable to catch pop flies, stop routine grounders, or get their high-end stars in the same game at the same time now, which is fine by me.

Comment by Garrett DeOrio

April 6, 2008 @ 10:11 pm

Speaking of the Giants, they kind of did the Swallows a favor by pounding Hanshin 9-1 today (Sunday), thus keeping the Swallows from falling much behind Hanshin as they lost to Chunichi (badly, 6-0) today.
It was a day of butt-whuppings in the Central League - in the third game, Hiroshima beat Yokohama 17-3.
In contrast, all three of the Pacific League games were decided by one run. (Chiba beat Fukuoka, Orix beat Hokkaido, and Saitama beat Tohoku.)

This is an example, I think, of what’s been going on so far this season - the Pacific League is much more evenly matched than the Central, which inflates the records of the best and worst Central League teams, making them look better or worse than they actually are, whereas the strength of the Pacific League is masked by the less-impressive win percentages among its better teams so far.

Comment by Luke

April 6, 2008 @ 10:26 pm

Have just checked the Central League standings for the first time, wow!
So good to see the Giants at the bottom and proof that team building isn’t just a matter of assembling the most expensive/best players in each position. If that were the case I would have lost interest in sport a long time ago.

Comment by Christopher Pellegrini

April 9, 2008 @ 2:58 pm

In nasty weather last night Yomiuri had to settle for a tie down in Yokohama. I suspect that their pitching will settle down soon, and that should signal the start of the Yomiuri resurgence.

That said, Takahashi, their opening day starter, has looked very, very hittable. Last year’s stats are beginning to look a bit like he had a fluke season.

Comment by Masato

April 20, 2008 @ 11:02 pm

The Giants has many great players, but the Giants can’t use their talent. So, the Giants has to change its system to win. For example, I think the Giants have to strengthen its farm team than get new players from other teams.

Current Affairs

Comment by Garrett DeOrio

April 21, 2008 @ 1:48 am

I completely agree, Masato. I’d like to see farm teams strengthened throughout NPB.

Because I’m a Swallows fan, though, I’m happy to see that the Giants’ all-star team is having trouble.

Comment by KOUTA

May 23, 2008 @ 11:33 pm

I’m a Rakuten Eagles fan.Actually,at first they were weak but they are strong recently.I wish that they top the pacific league this season.

Current Affairs

Comment by Garrett DeOrio

May 24, 2008 @ 12:05 am

The Eagles have been pretty impressive. I hope they do well, too, just not on Sunday and Monday (when I’ll be at Jingu, outfield section D, last row, on the aisle, likely sitting on the steps.) I also hope the Eagles play poorly on June 11th & 12th.

Comment by Christopher Pellegrini

May 24, 2008 @ 12:22 am

The Eagles are somewhat unlucky to be in fourth place right now.

They have scored the second most runs in the Pacific League thus far and have given up the second fewest. They also have the third best team earned run average, so the elements are there for them to make a run at the playoffs.

The fact that they’re in fourth place just shows you how solid the other teams in the Pacific League are this season.

Comment by Garrett DeOrio

June 6, 2008 @ 5:23 pm

For anyone who’s interested, Christopher Pellegrini, Dave Watkins (who will be taking my place on “NPB on TPR” shows), and I have started a new blog about NPB in general and the Tokyo Yakult Swallows in particular. While it’s news, so there isn’t much content up yet, there soon will be. For now, you get a picture Hitomi Aizawa in YS cap and Norichika Aoki bikini.

Comment by mary sayre

June 10, 2008 @ 1:11 am

Garrett- I had no idea you were interested in sports and I am just glad to hear your voice tho I don’t know anything about Japanese baseball. I am having enough trouble worrying about yhe Indians and their bad season so far. Including a lackluster Kobiashi.

Comment by We Love Marines

July 1, 2008 @ 10:36 pm

Great season preview–even if I got to it 3 months late.

Have you made it out to Chiba yet?

Deanna Marinerd and Westbaystars can vouch that they are the hosts with the mosts, so you should try to contact Larry Rocca.

Comment by Christopher Pellegrini

July 1, 2008 @ 11:09 pm

We Love Marines,
Yes, we did actually make it out there when the Swallows were in Makuhari. I must say, we were duly impressed!

We thoroughly enjoyed ourselves (even though we lost), and we’ll definitely make the trip again next season.

Incidentally, I’d like to thank the wizards out in Chiba for coaxing the ouendan into giving up their plastic bangers.

That feat, in and of itself, is worthy of a very large trophy.

Comment by Garrett DeOrio

July 2, 2008 @ 9:17 am

Indeed! Now if only someone could coax fans of non-Hanshin teams to stop aping Hanshin with the stupid balloon thing.

Comment by We Love Marines

July 2, 2008 @ 11:35 pm

I may be wrong, but my understanding is that Carp fans were the first with the balloons.

I might be wrong about this also, but I thought the balloons were subliminal imaging attempts at reversing the negative birth rate in Japan. No? Every balloon is sacred, as Monty Python might say …

Comment by Garrett DeOrio

July 3, 2008 @ 9:33 am

Really? That would be great. I hope I’m wrong and you’re right that Hiroshima started the balloons.

I have a soft spot for the Carp. Had I wound up moving to Hiroshima instead of Tokyo at a young age, I have no doubt that I would have become a Carp fan. Had I lived in Hyogo or Osaka, on the other hand, I’m not sure I’d even like baseball.

That said, I wish Hiroshima would keep that particular tradition to themselves. There’s not a whole lot I like about the Giants or the Tokyo Dome, but I respect their refusal to allow visiting fans to throw trash on their field during games.

Comment by Christopher Pellegrini

July 6, 2008 @ 10:54 am

It’s true. That was originally a Hiroshima tradition, and it has been copied by several other clubs (most notably Hanshin).

On the bright side, the phallic displays of synchronized littering did help increase the nation’s birth rate last year. The rate was 0.02 points higher than it was in 2006.

Comment by cal hobbs

July 12, 2008 @ 5:00 am

Garrett
Your Cleveland fans find Kobiashi lackluster. I had no idea they even like sausage.

Comment by Garrett DeOrio

July 12, 2008 @ 10:01 am

You’re going to have to explain that one, Cal.