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Eagles vs Hawks Climax Series Game 2 Preview

Photo © www.rakuteneagles.jp

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With fifteen runs scored to kick off the 2009 NPB postseason, one has got to wonder if this afternoon's game will be a slightly tighter affair.  Rakuten exploded out of the gate with four home runs to chase Toshiya Sugiuchi.  Seven Eagles batters recorded at least one run batted in, and pitcher Hisashi Iwakuma went the distance, giving up only two earned runs.

Pitching Matchup

Today's starting pitchers are Masahiro "Ma-kun" Tanaka and D.J. Houlton.  Young Tanaka had a breakout season in 2009, leading his team in wins, innings pitched, strikeouts, complete games, shutouts, and watches won from the manager but not received.  Houlton has flourished since becoming a full-time starter, and was only behind Sugiuchi in most statistical categories.  One thing Houlton will need to be careful of, especially in light of last night's display, is giving up the long ball.  He dished up 22 homers this season, second most in the Pacific League.

© Yahoo! Japan #18 Masahiro Tanaka Throws: Right Age: 21 NPB Seasons: 3 ERA W L S Season 2.33 15 6 1 vs Softbank 1.00 2 0 1 Last 3 Starts W/L IP ER R 10/5 vs. Orix W 8 3 3 9/25 vs. Seibu L 6 5 5 9/18 vs. Lotte W 7 4 4

© Yahoo! Japan #54 D.J. Houlton Throws: Right Age: 30 NPB Seasons: 2 ERA W L S Season 2.89 11 8 0 vs Rakuten 2.60 2 2 0 Last 3 Starts W/L IP ER R 10/1 vs. Rakuten L 6.2 5 5 9/25 v NipponHam 7 0 0 9/19 vs. Seibu W 8 1 1

Who's Hot

Fernando Seguignol has brought his hot play down the stretch into the postseason, supplying much needed power and the ability to hit from both sides of the plate.  With this second half resurgence it's going to be difficult for Rakuten not to sign him to one more year.

Toshiya Nakashima filled in admirably for the suspended Todd Linden last night with a pair of hits, including a blast off the left field foul pole, and provided some good defensive plays as well.

Who's Cold

It's pretty hard to criticize when every batter in the starting lineup gets a hit.  As a group the Eagles ran the basepaths intelligently and did the little things (sacrifice bunts and fly balls) very well.  The only concern might be that they used up all of their offense last night.

First pitch is at 1pm local time, 9pm PST.  Unfortunately we couldn't get tickets to Game 2, so the missus and I will be at the local sports bar to eat ribs, drink Guinness, and cheer on the team.  We're definitely going to join the fan club next season.  It's very reasonable and you get priority when buying tickets.

GO EAGLES!!!

Related posts:

1. Eagles vs Hawks Climax Series Game 1 Preview
2. Eagles vs Hawks Climax Series Preview
3. Climax Series Stage 2 Preview, Part 1
4. Climax Series Stage 2 Preview, Part 2
5. Eagles vs Hawks Game 24 Preview

About Andrew

Andrew has lived in Japan since 2006, spending time exploring the Tohoku region. He frequently attends Rakuten Eagles games in Sendai. You'll find him sitting along the 3rd base line drinking Guinness wearing a #46 Teppei jersey, next to a Japanese girl in a #5 Seguignol jersey.          You can follow him on Twitter if that makes you happy.