Koshien: Summer 2006 Round 4 - Quarter Finals

Toyodai had an infield hit, sacrifice bunt, then a two run home run starts off the game against the defending champions Komadai, putting Toyo up 2-0 real quick.

Komadai's starter allowed the leadoff runner on pretty much each of the first 4 innings. After a lead-off walk, sacrifice bunt, Toyodai came up with an RBI double to take a 3-0 lead.

A ground out later (runner moving to third), it looked like Komadai was out of the inning with a ground ball to second. But the ball was thrown high and wide of the first baseman, third base runner comes home making it 4-0. Batter heads to second on the wild throw. What happened to the defense?

Komadai's pitcher finally retired Toyodai in order for the first time in the 6th inning. Nonetheless, he's looking pretty beat in the heat.

Komadai finally broke out with a double over the first base bag that the first baseman just couldn't get a hold of. One run came across as runners were at first and second with one out. The other runner moved to third. The next batter followed with a two-run double into the left-center gap, narrowing the score to 4-3. It took six innings, but Komadai is finally starting to come through with consecutive hits.

Komadai tied the game up as the following batter bounced a bad hop grounder off the third baseman's chest, scoring the runner from second. This prompted the first pitching change of the game, Inui coming in for Toyo with the game tied up 4-4.

Inui-kun got out of the jam in the 6th inning, but allowed the first batter in the bottom of the 7th on on four straight balls. He was sacrificed to second, then moved to third on a high bound ground out to short. The next batter grounded the ball to the right side. The first baseman fielded the ball, tossed to Inui-kun covering, but the batter dove for the first base bag just ahead of the pitcher. Komazawa takes a 5-4 lead!

Komadai got into a big pinch again in the top of the 8th. But with the bases loaded and two down, 1 strike and 3 balls the count on the batter, managed to get a ground ball to the second baseman who took the ball to the second base bag himself. The middle infielders looked like they'd just won the game with that play. It sure did save it.

Komadai bids to extend their lead in the bottom of the 8th with a two-out triple by the pitcher. But the first baseman fields a ground ball to his right and dives into first ahead of the diving batter. There's more diving going on around first base in this tournament than in a typical swim meet.

With one out, Toyodai's #3 batter hit the ball deep to right field. The winds are playing with the ball, and knocked this one down just at the base of the fence. Toyodai's last chance is a runner at second with one out.

Number four batter then grounds out to first base unassisted, while the tying run moves to third base.

The number five batter grounds the first pitch to the shortstop. The throw to first, with the batter diving in, is in time! Komadai continues on to the semi-finals, keeping their dream of 3 summer championships in a row intact.

Toyo out hit Komazawa 9 hits to 7. They went down 1-2-3 in just the 6th and 7th innings. But it wasn't enough. Komadai wins 5-4.

WOW.

And as if the Komadai comeback wasn't crazy enough, the Chiben-Teikyo game just ended. It was 8-4 in favor of Chiben going into the 9th inning, and then Teikyo scored eight runs in their half of the inning, making it 12-8. But was Chiben going to take that? No way!

Of course, the actual way Chiben won the game was a little embarrassing. The first two Chiben guys walked, and then the catcher, Hashimoto, hit a 3-run homer, bringing the score to 12-11. After the pitcher walked another guy, Teikyo switched pitchers to Okano. Okano hit the next batter with a pitch, and then the next guy singled into center, making it 12-12. The next batter walked, loading the bases. After a foul and a bunch of bad pitches, suddenly the count's at 1-3, where one more ball will end the game immediately. Next pitch is fouled off, and the next one pretty much comes inside right under the batter's elbows, walking in a run and winning the game for Chiben.

So they won on walks. Insane.

I've been rooting for Komadai and a friend has been rooting for Chiben, and I've been wondering all along whether the two would actually face off. That's going to be one heck of a game to watch.

Wow, what a crazy day!

I haven't seen the games, so I can't really comment on them too much, but it's not embarrassing to walk in the game sayonara winning run at all. That just shows that the batters have patience and good command of the strike zone, which has a knock on effect of running up the pitch counts to tire out the starting pitcher, making him less effective, and bringing in weaker relievers into the game to hit against. Walks are still way more valuable than most people realize.

The 88th Annual National Championships have seen a record number of home runs. Going into today, the event's record was tied at 47, the maximum number reached in 1984 (last year of the "Lucky Zone"). Nikkan Sports mentioned that there was a drop after 2002 when the bat weight requirement was raised to 900 grams. The resurgence of home runs, according to them, is due to a generation of high schoolers being raised with the heavier bats.

Nonetheless, here's a game recap.

Teikyo draws a walk to start off the game against Chiben. As is typical, he's promptly sacrificed to second. But a pair of fly outs strand the leadoff runner at second.

Chiben's captain leads off the bottom of the first with a base hit through the left side. He bunts the runner along (surprise). The third batter lines the ball to center, with the center fielder starting off zigging toward right then zagging left to snow cone the ball. The runner at second had committed, and was easily thrown out to end the threat.

Teikyo's lead off runner is on again in the second. Instead of sacrificing, the next batter lines the ball to left to put runners at first and second with no outs. But a strike three with the runners going turns into a double play as the runner is cut down at third. Teikyo's suddenly got two down with a runner at second. The next batter strikes out, and Teikyo's aggressiveness turns out to hurt them after giving them a great start.

Hit, sac, wild pitch puts runner at third with one out for Chiben in the bottom of the second. After trying to take first base on balls a pitch early, Chiben's #6 batter draws a walk. That sets the stage for the #7 batter, Baba, to hit the ball over the right field fence to take a 3-0 lead.

But Teikyo didn't stay down long. They scored two on a few hits in the top of the 4th.

The leadoff batter for Chiben in the bottom of the 4th, though, reached out and pulled the ball over the right field fence to take a 4-2 lead.

A walk and pair of outs later, Chiben hits their third home run to right of the game, taking a 6-2 lead. Teikyo's bench is looking a bit down.

Teikyo retires Chiben in order for the first time in the 6th inning.

But Chiben adds two more on a huge home run to left in the bottom of the 7th inning, making it 8-2. That brings in ace pitcher (#1 on his back) Ohta to pitch for Teikyo.

Teikyo strikes back with a 2-run home run to left in the top of the 8th to cut Chiben's lead to half, 4-8. There are a lot of long balls this game.

Down to their last at bat, Teikyo gets a one out base hit past a diving second baseman. The next batter was brushed by a pitch, putting runners at first and second with one out. The next batter strikes out on three pitches. Yet, seeing as there have been a number of gyakuten victories in this tournament, there's no sure thing.

The next batter swings at the first pitch, pulling the ball through the right side of the infield, base hit! The runner scores from second base, bringing the tying run to the plate. And he's already hit one out in his last at bat. Runners at first and second, two down.

The next batter singles through the left side, loading the bases with two outs. That brings the go-ahead run to the plate. Cheering squads from both sides singing, believing.

Chiben pitcher gets ahead in the count 2 strikes, 1 ball. The next pitch, grounded through the left side, base hit! Teikyo scores one, now trailing by two, 6-8. It ain't over 'til it's over.

That brings up the catcher, #7 batter. Bases still loaded. He grounds the ball to the left side. The third baseman's glove goes over the ball, missing it! The shortstop fields it, but has nowhere to throw! Base hit. And we have a one-run ball game, 7-8.

And the next batter grounds the ball through the left side of the infield. One runs scores! The left fielder fails to pick up the ball on the first try. Two runs score! Dai-gyakuten! 9-8 in favor of Teikyo.

The next pitch is hit deep! No doubt about this one, it's gone! Three run home run! Teikyo takes a commanding 12-8 lead in the top of the 9th. After trailing by 4 runs, one out away from defeat, they come back with 8 runs to lead by 4. Both teams now have hit 6 home runs each, a new record.

That prompts a pitching change, Matsumoto comes in for Chiben. And he throws one pitch, gets a ground ball to short, and the side is retired. But not before Teikyo turns their 4 run deficit into a 4 run lead.

Chiben's lead off batter draws a walk. Not a good start for Teikyo's pitcher if he doesn't want to see yet another gyakuten. And he walks the second batter on four pitches as well. Nothing comes easily at Koshien.

The Chiben #4 batter then takes a 1-1 pitch over the left-center field fence, three run home run! And just like that, it's a one run ball game all over again! 11-12.

Teikyo's pitcher can't throw a strike. Another walk on five pitches. The sayonara runner comes to the plate. And that prompts Teikyo to change pitchers.

The first pitch hits the batter on the back leg. Nobody out, tying run at second, winning run at first. And we'll have another pitching change. Pitcher, short, and third appear to be rotating. The new pitcher is Okano.

Baba at the plate. He's hit two of Chiben's 7 home runs this afternoon. With the count full, Baba lifts the ball to left field, but the left fielder has him played perfectly. One away. That brings the double play into effect.

Pinch hitter for Chiben. Another full count. And the batter lines the ball back up the middle. Okano just misses stabbing the ball before it goes into center field. The runner from second kicks third and comes in home unchallenged. Tied ball game! 12-12.

Four straight balls to the next batter load the bases, putting the sayonara runner at third with one out.

Ball one outside. Foul ball. Ball two high. Ball three. Foul ball. Third straight full count. Ball four inside. Sayonara oshidashi! Chiben moves on to the semi-finals.

In this game, neither team committed an error. But defensive baseball doesn't help much against the long ball.

NOOO!

I was watching this game, and was prepared to see how Teikyo will come back once again like the earlier game to win it in the 9th.

I watched until it was 7-8 - then suddenly - my Internet connection goes dead!

So I had no other choice but to go to sleep because it was like 3 am here in Toronto already. Then when I wake up the next morning ... I read the headlines "Chiben Wakayama Daigyakuten sayonara shori," I was like "What? Wasn't Teikyo the team trailing?"

And when I check the final scoreboard. I was cursing my internet provider to go dead right during the crucial moment.

Man, I wish I can go back in time so I can wake up one of my friends and watch at his place. >__<

I mentioned that each team had 6 home runs at one point in the above report, and then that Chiben hit their 7th of the game. That was incorrect.

Chiben hit 5 home runs in the game and Teikyo hit 2 for a total of 7 combined home runs.

Chiben's 5 home runs sets a new Summer Koshien record. Furthermore, Chiben's Hiroi is currently tied for second (with two others) with 4 home runs over 3 games, one short of the 5 that PL Gakuen's Kiyohara (yes, that Kiyohara) hit in the 1985 tournament.

Chiben says that they've been doing batting practice against a pitching maching that throws between 150 and 160 kph. Baba (who hit two homers in the quarter-final match) said with a smile, "I finally started hitting the ball forward" of hitting against the machine for 3 years.

There really wasn't much that stood out this game. It was good baseball by both teams, but no exceptional play or at bat really made a difference like yesterday's roller coster games.

Here are my game notes I jotted down as the game progressed.

Waseda gets leadoff runner on in the bottom of the first with a throwing error by the second baseman. Both of these team have been solid defensively. Neither can afford to make throwing mistakes at this level.

Runner sacrificed to second. The same pattern you've seen this entire tournament by pretty much all the teams.

Follow that with a single to center, and Waseda goes up 1-0. The sacrifice pays off with 1 run.

Waseda ace Saitoh strikes out Nihon in order in the second.

A couple of base hits and a wild pitch put runners at second and third with one out in the top of the third for Nichidai. But Saitoh's 6th strike out and a ground out to third ended the threat. Waseda holds on to a 1-0 lead.

With a runner at third in the top of the 6th and nobody out (leadoff triple? I was away), the Nichidai batter reached out and grounded the ball through the right side to tie the game at 1-1. He was then sacrificed to second, moved to third on a ground out, and came home on a clean single to right. Nihon goes up 2-1.

Nihon's leadoff runner int he top of the 7th reaches first as the shortstop bobbles the ball. He's sacrificed to second. After a base on balls puts runners at first and second with one out, a 4-6-3 double play ends the threat. Waseda commits an error, but get out unscathed.

In Waseda's half of the 7th, they get a leadoff base hit, but the sacrifice bunt fails as Nichidai nails the lead runner at second. The next batter hits a high popup behind the pitcher's mound that nobody gets, but they still manage to get the out at second. A clean hit puts runners at first and second with two down, and that brings up pinch hitter Ozawa. But before he has a chance to hit the ball, the runner at second gets too big a lead and the catcher runs out after him. Once the runner commits to third, the catcher throws the ball in front of him, and it's the third baseman who tags him out for the final out of the inning. Waseda had a couple of chances, but came up empty.

In the bottom of the 8th, Waseda had runners at second and third with nobody out. The third batter grounded the ball to the pulled in infield, who checked the runner, and threw to first for the out. The next batter was hit by a pitch. Then a base hit through the pulled in left side turned the game around as two runners scored, putting Waseda up 3-2.

And the hit parade continued. A couple more base hits put Waseda up 5-2. That prompted a pitching change for Nihon.

It's a diving catch by the right fielder who retires the side as opposing pitcher Saitoh's line drive was looking for two more runs and extra bases.

Saitoh's thrown 132 pitches going into the 9th, and remains on the mound.

Nichidai's last chance against Saitoh sees the first batter go down swinging for out number one. Saitoh's still throwing in the mid 140s. And he strikes out the second batter of the inning as well.

That brings up Inoue as a pinch hitter. He takes the first pitch for stike one. The second pitch is lifted to center. The center fielding skips in a couple of steps, makes the catch, and the game is over.

Waseda wins an 8th inning comebacker by the score of 5-2.

I don't know. For me I would've gotten Saitoh out in the 9th to give him some rest. Because of the draw, Sojitsu's going to be playing in 3 straight days. Even though Saitoh showed he can throw 200+ pitches and then still come back the next day to win it during the finals of the Miyagi prefecture tournament, there's still the risk that he's going to get tired out. Unless the coach decides to rest Saitoh tomorrow during the semis. But then, that's risky as well. I suppose. I don't know how good the other pitchers that Waseda's got are, but I doubt they'd be as good as Saitoh.

Judging from previous days, there's the trend of a comeback late in games. I'd probably risk taking Saitoh out to let him get as much rest as possible. And he was already in the 130 range in terms of pitches thrown today.

We'll see what happens tomorrow I guess.

The final semi-final team has been decided: Kagoshima heads to the semis for the first time in the school's history. The following are my game notes:

Seibi commits an error on the first play of the game, allowing Kagoshima's leadoff batter to reach first. He's immediately bunted to second. All within the first minute of play. I do wish the pros would watch Koshien and work as fast.

The third batter for Kagoshima grounds out to third, holding the base runner at second.

The next batter gets on (had someone at the door, don't know how), and with runners at first and third, the next batter lines the ball to left field for a base hit, scoring the first run of the game. So the first error of the game has cost Seibi a run.

Leadoff batter for Seibi reaches in the bottom of the first with an infield hit. He's sacrificed to second.

After a fly out, the next batter grounds the ball hard up the middle, and the shortstop is unable to handle it. The ball goes off his chest and into center field. The runner on second rounds third with no thought of stopping. Home in! We're tied 1-1.

A throwing error (pulling the first baseman off the bag) and a hit batsman puts runners at first and second with one out in the top of the third. The next batter grounds out to the right side, advancing the runners to second and third with two down.

But the final batter of the inning grounds the first pitch to the second baseman, who throws to first to retire the side. So Kagoshima threatened, but come up empty in the third.

Seibi, with two down and nobody on in the bottom of the third, load the bases and score one on a base hit to right. That puts them up for the first time this game, 2-1. However, they strand the bases loaded, keeping this game close.

A base hit as the rain started here in the bottom of the 4th put the leadoff runner on. He's sacrificed to second. Then, one out later, a past ball moves the runner to third with two down. But, as the sun comes back out, the next batter grounds out to the first baseman on his own. Kagoshima keeps it close.

It's a throwing error that costs Seibi a run in the top of the 7th. The first batter just dives in ahead of the high throw to first base. The next batter grounds out moving him to second. A base hit then timely ties the game up. The sacrifice moves runners to second and third with two down. The next batter put his knee over the plate and was hit, but was not awarded first base. So the next pitch, in the dirt, sees the batter take off for first while the runner at third comes home. While the runner crosses the plate first, the batter is thrown out - no score. But, we have a tied ball game.

Seibi doesn't waste any time in fighting back. The leadoff batter in the bottom of the 7th lines a double over the right fielder. He's sacrificed to third. Kagoshima's pitcher handles a come-backer, looking the runner back before making the second out at first. The next batter lines the ball to right field, but the right fielder had him shaded toward center and was able to get to the ball in time. A big chance by Seibi, but the score remains tied at 2-2 after seven complete.

Another error gives Kagoshima a huge advantage. With one down and a runner at first, the ball was grounded to first. He threw to second, but the second baseman failed to handle the throw, the ball rolling in to center. The runner sliding into second got up and headed to third.

However, the first pitch to the next batter was a squeeze attempt, and the batter missed. Seibi got the runner into a rundown, and tagged him out as the first base runner arrived at third. Two down and a runner at third.

The batter then fouls out to first to retire the side. Kagoshima failed to capitalize on the error.

It's extra innings here for the second game of the day, the final selection for the top four.

Things were looking like Kagoshima would go down quietly in the tenth. Then, with two down and nobody on, a home run to center put Kagoshima up by a score of 3-2.

Seibi sends up the heart of their order, numbers 3, 4, and 5, trailing by one.

The first batter hits the ball hard, but right at the center fielder for out number one.

Second batter, Seibi's captain, grounds the ball just inside the third base bag. The third baseman dives and grabs the ball, but can't get a handle on it. Well, he saved it from becoming a double. That puts the tying run at first base.

The next batter hits a high bounding ball to the right side. The second baseman comes in, grabs the ball, tags the runner going by, and throws to first, just not in time. Seibi stays alive.

The first pitch to the next batter is a hard line drive to the right side, but right into the glove of the first baseman! He hit it hard, but the first baseman reacted perfectly.

For Kagoshima, it's their first time to make the top four, as they go on to the semi-final round tomorrow.