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Post-game
Reports
Brett
(#17) playing at First Base
Bats and Arms on song
in Japan, but Gloves out of key
The sweet sound of 40,000 screaming
fans greeted the Australian Baseball Team in Osaka on Tuesday
as they squared off in their first of two Exhibition Games against
the reigning World Baseball Classic champions Japan
While there are some genuine positives the Aussies can take away
from the opening match-up, some at times "nervous"
defence proved costly in an 8-2 loss to the host nation
Manager Jon Deeble spoke at length after the game about the need
for his troops to improve on the "little things" if
they wanted to upset the home side
"We are constantly striving to improve our fundamentals"
Deeble said
"It's clear that we can't afford to give a team like Japan
extra chances
I thought our pitchers were excellent at times and our bats were
pretty good; but ultimately that (defence) is what cost us tonight"
The Australian sluggers notched eight hits against some of the
planet's premier pitchers, including 22-year-old phenomenon Yu
Darvish who was knocked out of the game early thanks to some
tough at bats from the Aussies
James Linger (QLD), Chris Snelling (NSW) and Tom Brice (SA) all
stroked stand-up doubles during the sold-out event, while clean
up hitter Justin Huber (VIC) finished the night 1-3, with an
RBI and a run scored at the heart of the Aussie line-up
On the mound, 2009 Claxton Shield pitching champion Tim Cox allowed
4 runs (2 earned) in 3.2 innings of work, but could have easily
escaped unscathed had it not been for a couple of physical and
mental errors
Cox's NSW team mate Craig Anderson was the pick of the Australian
hurlers, allowing just 1 run in his 3 innings of work while twice
claiming the prized scalp of Japanese superstar Ichiro Suzuki
Anderson's performance against Ichiro, the Major League record
holder for most hits in a single season, soon became the focus
of Australia's post-game press conference
"Of course I know what an great hitter Ichiro is; but I
am never thinking that when I am on the mound, Anderson said
"I just approach everybody the same, pitching to my strengths,
and tonight I was pretty effective pitching inside to him (Suzuki)"
Game Two of the series is scheduled for 8.00pm AEST on Wednesday
and will see Australia's Damian Moss lock horns with Boston Red
Sox ace Daisuke Matsuzaka in his first match-up against the Aussies
since the upset 1-0 loss in the 20045 Olympic Games
Japan carves up Australia
Starter Yu Darvish wasn't exactly
sharp, but Japan still looked pretty good slicing up Australia
in a World Baseball Classic warmup on Tuesday at Kyocera Dome
Osaka
A manager-issued 40-pitch limit wasn't enough for the Hokkaido
Nippon Ham Fighters' ace to make it out of the second inning,
but Japan still beat up Australia 8-2 in the first of two friendlies
on back-to-back nights
"I didn't have good stuff today" Darvish said
"But we still have some time, and I'll use it to make adjustments"
Nippon Ham's Atsunori Inaba went 2-for-2 with a double and a
run scored, and Seiichi Uchikawa came off the bench to knock
in two runs with a single and a sacrifice fly
Tampa Bay Rays infielder Akinori Iwamura also had a two RBIs
on a pair of sacrifice flies for Japan, which opens Group A play
against China at Tokyo Dome on March 5
South Korea and Taiwan are the other Group A teams
The three pitchers who followed Darvish kept the Australians
off the scoreboard until Tohoku Rakuten Eagles right-hander Masahiro
Tanaka yielded a run on two hits in the eighth
Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks closer Takahiro Mahara tossed a scoreless
ninth to end it for Japan
Australia - in Group B with Cuba, Mexico and South Africa - got
on the board first with a run off Darvish in the second inning
A leadoff walk and a hit batter got Darvish into a pinch to open
the frame, but he got the next two batters
However, Australia loaded the bases and Iwamura gloved a Grant
Karlsen grounder up the middle but couldn't get the ball to first
in time for the out
The infield single gave Australia a 1-0 lead and Darvish, who
had gone past his scheduled pitch count (tossing 42), departed
for an early shower
Eagles ace Hisashi Iwakuma came on in relief and fanned Nicholas
Kimpton to escape the bases-loaded jam
Iwakuma worked 3-1/3 innings, fanning two and allowing only one
hit
Japan scored early and often against lefty starter Tim Cox
Inaba smacked a double to left to open the bottom of the second
inning, and a walk and an error loaded the bases for Kenji Jojima
The Seattle Mariners catcher worked a walk to even the score
at 1-1
Iwamura hit a sacrifice fly to left to plate the Yomiuri Giants'
Michihiro Ogasawara, who had walked, and Japan had a 2-1 lead
Seattle's Ichiro Suzuki got a third-inning rally going with a
leadoff infield single
He later scored when Cox forgot the out count
The hurler fielded Shuichi Murata's tapper back to the mound
and jogged toward first before flipping the ball to record the
out
With runners on first and third, though, he should have thrown
to second to start a double play
That mistake gave Japan a 3-1 advantage
The home team added a run in the fourth, three in the fifth and
another in the seventh
The teams play again at Kyocera Dome Osaka today at 6.00pm
Japan defeats Australia
in WBC tuneup game
Japan defeated Australia 8-2 on
Tuesday in a tuneup game for the World Baseball Classic
Ichiro Suzuki of the Seattle Mariners went 1-for-4 with an infield
single and a run scored, and Akinori Iwamura of the Tampa Bay
Rays drove in two runs for Japan
Iwamura put Japan ahead 2-1 in the second inning on a sacrifice
fly and then made it 4-1 in the fourth by lofting another fly
ball to left field
Japan, led by Yomiuri Giants manager Tatsunori Hara, will open
defense of its title when the tournament begins on March 5 at
the Tokyo Dome
The final of the 16-nation tournament is scheduled for March
23 at Dodger Stadium in Los Angeles
Japan trounces Australia
in WBC tuneup game
Akinori Iwamura hit a pair of sacrifice
flies and Hisashi Iwakuma threw 3 1/3 scoreless innings in relief
of a wild Yu Darvish, leading Japan to an 8-2 rout of Australia
in a World Baseball Classic Exhibition Game Tuesday
Tampa Bay Rays leadoff man Iwamura, batting ninth, first put
Japan ahead 2-1 in the second inning and then made it 4-1 in
the fourth by lofting the ball to left field both times at Kyocera
Dome
A minute of silence was held before the game for the victims
of Australia's deadly wildfires
Australia got on the board first in the top of the second, taking
advantage of Darvish's wildness
The Nippon Ham Fighters ace loaded the bases with two walks and
a hit-by-pitch before allowing an infield single to Grant Karlsen
Darvish gave up one run and two hits in 1 2/3 innings, walking
two and striking out one
Iwakuma ended a bases-loaded threat in the second and went on
to keep the Aussies scoreless through the end of the fifth, allowing
only one runner - a third-inning double
Japan took a 2-1 lead in the bottom of the second on a bases-loaded
walk by Kenji Johjima and Iwamura's sac fly
The 2006 WBC champion broke the game open with a three-run fifth
that made it 7-1
Ichiro Suzuki went 1-for-4 with an infield single and a run scored
Yokohama BayStars duo Shuichi Murata and Seiichi Uchikawa also
drove in two runs apiece
Japan had 10 hits to Australia's eight
''Our players played like they were already in the tournament,
not a warm-up game I feel confident about the team'' Japan manager
Tatsunori Hara said
''They know what to do in each situation - hitting a sacrifice
fly and advancing runners for the next one in the lineup''
''I think they (Japan) have a very good chance to be back-to-back
World Baseball Classic champions'' Australia manager Jon Deeble
said after his team became the first one to face Japan in the
run-up to the upcoming Classic
''They have very good pitching
They don't make mistakes
They never beat themselves
We want to emulate the Japanese team''
The two teams meet again Wednesday in the two game Exhibition
Series
Japan whip Australia
in Classic warm-up
Star-studded defending champions
Japan came from behind to beat an under-strength Australia 8-2
in a warm-up match here ahead of the second World Baseball Classic
next month
The win marked Japan's international debut under Yomiuri Giants
manager Tatsunori Hara but it was an apparent mismatch against
Jon Deeble's squad whose US Major League players were to join
them only later in a US training camp
The two sides meet again at Osaka's Kyocera Dome Wednesday
Japan starter Yu Darvish gave up a run in the top of the second
inning when Grant Karlsen's grounder to second base was too tricky
for Tampa Bay Rays infielder Akinori Iwamura to handle in time
when the bases were loaded
Darvish was replaced by Hisashi Iwakuma
The home side charged back in the bottom of the same inning as
Seattle Mariners catcher Keiji Johjima was walked by Australian
starter Tim Cox when the bases were loaded
Iwamura followed up with a sacrifice fly to the left, sending
Michihiro Ogawasawa to the plate to put Japan up 2-1
In the third inning, Seattle Mariners star Ichiro Suzuki singled
on an infield slap and reached third base on Atsunori Inaba's
line drive to the right
Shuichi Murata's grounder to Cox's feet allowed Suzuki to dash
home
Japan added a run in the fourth, three more in the fifth and
another in the seventh for an 8-1 lead
But Australia pulled one back in the eighth as Queensland Rams
infielder Brad Dutton singled off Japan's fifth pitcher Masahiro
Tanaka and reached third base on Chris Sneling's double to left-centre
field
Dutton was plated when Victoria Aces infielder Justin Huber slapped
a grounder to third base
But Australia's fightback ended when Tom Brice's double to deep
centre was not followed by any other hit in the ninth
In the World Baseball Classic first round, Japan will face China
in Tokyo on March 5
They are grouped in Pool A with South Korea and Taiwan
Australia will meet Mexico on March 9 in their Classic opener
in Mexico City in Pool B which also includes South Africa and
Cuba
The top two teams from each pool will advance to the second round
in the 16-nation tournament
Aussie baseballers humbled
by Japan
Japan has crushed Australia 8-2
in a warm-up for the defence of its World Baseball Classic title,
despite some shaky pitching from starter Yu Darvish
Seattle Mariners outfielder Ichiro Suzuki went 1-for-4 and reliever
Hisashi Iwakuma held Australia scoreless for over three innings
after a wild Darvish was yanked early in Osaka
Japan, surprise winners of the inaugural World Baseball Classic
(WBC) in 2006, broke the game open with three runs in the fifth
inning to take a 7-1 lead
"The serious business started today" Japan coach Tatsunori
Hara said
"Everyone's still making adjustments but we tried not to
let it show"
The teams plays again tonight before the Asian WBC preliminaries,
Pool A, also involving China, Taiwan and reigning Olympic champions
South Korea begin on March 5
Neither Suzuki nor Boston Red Sox pitcher Daisuke Matsuzaka played
at last year's Beijing Olympics, when Japan failed to win a medal
after losing to the Koreans in the semi-finals
However Japan's hopes of a second straight WBC title were boosted
after both players answered their country's call for this year's
16-team competition
The top two sides from each of the four groups of four advance
to the second round in the United States
Australia plays in Pool B alongside Cuba, Mexico and South Africa |
