[Hard Baseball]The chance of winning is slim… If we lose, will we immediately strike back from the brink of losing for 9 consecutive seasons? / Tokyo Six Universities Autumn League Match Keio War Prospects – Sports Hosei

This season’s league schedule, standings (as of the end of week 5)

Keio Taisen outlook

Having dropped points in the Waseda War, they entered the East War in a situation where they could not afford to lose any more in order to win the championship, but although they took the points in the end, they suffered an unexpected walk-off loss in the second game.

Hodai’s winning conditions are as follows. First of all, Hodai has no chance of winning on its own; it needs four consecutive wins over Keio University and Meiji University. Next, Waseda University or Meiji University will earn points with 2 wins and 1 loss in the game against Waseda → If Waseda has points in the game against Waseda, Kei University will get points from two consecutive wins in the final week against Waseda-Keio → Law Championship match by Haya or if Meiji University wins points, Keio University wins points in the match against Waseda and Keio University → Championship match by Homei.

In any case, if even one of these conditions is missing, Hodai’s chances of winning will disappear at that point. In other words, they are on the brink of a precipice, with just one more loss and their hopes of winning the championship are over. Hodai’s fourth card opponent is Keio University, their arch-rival who lost points this spring due to a rookie’s dramatic pinch-hit walk-off home run. In order to win the championship, they want to win two consecutive games for the first time since the spring of 2015 and gain momentum for the “Blood Homei Battle.”

Keio University’s pitching staff is made up of second and third year pitchers, led by ace Toma Toma (third year, Maebashi Ikuei). The ace’s Sotomaru is known for his unparalleled precision in ball control and his breaking balls, which are difficult to distinguish from fastballs. In the first round of this spring, Houdai scored three points in 5 2/3 innings from Sotomaru and achieved a stunning knockout, but in the second round, he played the final round perfectly, and in the third round, he allowed only one run in 8 1/3 innings. . In order to gain points, it is essential to capture the outer circle, and we definitely want to score a large number of points in order to gain momentum going into the second game and even into the Meiji War. Starting this fall, second-year left-handed pitcher Kazuhiro Watanabe (second year, Takamatsu Commercial) will be the second starting pitcher. Although he has little experience playing against Hodai, he has pitched 36 times so far and is second in the league with an ERA of 1.50. What is noteworthy about Kazu Watanabe is his strikeout ability. His 46 strikeouts this fall are at the top of the league, and his ability stands out when compared to second place Kentaro Shinoki (4th grade, Kisarazu General), who has 40 strikeouts in 45 innings pitched. It will be difficult to steal a large number of points from Kazu Watanabe, so the second game is expected to be a one-point difference. This season, ace Tomaru has pitched in four games so far and has fallen into a slump with an ERA of 4.32. Here, we predicted that Sotomaru would be the starting pitcher for Game 1 and Kazu Watanabe for Game 2, but Sotomaru was the starting pitcher for the first game in the Ritsai Taisen and Mei Taisen and Kazu Watanabe was the starting pitcher for the Tozai Taisen. It is unclear whether he will start in the first game. However, no matter which pitcher pitches in Game 1, this season’s Keio Wars will likely be a hotly contested game.

How to conquer Keio University’s Sotomaru, which is not doing well this season

Keio University’s batting lineup includes Haruki Mizutori (4th year, Keio), a hit-producing machine who boasts the team’s top batting average of .278, and Shogo Kiyohara (4th year, Keio University), who hit a tie-breaking solo home run in the bottom of the 9th inning in the first round of Meiji University. = Keio), Kota Yokochi (2nd year = Keio), who records the team’s top RBI, plays the central role and boasts outstanding scoring ability. These three players account for over 50% of the team’s RBIs, so not having runners in front of them will be the key to winning a close game.

Waterfowl play a central role

Yokochi leads the team in RBIs

On the other hand, Hodai’s Nozaki Nozaki (Regional 3 = Prefectural Gifu Commercial), who was expected to be the starter for the second game, was unstable as he was withdrawn twice in the second round of Tokyo University. Yoshituru Shoei (English 4 = Kisarazu Sogo), who was originally the starter for the second game, also said, “Of course I want to return to the starting lineup,” but the second starting spot remains vacant. Furthermore, Sota Adachi (4th grade = Toko Gakuen), who has been active as a steady reliever, received a timely walk-off hit in the second round of the University of Tokyo, and the pitching staff continues to rely on the ace Shinoki. Shinoki has a heavy workload, having thrown a total of 211 pitches in the Tokai War, so pitchers other than Shinoki will need to be motivated in the Keio War. Furthermore, in the three games against Tokyo, the batting lineup recorded a total of 33 bases left, highlighting their weakness at good times. Once again, remembering the team batting that they have been practicing since spring, the first condition for victory is to make sure to hit one hit at a good opportunity.

Yoshituru aims to be on the starting mound again

But there is also hope. In the three games against Tokyo, Riku Kumagai (person 1 = Hanamaki Higashi) recorded 11 hits in 15 at-bats and a batting average of .733. The young warrior, who says, “I’ve gradually become able to play with more courage,” is powerfully leading the Hodai batting lineup. Furthermore, Ayumi Matsushita (Eng. 3 = Toin Gakuen) also recorded 2 home runs and 7 RBIs in 3 games. “It’s not perfect yet, but it’s getting better,” he says, and there are high expectations for his success in the Keio War.

Kumagaya is second in the league with 14 hits and is within range of the lead batter.

Although the team is in a difficult situation, the possibility of winning the championship has not disappeared. We hope to get through the Keio Championships with two consecutive wins and aim to win the championship with four points. (Tatsuyoshi Nakayama)