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Mench's 8th-inning blast lifts Hanshin over Nippon Ham
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OSAKA, March 10 (17:37) Kyodo
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Kevin Mench hit a go-ahead three-run homer in the eighth inning
Tuesday as the Hanshin Tigers rallied past Nippon Ham Fighters 3-2 in
a preseason game.
Mench, who signed with Hanshin this off-season from the Toronto
Blue Jays on a one-year contract, went deep off Yachiho Hoshino to
left with runners on first and second and none out in the eighth,
turning a 2-0 deficit into a 3-2 lead at Skymark Stadium.
Yasutomo Kubo pitched three scoreless innings in relief,
allowing two hits, no walks and striking out two. Nippon Ham rookie
right-hander Ryo Sakakibara threw five hitless frames, yielding no
runs with four strikeouts, in his first start of the spring.
In other action, Atsushi Fujii drove in four runs, featuring a
two-run drive, in a 2-for-3 outing as the Chunichi Dragons edged the
Seibu Lions 9-8 in a game at Kariya stadium.
Chunichi starter Kenichi Nakata struggled to contain his
wildness, allowing three runs -- two earned -- with five walks and
five strikeouts in five innings. Takeya Nakamura homered in his
second consecutive game for Seibu.
Seibu veteran lefty Kazuhisa Ishii got rocked for six runs in
three innings.
At Shunan municipal stadium, Kenta Kurihara hit a two-run shot
and had a sacrifice fly and the Hiroshima Carp powered past the
Yomiuri Giants 9-6, scoring six runs in the final four innings.
Kan Otake and left-hander Junpei Shinoda, who are vying for
spots in the starting rotation, both surrendered three runs pitching
two innings apiece. South Korean slugger Lee Seung Yeop had three
hits, featuring a two-run homer for Yomiuri.
Catcher Hiroaki Takaya drove in four runs, highlighting a
six-run second with a three-run blast, in the Softbank Hawks' 10-3
rout of Yakult. Nobuhiro Matsuda homered and went 2-for-4.
Rookie left-hander Katsuki Akagawa got tagged for nine runs and
six hits, walking seven in 1-2/3 shaky innings at Jingu Stadium.
The Rakuten Eagles played the Orix Buffaloes to a 4-4 tie at
Himeji stadium while the Yokohama BayStars drew 5-5 against the Lotte
Marines in Chiba. |
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