The Tokyo Yakult Swallows finally landed a knockout blow against Yomiuri Giants pitcher Miles Mikolas. The fact they got some of their own stars going in the process has them sizing up the rest of the Giants for a similar knockdown before everything is said and done.
Swallows starter Yasuhiro "Ryan" Ogawa shut out the Giants for eight innings and Wladimir Balentien sent Mikolas to the showers with a two-run single in the sixth as the Birds bounced back from a loss with a 4-0 win over the Kyojin in Game 2 of the Central League Climax Series on Thursday night at Jingu Stadium.
Yakult, which entered the final stage with an automatic 1-0 advantage, took a 2-1 lead in the series.