The much-hyped "O-N" Japan Series got off to a rousing start at the Tokyo Dome on Saturday night, as the Fukuoka Daiei Hawks rallied from a 3-1 deficit in the seventh inning to defeat the Yomiuri Giants 5-3 in Game 1 on home runs by Nobuhiko Matsunaka, Kenji Jojima and Melvin Nieves.
The Hawks, managed by former Giants legend Sadaharu Oh and the defending Japan Series champions, started slowly against Yomiuri, led by Oh's former Giants teammate and icon Shigeo Nagashima, but converted when it counted. Matsunaka's two-run shot in the seventh tied the contest 3-3, before Nieves provided the decisive run on a pinch-hit solo rocket in the ninth.
"I was lucky that I got ahead in the count, so I was just looking for my pitch after that," said Nieves of his titanic circuit clout, which hit off wall above the third deck in right field. When asked if he was disappointed he wasn't in the starting lineup, Nieves said: "That's the manager's job. I just come out and do my best. If he wants me to pinch hit like tonight, I'll be happy to do that, and if he wants to put me in the starting lineup, I'll do that, too."