YOKOHAMA – Yoshihiro Doi pitched his fourth complete game of the season and Hitoshi Taneda went 4-for-4 to lead a 14-hit attack as the Yokohama BayStars beat the Yomiuri Giants 7-3 in the Central League on Friday.
Takahiro Saeki od the BayStars hits an RBI single during the first inning of Friday’s game against the Yomiuri Giants at Yokohama Stadium. The BayStars won 7-3.
Doi (8-10) held Yomiuri to three runs and six hits to win his first decision since Aug. 11 while striking out five and walking one at Yokohama Stadium. Eight of the nine Yokohama starters had at least one hit, helping the left-hander end his four-game skid.
Yokohama took a 3-0 lead in the first inning on RBI singles by Takahiro Saeki, Taneda and Shuichi Murata.
After Yomiuri pulled within a run in the third on a Kenji Yano solo homer and an RBI single by Shinnosuke Abe, Hitoshi Tamura hit a two-run homer off Kimiyasu Kudo (11-9) and Doi added an RBI single in the bottom half as the BayStars took a four-run lead.
Yokohama then made it 7-2 in the fifth on a Ryoji Aikawa RBI single. Abe hit a solo homer in the ninth but the struggling Giants lost their third straight game after two massive losses to the Hanshin Tigers.
Nomura to retire
HIROSHIMA (Kyodo) Hiroshima Carp infielder Kenjiro Nomura said Friday he will retire at the end of this season.
“I can’t fully show fighting spirit on the field any more,” Nomura told a press conference at Hiroshima Stadium. “Retirement had been on my mind from a few years ago. I’m proud of myself for what I’ve done and it feels as if my 17-year career flashed by.”
In June, Nomura became the 33rd player in Japanese baseball history to reach the 2,000-hit mark, following in the footsteps of former Hiroshima stars Sachio Kinugasa and Koji Yamamoto.
Day of reckoning
SENDAI (Kyodo) Six of the Rakuten Eagles’ veteran pitchers will be left out of plans for next season, officials of the Pacific League club said Thursday.
Makoto Kito, 40, Hiroshi Takamura, 36, Tetsuro Kawajiri, 36, Hideo Koike, 36, Hisashi Ogura, 35, and Hiroshi Kobayashi, 34, have each received notice that their services will no longer be required for next season.
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