For a few tense seconds it looked like Ken Kato had been hit in the head by a pitch.
As Kazuhito Tadano's offering broke inside to the right-handed hitting Kato, squared up for a bunt attempt, the Yomiuri Giants catcher's body twisted violently toward the ground, and he immediately reached for his head and writhed around in the batter's box as Giants manager Tatsunori Hara jogged out of the dugout.
From there, the scene took on an aberrant air.