Tokyo Yakult Swallows fans can be forgiven for being frustrated, even angry, at the way the season has played out thus far. The team is mired in last place and began this week six games out of even fifth place.
That's to say nothing of the punch to the gut the fans took on Friday night at Jingu Stadium, as they watched Hiroshima Carp supporters, whose numbers all but turned Jingu into a sea of red, scream in joyous revelry after the Carp turned a five-run, ninth-inning deficit into a victory.
Swallows fans there that night could only stare on in starry-eyed disbelief. They probably wanted to scream even more than the Carp fans did, but not with any emotion that could be mistaken for joy.