そう、アレが起こった
This year’s Japan Series was a showdown between Kansai’s two NPB teams: the reigning champion Orix Buffaloes and my Hanshin Tigers, who last won it all in 1985.
The Tigers were up 3–2 going into Game 6 so I stayed up entirely too late Friday night to watch.
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | R | H | E |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 阪神 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 9 | 0 |
| オリックス | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1 | X | 5 | 8 | 0 |
The Buffaloes tied the series up behind a complete game outing from Yamamoto. He collected 14 Ks—a new Japan Series record—over the course of the night. The bottom line, though, is that the Tigers missed out on their few chances[…].
So, naturally, I stayed up way too late again the next night to watch Game 7, and something amazing happened:
| Team | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | R | H | E |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 阪神 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 7 | 12 | 0 |
| オリックス | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 8 | 1 |
They did it! They really did it! The Tigers have won the Japan Series for the first time since 1985! The Curse of the Colonel is broken!
Obviously Neuse’s three-run HR in the fourth will go down in history, but Chikamoto’s bat has to get a ton of credit for this win tonight. I think Ito gets the official credit for the win due to his three scoreless innings of relief, but Aoyagi’s solid start should really be recognized in the line score somehow. He held Orix scoreless for 4⅔ innings, which was more than enough time for the Tigers’ bats to wake up and take it from there.
Sheldon Neuse makes the catch and the Hanshin Tigers have won the Japan Series for the first time since 1985! pic.twitter.com/gWARsE9ApM
— Talkin’ Baseball (@TalkinBaseball_) November 5, 2023