This is what it’s all about

The Japanese high school baseball championships (known colloquially as Koshien, after the stadium where they take place) are unlike anything in sports on this side of the Pacific. Crowds pack the nearly 50,000 seats in the stadium and people watch on national TV as 56 teams from around the country compete over the course of 15 days to be crowned champs. Daisuke Matsuzaka once threw a 17-inning complete game, because the tournament is such a big deal.

The stakes are incredibly high. The vast majority of these kids will never have an athletic moment as important as this. And yet, one player in a game on Sunday passed up a free base.

Kennobu Sugawara from Tokuei Hanasaki was hit by a pitch in the seventh inning of his team’s game against Akashi Shoten. But rather than take first base, he admitted that he leaned in to the pitch. Sugawara bowed to the pitcher, then to the opponents’ dugout, and stepped back in the box. Then he blasted a homer.

I think that’s called karma.

“I thought I was bad because I had been bent forward and I was sorry. I apologized to the opponent,” Sugawara said, according to Yahoo Japan.

Despite the homer, Sugawara’s team still lost 4–3.

Gleyber Torres is the most hated man in Baltimore

The Orioles will be thrilled on Wednesday when they play their final game of the season against the Yankees. New York swept a doubleheader yesterday in the Bronx to improve to 15–2 on the year against Baltimore, mostly thanks to Gleyber Torres.

Torres had two homers in the nightcap, giving him 26 on the year, 13 of which have come against the Orioles. He has five multi-homer games against Baltimore this season.

Remember when Torres terrorized the Orioles down in Baltimore in May and announcer Gary Thorne could barely muster the words to call yet another homer? Well, he was nearly as disgusted this time around.

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No leather necessary

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I’ll admit, I’d try it

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I’m sorry, this is disgusting

A good song

Email dan.gartland@simail.com with any feedback or follow me on Twitter for approximately one half-decent baseball joke per week. Bookmark this page to see previous editions of Hot Clicks and find the newest edition every day. By popular request I’ve made a Spotify playlist of the music featured here. Visit our Extra Mustard page throughout each day for more offbeat sports stories.