NPB East seize winter title after defeating KBO

By Jason Pan / Staff reporter





Japan’s Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB) East Team took this year’s Asia Winter Baseball League title after defeating the Korean Baseball Organization (KBO) 4-1 yesterday at Taichung Intercontinental Stadium.

NPB East scored two runs each in the third and fourth innings, while the KBO only managed to score in the fifth, as the pitchers on both sides limited the scoring until the end of the game.

The KBO ended the Taiwan-hosted competition in second place after defeating Taiwan’s CPBL team 6-2 in the semi-final on Saturday.

Keita Sano of the Nippon Professional Baseball East Team takes the plate against the Korean Baseball Organization yesterday at Taichung Intercontinental Stadium. Photo: Lo Chih-ming, Taipei Times

In yesterday’s earlier game, the Japan Amateur Baseball Association (JABA) seized third place by edging the CPBL 4-3, after the hosts gave up three late runs.

Lefty pitcher Koshiro Sakamoto was relieved to toss two scoreless innings, as the JABA came from behind for the win.

Down by 3-1 in the fifth inning, the JABA got one run in the sixth, then rallied for two runs in the seventh, with outfielder Takehiro Tsujino hitting a bouncer to drive in their fourth run.

Chen Shih-min, the CPBL’s third pitcher in the game, was credited with the loss after giving up two hits and two runs in his brief third of an inning in the seventh.

The CPBL had a chance to tie the game in their final at-bat with one man on and only one out, but JABA reliever Katsuno Akiyoshi threw a fly out, then struck out Shen Hao-wei to finish the game.

In the semi-final games on Saturday, the KBO pounded the CPBL’s pitchers with two runs in the final three innings for a 6-2 win.

KBO pitcher Park Jun-pyo pocketed the win after giving up only one run on four hits over seven innings and striking out four batters.

The other semi-final saw a 2-0 shutout by NPB East against the JABA to advance to the title game.