TOKYO, Japan – With a 4-0 Premier12 record already securing their spot in Tokyo, Samurai Japan faced the Dominican Republic on Monday night in Taipei in the final Group B matchup for both sides. Though eliminated from Super Round contention with a 1-3 record, the Dominican team played with pride on the line. Like the previous evening, the game unfolded under challenging weather conditions, with strong winds and rain, but Japan came away with a convincing 11-3 victory despite falling behind early.
Japan rested many of its top players, as manager Hirokazu Ibata got creative with the lineup. Itsuki Murabayashi and Ryota Isobata got their first starts of the tournament, and Shugo Maki, Kaito Kozono, and Sosuke Genda got the day off.
Veteran right-hander Willy Peralta, who boasts 911 innings of MLB experience, took the mound as the opener for the Dominicans. Japan wasted no time, loading the bases in the 1st inning, and Shogo Sakakura capitalized by drawing an RBI walk to give the Samurai an early lead.
On the mound for Japan was 24-year-old Shosei Togo, the Yomiuri Giants ace and a key contributor to Japan’s 2023 World Baseball Classic championship. He encountered trouble early, allowing an infield single to lead off the game. A balk advanced the runner to second, and former Nippon-Ham Fighter Alen Hanson delivered an RBI double to tie the game.
The Dominican lineup kept the pressure on in the 2nd inning, as Andretty Cordero led off with a double, and Michael De Leon delivered a two-out RBI two-bagger to bring him home. Japan responded in the 3rd, tying the game with a Toshiya Satoh two-out RBI single to left. However, they missed an opportunity to take the lead when Kotaro Kurebayashi was thrown out at third base just before Ryoya Kurihara could cross the plate, costing them what would have been the go-ahead run.
Japan finally took the lead in the 5th. Keita Sano and Shota Morishita set the stage by drawing walks, followed by RBI singles from Ryoya Kurihara and Shogo Sakakura. Kurebayashi then grounded into a run-scoring double play, extending Japan’s advantage to 5-2.
Togo worked four innings, allowing five hits and two runs while striking out six. His Giants teammate, Haruto Inoue, who started the opener against Australia, took over in relief. He pitched two innings and surrendered one run in the 6th inning after a pickoff error and a wild pitch.
The Dominican Republic kept things close most of the way, but Japan blew it open late, adding one run in the 7th and five in the 9th to go up 11-3. Shota Morishita raised his tournament average to .571 with a 3 for 3 night. The Hanshin Tigers outfielder has been the hero for Japan’s offense so far. The bottom of the order also came through in a major way, as Sakakura, Kurebayashi, Satoh, and Isobata each had two RBI performances. Chihiro Sumida, Rikuto Yokoyama, and Koki Kitayama each tossed a scoreless inning to finish the game for Japan.
Japan will open the Super Round against the United States on Thursday while Chinese Taipei face Venezuela. “We want to play baseball the Japanese way,” manager Ibata said after the game. “Stringing together hits to facilitate runs and showing our tenacity on the mound.”
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