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Kenji Akashi
is a former Japanese Nippon Professional Baseball infielder, and current second squad hitting coach for the Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks of Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB). He was an active player for the Fukuoka Daiei/SoftBank Hawks until 2022 season. He was the last active position player for the Hawks who played during the Daiei era at the time of his retirement. Professional career On November 19, 2003, Akashi was drafted by the Fukuoka Daiei Hawks in the 2003 Nippon Professional Baseball draft. 2004–2010 season On May 2, 2004, Akashi debuted in the Pacific League against the Osaka Kintetsu Buffaloes, and he recorded his first hit. In 2004 season, he played 7 games in the Pacific League. In 2005 - 2006 season, Akashi was unable to compete in the Pacific League due to an injury in 2004 and surgery on his right shoulder in 2005. In 2007 season, he played 15 games in the Pacific League. In 2008 season, Akashi was playing as a shortstop Starter in place of Munenori Kawasaki, ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Infielder
An infielder is a baseball player stationed at one of four defensive "infield" positions on the baseball field. Standard arrangement of positions In a game of baseball, two teams of nine players take turns playing offensive and defensive roles. Although there are many rules to baseball, in general the team playing offense tries to score runs by batting balls into the field that enable runners to make a complete circuit of the four bases. The team playing in the field tries to prevent runs by catching the ball before it hits the ground, by tagging runners with the ball while they are not touching a base, or by throwing the ball to first base before the batter who hit the ball can run from home plate to first base. There are nine defensive positions on a baseball field. The part of the baseball field closest to the batter (shown in the diagram as light brown) is known as the "infield" (as opposed to the "outfield", the part of the field furthest from the batter, shown in the diagr ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
2020 Japan Series
The 2020 Japan Series (known as the ''SMBC Nippon Series 2020'' for sponsorship reasons) was the championship series of Nippon Professional Baseball's (NPB) 2020 season. The 71st edition of the Japan Series, it was played from November 21 to 25. The series was a best-of-seven playoff between the Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks, the Pacific League's (PL) Climax Series champion, and the defending Japan Series champions, and the Yomiuri Giants, the Central League's (CL) regular-season champion. The series was a rematch of the previous year's Japan Series. The Hawks finished the season in 1st place, their first PL title since 2017. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the PL decided to modify the traditional Climax Series format and eliminate the First Stage series to instead play only one modified Final Stage series. In this series, SoftBank defeated the Chiba Lotte Marines, the regular season runner-up to advance to the Japan Series. The CL cancelled their Climax Series altogether due to the pan ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Base On Balls
A base on balls (BB), also known as a walk, occurs in baseball when a batter receives four pitches that the umpire calls '' balls'', and is in turn awarded first base without the possibility of being called out. The base on balls is defined in Section 2.00 of baseball's Official Rules, and further detail is given in 6.08(a). It is considered a faux pas for a professional player to literally walk to first base; the batter-runner and any advancing runners normally jog on such a play. The term "base on balls" distinguishes a walk from the other manners in which a batter can be awarded first base without liability to be put out (e.g., hit by pitch (HBP), catcher's interference). Though a base on balls, catcher's interference, or a batter hit by a pitched ball all result in the batter (and possibly runners on base) being awarded a base, the term "walk" usually refers only to a base on balls, and not the other methods of reaching base without the bat touching the ball. An importan ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Pinch Runner
In baseball, a pinch runner is a player substituted for the specific purpose of replacing another player on base. The pinch runner may be faster or otherwise more skilled at base-running than the player for whom the pinch runner has been substituted. Occasionally a pinch runner is inserted for other reasons (such as a double switch, ejection, or if the original player on base has become injured, such as having been hit by a pitch). A pinch runner is not credited with a game played for the purpose of consecutive game streaks, per Rule 10.24(c) of baseball's Official Rules. For example, in May 1984, Alfredo Griffin of the Toronto Blue Jays scored the winning run in a game, yet his consecutive game streak ended as he appeared only as a pinch runner. As with other substitutions in baseball, when a player is pinch run for, that player is removed from the game. The pinch runner may remain in the game or be substituted for at the manager's discretion. Earlier in baseball hist ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Home Run
In baseball, a home run (abbreviated HR) is scored when the ball is hit in such a way that the batter is able to circle the bases and reach home plate safely in one play without any errors being committed by the defensive team. A home run is usually achieved by hitting the ball over the outfield fence between the foul poles (or hitting either foul pole) without the ball touching the field. Far less common is the "inside-the-park" home run where the batter reaches home safely while the baseball is in play on the field. When a home run is scored, the batter is credited with a hit and a run scored, and a run batted in ( RBI) for each runner that scores, including himself. Likewise, the pitcher is recorded as having given up a hit and a run, with additional runs charged for each runner that scores other than the batter. Home runs are among the most popular aspects of baseball and, as a result, prolific home run hitters are usually the most popular among fans and consequently th ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Nikkan Sports
is the first-launched Japanese daily sports newspaper founded in 1946. It has a circulation of 1,661,000, and is an affiliate newspaper of the ''Asahi Shimbun''. Companies and regions ;Nikkan Sports News (Tokyo) :Tokyo HQ: 5-10, Tsukiji Sanchome, Chuo, Tokyo, Japan ;Hokkaido Nikkan Sports News (Hokkaido) :Hokkaido HQ: KN Building, 1-30, Kita-Sanjo-Higashi Sanchome, Chuo-ku, Sapporo, Japan ;Nikkan Sports News West Japan (Osaka, Nagoya, Kyushu) :Osaka HQ: Hanshin Diamond Building, 14-24, Fukushima Sanchome, Fukushima-ku, Osaka, Japan :Nagoya HQ: Asahi Kaikan, 3-3, Sakae Itchome, Naka-ku, Nagoya, Japan :Seibu HQ: Fukuoka Asahi Building, 1-1, Hakata Ekimae Nichome, Hakata-ku, Fukuoka, Japan See also * Nikkan Sports Film Award * Nikkan Sports Drama Grand Prix The Nikkan Sports Drama Grand Prix is an award given by the Nikkan Sports newspaper to Japanese television dramas. The 14th Nikkan Sports Drama Grand Prix was canceled due to the 2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Hit By Pitch
In baseball, hit by pitch (HBP) is an event in which a batter or his clothing or equipment (other than his bat) is struck directly by a pitch from the pitcher; the batter is called a hit batsman (HB). A hit batsman is awarded first base, provided that (in the plate umpire's judgment) he made an honest effort to avoid the pitch, although failure to do so is rarely called by an umpire. Being hit by a pitch is often caused by a batter standing too close to, or "crowding", home plate. The rule dates from 1884; before that, a pitch that struck the batter was merely a ball. Official rule Per baseball official rule 5.05(b), a batter becomes a baserunner and is awarded first base when he or his equipment (except for his bat): *is touched by a pitched ball outside the strike zone, *''and'' he attempts to avoid it (or had no opportunity to avoid it), *''and'' he did not swing at the pitch. If all these conditions are met, the ball is dead, and other baserunners advance if they are forced ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
2008 Summer Olympics
The 2008 Summer Olympics (), officially the Games of the XXIX Olympiad () and also known as Beijing 2008 (), were an international multisport event held from 8 to 24 August 2008, in Beijing, China. A total of 10,942 athletes from 204 National Olympic Committees (NOCs) competed in 28 sports and 302 events, one event more than those scheduled for the 2004 Summer Olympics. This was the first time China had hosted the Olympic Games, and the third time the Summer Olympic Games had been held in East Asia, following the 1964 Olympics in Tokyo, Japan, and the 1988 Olympics in Seoul, South Korea. These were also the second Summer Olympic Games to be held in a communist state, the first being the 1980 Summer Olympics in the Soviet Union (with venues in Russia, Ukraine, Belarus, and Estonia). Beijing was awarded the 2008 Games over four competitors on 13 July 2001, having won a majority of votes from members of the International Olympic Committee (IOC) after two rounds o ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Japan National Baseball Team
The is the national team representing Japan in international baseball competitions. It won the World Baseball Classic in 2006 and 2009, as well as WBSC Premier12 in 2019. The team is currently ranked 1st in the world by the World Baseball Softball Confederation. The team has participated in every Summer Olympic Games since the first demonstration tournament in 1984, through when baseball was discontinued following the 2008 Beijing Games. Until 2000, the team was made up exclusively of amateur players. Since the 2000 Summer Olympics, the team has been composed of players from Nippon Professional Baseball. The team that played in the 2006 World Baseball Classic included Japanese players from Major League Baseball as well. The team won the 2006 Classic. It played at the Beijing Olympics in 2008, as it had qualified through the Asian Baseball Championship in 2007. Unlike the WBC roster, the Olympic team was composed exclusively of NPB players (though it included one amateur pl ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Munenori Kawasaki
is a Japanese professional baseball shortstop and second baseman for the Tochigi Golden Braves of Baseball Challenge League in Japan. He has played in Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB) for the Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks, and in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Seattle Mariners, Toronto Blue Jays, and Chicago Cubs. He played for the Japanese national team in the 2008 Beijing Olympics as well as the 2006 and 2009 World Baseball Classics. Early life Kawasaki was born in Aira, a former town in central Kagoshima Prefecture in the south of Japan. He began playing baseball after his older brother got him into the sport. Though he was a pitcher throughout his early years, Kawasaki switched to shortstop after enrolling in Kagoshima Prefectural Technical High School. Kawasaki remained largely an unknown on the national level during his high school career, partly due to his team's failing to make any national tournaments in those three years. Still, he made a name for himself locally, ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Shortstop
Shortstop, abbreviated SS, is the baseball or softball fielding position between second and third base, which is considered to be among the most demanding defensive positions. Historically the position was assigned to defensive specialists who were typically poor at batting and were often placed at the bottom of the batting order. Today, shortstops are often able to hit well and many are placed at the top of the lineup. In the numbering system used by scorers to record defensive plays, the shortstop is assigned the number 6. More hit balls go to the shortstop than to any other position, as there are more right-handed hitters in baseball than left-handed hitters, and most hitters have a tendency to pull the ball slightly. Like a second baseman, a shortstop must be agile, for example when performing a 4-6-3 double play. Also, like a third baseman, the shortstop fields balls hit to the left side of the infield, where a strong arm is needed to throw out a batter-runner befo ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Osaka Kintetsu Buffaloes
The were a Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB) team based in Osaka, Japan, which was in the Pacific League. In 2005 the team was merged with the Orix BlueWave to become the team now known as the Orix Buffaloes. The team played in Fujiidera Stadium, and later in Osaka Dome. Although the team won four Pacific League championships, they lost all four Japan Series in which they played. The team's batting lineup was known as ''Itemae Dasen'' ( いてまえ打線). Logo design A stylized buffalo's head with angry-looking red eyes (designed by Okamoto Taro), or "Buffaloes" in red script, outlined with white. Another logo featured the "Buffaloes" in red script, while also featuring Buffie, the Buffaloes mascot. Franchise history The team was founded in 1949 and began play in 1950 in the newly organized NPB. Owned by Kinki Nippon Railway Co. (later known as Kintetsu Railway), the franchise was known as the Kintetsu Pearls from 1950-1958, Kintetsu Buffalo from 1959-1961, the Kintet ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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