An in-depth look at the Tokyo Yakult Swallows, Jingu Stadium, the Central League, and Japanese Pro Baseball
Christopher is a budding sabermetrician and long-time supporter of Tokyo's more lovable team, the Swallows. He has publicly volunteered, several times, that he plans to buy the team at some point in the future. When he finally runs the joint, it is likely that he will fine any player who swings at the first pitch or sac bunts (unless it's a pitcher, of course). Follow him on Twitter: @chrispellegrini
The season is nearly two months old, and Dave and Christopher have finally sat down to discuss the ups and downs (but mostly the latter) of the 2013 campaign as it has unfolded thus far. Here’s some of what to expect: A new TSP sponsor to help compensate for the sorry start to the season. [...]
May 19th, 2013 Tokyo Swallows 0 Tohoku Golden Eagles 1 Streak: Lost 1 Last 5: LLWWL (Kleenex Stadium Miyagi) Your Swallows headed north for a pair of games in Tohoku, hoping to build on the home run-fueled wins of the previous two nights (game reports here and here). But they were going to need [...]
May 12th, 2013 Hanshin Tigers 4 Tokyo Swallows 2 Streak: Lost 4 Last 5: WLLLL (Botchan Stadium - Matsuyama) Tokyo got an early lead and held onto it for most of the game thanks to Yagi’s solid start, but Hanshin won the game on a three-run effort in the top of the eighth. And guess [...]
May 5th, 2013 Tokyo Swallows 7 Hanshin Tigers 5 Streak: Won 1 Last 5: LLLLW (Koshien) Holy crap, this has been a streaky last couple of weeks. And with all the injuries we’re dealing with right now, the fun ain’t gonna stop. After losing four on the trot, Tokyo finally got its act back together. [...]
April 28th, 2013 Yomiuri Giants 1 Tokyo Swallows 2 Streak: Won 5 Last 5: WWWWW (Meiji Jingu Stadium) Tokyo went into this contest looking for its first sweep of the 2013 campaign, and hoping to seal the deal for the home team was lefty Ryousuke Yagi. And he did remarkably well in his fifth start [...]
April 27th, 2013 Yomiuri Giants 2 Tokyo Swallows 4 Streak: Won 4 Last 5: LWWWW (Meiji Jingu Stadium) Your Tokyo Swallows won their second series on the trot tonite, and it’s never more satisfying than when said victory comes at the expense of Yomiuri’s patronizing, piggly swagger. And guess who was finally dealt his first [...]
This is the first .gif that I’ve ever made in my life, and I think that it may be the first one that’s ever been featured on this site. This is my tribute to those who made it to yesterday’s game and stayed all the way through the 12th inning.
April 21st, 2013 Tokyo Swallows 0 Hanshin Tigers 5 Streak: Lost 5 Last 5: LLLLL (Koshien) And it’s five losses in a row after another rough day at the plate for your Tokyo Swallows. Yup, just three hits. All three hits were doubles (one each for Morioka, Milledge, and Tanaka). Hanshin rookie, Fujinami, only [...]
April 14, 2013 Tokyo Swallows 0 Yomiuri Giants 2 Streak: Lost 4 Last 5: WLLLL (Tokyo Dome) The Swallows sent Yagi to the mound to face Utsumi and try to stave off a sweep in the crosstown rivals’ first series of the season. Meanwhile, Yomiuri was looking to keep its perfect home record intact. But [...]
April 10th, 2013 Tokyo Swallows 4 Chunichi Dragons 2 Streak: Won 1 Last 5: LLWLW (Nagoya Dome) Tokyo’s two-man, high-kicking Chorus Line of Yasuhiro Ogawa and Kazuhiro Hatakeyama ruled the day as the Swallows managed to avoid a second consecutive dropped series. Chunichi’s Hector Luna was the only other player to have a [...]
