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Holy salkow, Batman, Miki’s back! Yes, Japan’s very own Babe on Ice, Miki Ando, roared back to form in the opening event of the Grand Prix figure skating series, not only winning October’s Skate America competition in Connecticut, but overshadowing younger teen star Mao Asada, everybody’s current tip for greatness. Ando, of course, was panned after finishing a disappointing 15th at the Turin Olympics, but she’s lost a bit of chunkiness and taken her skating to a higher level; maybe now she will start to fulfill her promise. Next up on the calendar is the NHK Trophy from November 30 to December 3 in Nagano. Japan’s women skaters are hot right now. Catch them while you can. FV See sports listings for details.
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By
Fred Varcoe
Big guns back in Japan Series
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Giants
slugger Yoshinobu Takahashi
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If Hideki Matsui of the Yomiuri Giants had scripted his farewell
to Japanese baseball, he couldn't have done any better
than this year-in the hunt for the Triple Crown all
year (he missed out only on batting average), leading the
Giants to an overwhelming first place in the Central League,
and setting up a season-ending finale against the "Giants"
of the Pacific League, the Seibu Lions. Of course, he hasn't
said he'll be leaving Japan, and coming so close to
the Triple Crown might give him pause for thought, as might
his $5 million salary and the power of the Yomiuri group.
In truth, he could be tempted by offers from both sides of
the Pacific Ocean, as could his namesake on the Lions, Kazuo
Matsui.
Where Hideki "Godzilla" Matsui is all power
and brawn, the Lions' Matsui is all style. Godzilla
(a name he picked up as a high school baseball star) is your
average hit-'em-over-the-fence superstar, big on RBIs
and home runs, not so hot on running and fielding. Kazuo is
a rare switch-hitter (i.e. can swing from both sides of the
plate), an outstanding infielder and a swift runner. His numbers
may not look quite as impressive as Godzilla's, but
his overall game and importance to the team are just as significant.
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| Seibu Lions' ace
Daisuke Matsuzaka |
Of course, while it's neat to make a Matsui vs Matsui
battle the mini-focus of the Japan Series, the real battle
will be between Godzilla and Seibu's own home run monster
Alex Cabrera, the Venezuelan slugger who blasted a record-equaling
55 round-trippers for the Lions this year (and you have to
wonder when the majors will come calling for him once again).
Cabrera has been awesome from the moment he arrived in Japan
and seemed almost certain to break the Japan home run record
of 55 last year but missed out largely due to an unexpected
summer slump. He's made up for it this year by being
consistently dangerous, and any major league scouts coming
over for the Japan Series could end up drooling in their seats
if a home run derby erupts.
While the big names on the two teams have performed predictably,
the teams themselves have, in truth, done better than expected.
In Wayne Graczyk's 2002 baseball guide, of 32 writers
polled for their predictions, 19 of the scribes went with
the Giants in the Central League while only six chose the
Lions to win the Pacific League. Both teams had dispensed
with charismatic managers after the 2001 season (the Giants'
Shigeo Nagashima and Osamu Higashio of the Lions) and went
into 2002 with lower-profile replacements: Tatsunori Hara
for the Giants and Haruki Ihara for the Lions. While the removal
of Nagashima as skipper of the Giants was almost bound to
improve the team, Ihara's status at Seibu was unclear
and no one was sure if he could stamp his authority on the
team.
That he has, and the Lions romped away with the league by
15 games. The Giants clinched in similar convincing style
with Hara having better luck (i.e. judgment) than his predecessor.
Hideki Matsui and Cabrera narrowly missed out on triple crowns
but still made huge contributions to their teams. In fact,
both teams relied more on their bats than their pitchers in
winning the titles, with the Giants scoring a whopping 691
runs, 151 more than second-placed Yakult; the Lions racked
up 669, nearly 50 more than the Daiei Hawks.
The indications are that it will be an open and exciting Japan
Series with the big guns ready to end the season with a big
bang.
Photos courtesy of Seibu Lions,
Yomiuri Giants
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