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The story
In Central League action on September 19, the Hiroshima Carp defeated the Hanshin Tigers 5-1. Kuribayashi pitched well, allowing just one run into the 8th inning, while Keisuke Sato hit a leadoff home run and Sakakura went 2-for-4 with 3 RBIs. The result erased Hanshin’s game lead over the second-place Yomiuri Giants, throwing the pennant race into chaos. On 5ch threads, fans voiced unease over the mood on the Tigers’ own bench — catcher Fushimi cracking up after Sakamoto struck out, and Kinami smirking after Kumagai’s throwing error — alongside a wave of criticism questioning manager Kyuji Fujikawa’s defensive substitutions and bullpen timing. Meanwhile, some predicted the October 1 clash with the Giants at Koshien Stadium would effectively decide the pennant.
Hiroshima 1 0 0 1 0 1 0 2 0 ｜5
Hanshin 1 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 ｜1
[Battery]
Source: nikkansports.com / Original article here
What people said
Reverse magic happens sometimes, y'know
It's not breaking any rules at all
Murakami's stunned
https://x.com/tomoyapisuke/status/2101248462297956711
That's infield-defense-level footwork
The bench is the problem
Wind was strong, can't be helped
Classic Tateishi, dude knows comedy lol
[Entertainment] Yumiko Udo faces online abuse after hosting a Hanshin Tigers cheering special
"Truly disrespectful" to the players and manager — shares her thoughts as a fan
https://hayabusa9.5ch.io/test/read.cgi/mnewsplus/1789818122/
But the other four teams are handing the Giants insane assists
It's the Tigers' (lit. "Chin," a mocking 5ch nickname) own losing streak that's the real problem
· Sakamoto strikes out → Fushimi cracks up laughing on the bench
· Kumagai's bad throw → Kinami smirks on the bench
Something's off with this team…
That big laugh was him arguing to the plate umpire that the pitch was low
There's no way he can play shortstop
Whoever wins probably takes the pennant
Which stadium is it at?
If it's Koshien, that's basically the 1973 'geta-throwing' riot all over again (a famous incident where furious Koshien fans hurled wooden sandals onto the field after a Tigers collapse)
Sakamoto and the others would get pummeled lol
The decisive game is October 1 at Koshien
Whoever wins that one probably takes the title
Doubtful it drags out that far
It's not gonna drag out, it's basically over already
Whatever happens, this is Umeno's last season with the team
Probably retirement or a move to another team
And then in the draft…. they'll take a rookie catcher
The real problem is they don't have any catchers in their 20s to begin with
That's probably how it goes
Same for Nishi too
Question is whether any team in Japan will actually pick him up
Hanshin might end up in a competing bid this draft, but I think it's got to be Watabe, the catcher from Aoyama Gakuin — no other choice
Defensive shuffling — swapping in new players led to a string of errors and runs
They'd been winning with Fushimi catching, switched to starting Sakamoto instead, and lost
Pulled Murakami early even though he still had gas left, tried to force the issue, but the lineup just kept making weak outs and scored nothing
The inning right after pulling Murakami, the reliever got hit and gave up a run
With the bullpen shuffling piling up, they coughed up the insurance run too
You said everything I wanted to say
Exactly right
He's hopelessly lacking in game instincts. Same as that machine-gun bullpen-switching spree early in the season — he's just winging it with no real thought behind it.
The manager's been dragging the team down all season long
And on top of that, Hanshin's farm-team manager is terrible too, so as an organization it's already fallen apart
SoftBank's taking the title this year
Unless they pull some boneheaded move in the Pacific League Climax Series, I don't think that's changing
Everyone would probably agree SoftBank is the strongest of all 12 teams
Would that be the first-ever title won under an interim manager?
But next year the Giants will go back to a homegrown manager
Outsiders don't get to manage this team….
Not them lol, I mean Yokohama — their actual strength right now is on a totally different level
They'll probably force the pick through
Makes you wonder since when Hanshin built a pipeline into Aoyama Gakuin….
They took Shimomura and never once demoted him to the developmental roster even in that condition — they must've been taking such good care of him with Watabe already in mind
Heard Rakuten's eyeing him too, but I think Hanshin will go for the pick even if it means a competing bid
They've been treating the injured Shimomura carefully too, so they've built a connection
Background and Key Points
The Tigers won the pennant in 2025, but as the 2026 season heads into its final stretch, they haven’t been able to pull away — instead they’re locked in a tight scramble with the Giants and Carp. The criticism piling up on the thread over manager Kyuji Fujikawa’s bullpen management and defensive substitutions has been simmering all season, and this loss reignited it. The team’s shortage of catchers in their 20s — a result of the current starting catchers aging — has also been flagged as an organizational problem, which ties into the speculation that Hanshin might make a dedicated pick for Aoyama Gakuin University catcher Watabe in this fall’s draft. Worth noting: the post referencing the online abuse directed at announcer Yumiko Udo links to a separate news story unrelated to this game, not an exchange between posters in this particular thread.
※This article is excerpted and summarized from the 5ch (Geinou/Sports Express+) thread “[Baseball] Central League T 1-5 C [9/19] Carp’s Kuribayashi allows 1 run into the 8th, Keisuke Sato’s leadoff HR, Sakakura 2-for-4 with 3 RBIs, Hanshin ties Giants for 2nd place“.
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