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The story
In a Climax Series game, Yomiuri Giants reliever Raidel Martinez surrendered a hit that tied the score, and 5ch’s “Nandemo Jikkyo” (anything-goes live-commentary) board exploded. Threads buzzed with the nickname “Tsunidora” — a riff on the moniker he carried during his Chunichi Dragons days — as fans rehashed how a reliever signed for one of the highest salaries in NPB keeps failing to deliver when it matters most. Talk also spread to the quality of the pitch Dowake hit, pitching coach Inoue’s decision on when to make the switch, and the first-inning sacrifice bunt, with fans split on the team’s overall strategy.
What people said
He could've gone at least one more inning, or until he put a runner on
Belt-high right down the middle — an absolute meatball, textbook homer pitch lmaooooooooo
https://video.twimg.com/amplify_video/2108820577821843456/vid/avc1/1280×720/x7YzdhM7Lxp_4dpv.mp4
That's even more pathetic than me — a 30-something corporate drone who's never had a girlfriend and is still a virgin
No, you're the pathetic one here
Nah, you're definitely the more pathetic one, face it
Can you even count that if the team never made the postseason to begin with?
Classic reminder: he never actually pitched in one
Huh, gotcha, thanks
yeah that pitch really was soft
He's probably slacking off and not preparing properly
He blew it in this year's October 1st game against the Tigers though
Already forgot about getting hit by Oyama?
He's blown the save against the Tigers twice already
This guy's useless when it actually counts
Even once the game was basically decided, he's still incredible at blowing it
And bunting against a hitter batting .500 against them this year, no less
even though it did end up scoring a run
Any sensible team prioritizes resting pitchers for next season, so they're not even trying that hard in CS to begin with
honestly, this whole event that only Yokohama (DeNA) seems fired up about should just end already
Tsunidora, quit hiding behind 'resting pitchers for the CS' 😡
Although apparently the Giants' ace and closer both pitched today, fyi
Nobody could've predicted this weakness — choking when it matters most — back in his Chunichi days
Background and key points of debate
The Climax Series (CS) is a short, win-or-go-home playoff in which the top pennant-race finishers battle for a spot in the Japan Series, so a single run carries far more weight than in a regular-season game. The “Tsunidora” nickname that kept popping up in the thread plays on the fact that Martinez made his name as a pitcher during his Chunichi Dragons days — it’s become a go-to jab trotted out whenever he fails, no matter how many years have passed since he left the team. Opinions split over whether his past meltdowns against the Tigers justify branding him “weak in the clutch,” or whether this much outrage over a single blown lead is overblown. The arguments over the first-inning sacrifice bunt and the pitching change likewise reflect a broader divide specific to the CS — go all-in for the win now versus manage the roster with next season in mind — so much of the disagreement in the thread comes down to which team-building philosophy a fan favors, rather than a clear right or wrong.
※This article excerpts and summarizes the 5ch (Nandemo Jikkyo G) thread “Raidel Martinez wwwwwwwwweeee.”
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