It was perfect in seven innings but it’s hard to understand the controversy over changing pitchers after 84 pitches Criticism
The pitcher, who had a perfect march until the seventh inning, was replaced after 84 pitches. Shoki Murakami (25), a right-hander of the Hanshin Tigers in the Japanese professional baseball league, pitched his life, but his first win was also lost following his replacement during the perfect.
Murakami started the 2023 Japanese professional baseball away game against the Yomiuri Giants at Tokyo Dome on the 12th and struck out five in seven innings, making a perfect pitch without a hit and no outs. The fastball speed was up to 148km and the average was in the early and mid-140km range, so the ball was not fast, but he threw a mixture of forkballs, two-seam, and cutters to control pinpoints in every corner of the strike zone.
Tokyo Dome was buzzed by the perfect march of a new pitcher who has yet to win his first professional debut. However, in the top of the eighth inning when Hanshin was leading 1-0, Hanshin manager Akinobu Okada replaced Murakami by using Fumihito Haraguchi as a pinch hitter during the pitcher’s at-bat.
Murakami’s number of pitches was only 84, but Okada made a bold decision to replace it. However, relief Daichi Ishii, who came up in the bottom of the eighth inning, hit a solo home run over the left-center wall on the first pitch by Kazuma Okamoto, making it a 1-1 tie. Murakami’s first victory requirement was eliminated.
Although Hanshin won 2-1 after a neck-and-neck race in the 10th inning of extra time, controversy arose over Okada’s decision to replace the number of pitches in seven perfect innings in 84 pitches. Okada said it was difficult to allow Murakami, who lacked experience in an unstable lead by one point, to challenge the perfect game until the end.
According to Japanese media such as “Daily Sports,” Okada said, “I thought about whether I could do a perfect job in my head. “I knew I was in good condition, but I didn’t know I would throw this well,” he said adding, “I didn’t think much about replacing it.” “If it was Roki Sasaki (Jiba Lotte), I would have kept throwing even 1-0, but Murakimi couldn’t have kept throwing unless it was 3-0 situation.”
However, Takashi Nishimoto, a former special pitcher with 165 wins in Japanese professional baseball and also a pitching coach for the Hanwha Eagles in the KBO League in 2015, criticized it head-on.
Nishimoto said, “Some people may think it’s natural to replace the team for a team victory in a one-point lead. However, I don’t know if it’s because I was a pitcher, but it was a difficult replacement to understand. He hit a tie-breaking solo home run right after his replacement. He went to overtime and won, but if he lost, it would have been the worst situation, and big damage could have come in future fights. “If Murakami had kept throwing and lost, it would have ended with a simple loss, but there was no need to replace him at such a risk,” he pointed out 카지노승리방법
Murakami, who smiled even after being replaced, said, “After finishing the seventh inning, I came to the dugout and was notified of the replacement. “I thought it was just a replacement without feeling anything,” he said adding, “I could afford to throw a little more, but I’m glad the team won.” It was also good to throw until the seventh inning. He said, “I threw it with the mind of not sending out useless runners without being conscious of anything and not sending out walks led to good results.” Regarding Ishii’s first win with a Blon save, Murakami also said, “It’s a relief that the team didn’t lose. Ishii, who blocked three batters after hitting a home run, is amazing. “I may cause trouble to Ishii in the future,” he said, not forgetting his consideration for his colleagues
