The Nippon Ham Fighters miracle is ongoing, as they crept to within 1.5 games of the Softbank Hawks and a game nearer Seibu in the Pacific League pennant chase with an 8-3 win over the Lions at Seibu Dome Saturday. Yu Darvish started for the Fighters and picked up his eighth win in a row with five innings of three run, four hit ball in a lackluster showing, but it was slightly superior to that of opposiing moundsman Hideaki Wakui, who was stoned for four runs on seven hits in five innings. 

Nippon Ham leftfielder Hichori Morimoto walked to commence the battle and was thrown out attempting to steal shortly thereafter. Wakui walked two more and gave up a hit to load the bases. But centerfielder Tsuyoshi Shinjo popped up to catcher Toru Hosokawa. So the aggression on the basepaths cost the Fighters. 

But in the second, third baseman Jose Macias reached on an infield hit and went to second on a sacrifice. One out later, Morimoto doubled to center and it was 1-0. 

In the third, first baseman Michihiro Ogasawara plowed a Wakui pitch into the rightfield stands. DH Fernando Seguignol doubled to left. Rightfielder Atsunori Inaba thumped one into the rightcenterfield seats for a 4-0 lead. 

Nippon Ham loaded the bases in the fifth with nobody out and then resorted to Mariner baseball, so the runners barely escaped being arrested for loitering but fell victim to the gravitational pull of the bases they were standing on. Or something. 

Darvish was crusing through the Lions lineup for the first four innings, allowing only a hit and a walk. However, in the fifth, DH Jeff Liefer walked and centerfielder Shogo Akada singled to left. The runners moved up on a sacrifice. One out later, rightfielder Kazuki Fukuchi walked and the bags were juiced. But shortstop Yasuyuki Kataoka popped out in foul territory near first to fritter the chance away. 

They were more determined in the sixth, though. Darvish walked third baseman Yoshihito Ishii, the third time that Darvish had issued a free pass to the leadoff hitter. First baseman Alex Cabrera doubled to left and Wada followed with am RBI double to right. Why Cabrera didn't score on that is beyond me. Manager Trey Hillman dialed 911 for Masaru Takeda. One out later, Akada singled to center and Cabrera padded in. Hiroshi Hirao, pinch hitting for catcher Ginjiro Sumitani, singled to center to redeem Wada to  make it 4-3. A groundout and a flyout, though, quieted things down. 

Seguignol kicked off the seventh by murdering a delivery form Hironori Matsunaga and tucked it into the centerfield bleachers to put it at 5-3. 

Fighters reliever Hisashi Takeda walked two in the eighth and got away with it. 

Tomoki Hoshino was brought in for Seibu for the top of the ninth and Ogasawara singled to right and, one out later, Inaba doubled to left. Shuichiro Osada came on and struck Shinjo out. Backup third baseman Yuji Iiyama was plunked to jam the basepaths. Reserve catcher Satoshi Nakajima doubled to left and cleaned up the community to fortify the Nippon Ham lead to 8-3. 

Seibu got two men on against Hideki Okajima in the bottom of the inning, so Yoshinori Tateyama was called on and retired the next two batters on popups to ice it. This si the first time in eight years that Nippon Ham was 20 games over .500. 

Wakui is 2-3 with a 5.40 ERA in his laast six starts. 

For Nippon Ham, Seguignol was 4-5 and is at .280. He also has a 13 game hit streak. Macias was 2-4 and is at .222. 

For Seibu, Liefer was 0-3 with a walk and is at .252. Cabrera was 1-5 with two strikeouts and is at .316. 

The Chiba Lotte Marines drew three deuces in the middle innings and three more in the eighth and won it going away 11-6 against Orix at Osaka Dome Saturday. Naoyuki Shimizu started for the Marines and got rocked for six runs on nne hits in four innings and therefore passed up an opportunity for a victory, which went to reliever Koji Takagi instead after he wove two perfect innings. 

Shinya Nakayama started for the Buffaloes and was abused for five runs on seven hits in 4.1 innings for a no decision. The loss was hung on reliever Kazuya Motoyanagi and he is now 3-2.

Orix got off on the good foot in the bottom of the first when third baseman Makoto Shiozaki dribbled a little ground ball near the line and beat it out with one out and rightfielder Karim Garcia singled to center. DH Kazuhiro Kiyohara got a fastball right down the pipe and creamed it over the centerfield wall for a 3-0 lead. One out later, shortstop Mitsutaka Goto lined one up the leftcenter alley. Goto made the turn at second and tried for third, but the relay from centerfielder Akira Otsuka was in time to have him tagged out. 

Lotte trimmed that a bit in the second when rightfielder Val Pascucci got aboard on a one out infield hit and third baseman Toshiaki Imae doubled to rightcenter. Leftfielder Matt Watson grounded to short and Pascucci scored to make it 3-1. 

They subsequently leveled it in the fourth, as Pascucci walked with one out and, following another out, got a fastball and ratcheted it into the centerfield stands to put it at 3-3. 

However, in the Buffaloes turn, leftfielder Yoshitomo Tani walked and Goto singled to right. First baseman Ryota Aikawa got a fastball on the inner half of the plate and lifted it into the centerfield bleachers and Orix was back in front 6-3. 

Lotte responded in the fifth with a one out walk to Otsuka, a double to the centerfield wall by second baseman Takeshi Aono and a double into the leftcenter alley by first baseman Kazuya Fukuura for two RBIs to make it 6-5. 

Orix would get a single in the bottom of the inning and that would be all for the duration. 

Imae singled to right in the sixth against Motoyanagi and Watson walked. The runners moved up on a sac bunt. Sub catcher Toshiya Tsuji smashed a hanging slider to the wall in leftcenter and the runners came flying in for a 7-6 lead.

In the seventh, DH Benny Agbayani lined one by centerfielder Arihito Muramatsu and, bad knees and all, ended up at third with a triple. One out later and with Imae at the dish, Agbayani took off for the plate and Imae got the bunt down for some insurance at 8-6. 

And it would become a romp in the eighth, as Otsuka singled to left and Aono singled to center on a hit and run play, Otsuka speeding into third. Fukuura flew out to right and Otsuka tagged up and crossed. One out later, Pascucci pumped a breakng ball into the leftfield stands and it was 11-6, which was your final. 

Shimizu registered his 1000th career inning. 

On coming back next season, Watson remarked that his family loves Japan. Pascucci is also hoping to be back in Chiba in 2007. Manager Bobby Valentine says that both men showed growth this season. 

For Orix, Garcia was 1-4 with two strikeouts and is at .229. Jason Grabowski strucukout in a pinch hit appearance and is at .147.

For Lotte, Agbayani was 1-5 with two strikeouts and is at .275. Pascucci was 2-4 with a walk and is at .222. Watson was 1-2 with two walks and is at .286. 

Rakuten starter Yasuhiro Ichiba came out of the gate with four perfect innings, but he was touched for a run in the fifth and three in the sixth and that was enough to stain him with his 13th defeat because Softbank starter Kazumi  Saito just manhandled the Eagles hitters with eight shutout innings of three hit ball while striking out five and walking none to claim his 16th shiroboshi despite a stiff shoulder. The Hawks have now taken their last four and they rose to first place by half a game over Seibu. 

Saito was never in any trouble, as he didn't permit more than one hit in any inning. 

He would finally be put in a winning posture in the fifth when Hawks leftfielder Nobuhiko Matsunaka got a 2-2 fastball on the outer half of the plate and hooked it into the rightfield stands for a 1-0 lead. 

In the sixth, second baseman Yuichi Honda singled to center and, one out later, centerfielder Naoyuki Omura laid down what was supposed to be a sac bunt. But third baseman Jose Fernandez chose to go to second with it and it was late. Kawasaki got a pitch up in the zone and roasted it to the leftfield wall for a two RBI triple. DH Hidenori Tanoue flied out to center and Kawasaki tagged up and crossed to widen it to 4-0. 

Saito retired the last eight men in a row before he had a seat on the bench while Takahiro Mahara went to the center of the diamond and struck the first two batters out. Fernandez got a 93mph fastball and throttled it into the rightfield bleachers to make it 4-1. Mahara blew leftfielder Rick Short away and it was see you later. 

Ichiba has lost his last four decisions. 

Outfielder Teppei Tsuchiya returned to action for Rakuten in centerfield after three weeks dealing with a knee sprain. He was 1-4 on the night.  

The shoulder stiffness by Saito is rather ominous because he has a history of shoulder problems. Ideally, they would have him miss a start, but the pennant race is so close that isn't really an option right now unless it gets worse. 

For Softbank, first baseman Julio Zuleta was 1-4 and is at .286. Third baseman Jolbert Cabrera was 0-3 and is at .270. 

For Rakuten, Fernandez was 1-4 and is at .308. Short was 1-4 and is at .311. Rightfielder Eric Valent was 0-3 with two strikeouts and is at .192. 

The president of the team's parent firm says that he liked the job that manager Tsutomu Itoh did this season, though he also added that the final decision will be left up to the president of the ballclub itself. Nevertheless, and this is a no brainer, that you can expect the former catcher will be back in the pilot's seat for next year. 

Softbank For those interested, it will be half price beer night at Fukuoka Dome on the sixth.