Indians' Aguilar, Cubs' Lake boost teams to victory

Indians prospect Jesus Aguilar clubbed his eighth homer for Caracas, while Cubs outfielder Junior Lake drove in the winner for Estrellas.

Winter League roundup: Aguilar belts eighth homer

Major Leaguers lead Licey to victory; Lake hits game winner for Estrellas

By Quinn Roberts and Andrew Simon / MLB.com | 11/4/2013 12:07 A.M. ET

Venezuelan Winter League

Caracas 7, Caribes 0

Jesus Aguilar, the Indians' No. 17 prospect, provided the big blow for Caracas, smacking his eighth home run of the season. The three-run shot came in the fifth inning, when Caracas extended its lead to 7-0. Starter Tiago Da Silva tossed 4 2/3 scoreless frames and was backed up by five relievers, while Daniel Mayora added a homer and three RBIs. Caribes notched 10 hits, only one fewer than Caracas, but went 0-for-7 with runners in scoring position and stranded 10.

Zulia 2, Lara 1

Zulia scored its runs on a third-inning error to take a 2-0 lead, then held on to win in a contest that featured no extra-base hits and 12 stranded runners. Cesar Valdez picked up his first win by holding Lara to a run on four hits over six innings, while striking out seven. His bullpen followed with three scoreless frames, and Hassan Pena nailed down the save. Paulo Orlando notched two of Lara's four hits, while Zulia leadoff man Ender Inciarte reached base three times.

Margarita 7, La Guaira 2

Antoan Richardson and Giants prospect Adam Duvall both clubbed two-run homers for Margarita, which made the most of its seven hits while benefiting from a pair of La Guaira errors. Luis Chirinos gave up one run over 5 1/3 innings for the win, while Alex Cabrera provided the La Guaira offense with a homer and two RBIs.

Magallanes 16, Aragua 0

Magallanes pounded out 20 hits in its blowout victory and didn't waste any time, taking a 5-0 lead in the bottom of the first inning. Aragua pulled starter Omar Poveda after he surrendered six hits and a walk without recording an out. Former big leaguer Lew Ford went 4-for-5 with a homer, two RBIs and three runs scored, and Mets prospect Allan Dykstra added a pinch-hit homer for Magallanes, which got three hits apiece from Ezequiel Carrera and Adonis Garcia. Mitch Lively picked up his fourth win by holding Aragua to two hits over six innings.

Mexican Pacific League

Los Mochis 4, Mexicali 1

Los Mochis was led by center fielder Sergio Perez, who went 1-for-3 with a two-run double. Emmanuel Avila also went 2-for-4 with an RBI. Thomas Melgarejo got his second win of the season, allowing one run on four hits in five innings. Irwin Delgado took his second loss of the season, allowing four runs on five hits in 3 1/3 innings.

Obregon 6, Hermosillo 2

Obregon scored six runs in the first four innings to pull away early in the contest. Barbaro Canizares went 3-for-3 with a two-run home run in the third inning. Dan Robertson and Donald Lutz also had two hits. Steve Hammond got his first win of the season, allowing just one run on four hits in seven innings of work.

Navojoa 9, Guasave 4 (7 innings)

Navojoa belted out 15 hits and all but one starter had a hit in the game. Alan Sanchez and Rolando Acosta each led the way with three hits. Delwyn Young also went 2-for-4 with a home run and four RBIs. Josh Geer took his first loss of the season, allowing seven runs on 10 hits in 3 1/3 innings. He also surrendered two home runs.

Guasave 3, Navojoa 1 (7 innings)

Guasave finally picked up a weekend win in Game 2 thanks to some timely home runs. Jesus Cota had a solo home run in the third inning before Jose Rodriguez belted another solo shot in the fourth inning. Juan Delgadillo picked up his fourth win of the season, allowing one run on four hits in 5 1/3 innings.

Mazatlan-Culiacan: Postponed (rain)

Dominican Winter League

Licey 5, Escogido 2

All but two Licey starters had hits in Sunday's contest. Major Leaguers Dee Gordon, Yamaico Navarro, Juan Francisco and Jordany Valdespin all had two hits. Chris Volstad also got his second win of the season, allowing just two hits in five innings. Reliever Edward Valdez took the loss, allowing two runs on four hits in 1 2/3 innings.

Estrellas 3, Toros 2 (10 innings)

Estrellas played some small ball in the 10th inning to plate the game-winning run. Cubs outfielder Junior Lake hit an RBI single to center field after a single by Mario Mercedes and a sacrifice bunt by Juan Diaz. Jose Valverde took the loss, allowing one run on two hits.

Gigantes-Aguilas: Postponed (rain)

Puerto Rican League

Carolina 5, Santurce 1

Helped by a few Santurce errors and an Anthony Garcia two-run home run in the ninth, Carolina got the win. Ruben Gotay also went 2-for-4 with a double and a run scored. Nao Higashihama got his first win of the season, allowing one run on three hits in six innings of work. He also struck out five.

Mayaguez-Ponce: Postponed (rain)

Mayora and Aguilar connect back to back | Photo: Carlos Eduardo Rámirez

CARACAS-

The offensive Caracas Lions produced a lot of runs subjecting the Caribbean of Anzoátegui to a 7-0 setback.

The Lions scored an average of 3.6 runs in their last five games before last night in which they used the offensive weapons of Jesus Aguilar and Daniel Mayora, who combined for four hits, including two homers, three runs scored and six RBIs.

The Lions opened the scoring in the second inning. Wladimir Sutil singled and advanced to third thanks to Carlos Rivero's basehit. The Increased the lead with two more in the third inning and added four more runs in the fifth the big hit off the bat of Jesus Aguilar, a three run homer followed by Daniel Mayora's home run.

Most damage too place against Tribe starter Paolo Espino, who was punished with five runs in 4.1 innings.

Around the farm: November 3, 2013
Paolo Espino

By Arthur Kinney

November 4, 2013

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Around the Farm (ATF) takes a quick look at some of the daily performances by Indians prospects. This is a special fall and winter ball version of ATF that recaps all the offseason action by Indians players in the Arizona Fall League and the Caribbean Leagues. The positions listed below are where the player was playing in the game.

Note, the Arizona Fall League was off on Sunday.

VENEZUELAN WINTER LEAGUE

Paolo Espino (Caribes de Anzoategui, SP) - L (1-2), 4.1 IP. 7 H, 5 R (all earned), 2 BB, 3 K, 1 HBP - Espino continues to struggle in LVBP play. In five outings and 18.2 IP, he has allowed 16 earned runs on 27 hits. Hopefully, he can begin pitching more consistently soon.
Jesus Aguilar (Leones del Caracas, 1B) - 2-4, 2 R, 1 HR, 3 RBI, 1 K - Aguilar continues to dominate the LVBP as he is now batting .357 with 8 HR and 24 RBI through 21 games. He is just having a monster offseason as he has arguably been the best hitter in Venezuela.

Ezequiel Carrera (Navegantes del Magallanes, CF) - 3-6, 2 R, 1 2B, 1 RBI - Carrera has a big night, as does almost everyone in the Navegantes lineup in a 16-0 win over the Tigres de Aragua. He looks like he is starting to put things together and has been on a roll of late as he is hitting .350 with a .447 on-base percentage in his last 10 games.

DOMINICAN WINTER LEAGUE

Juan Diaz (Estrellas Orientales, SS) - 1-3, 1 2B, 2 K, 1 Sac Bunt - Diaz has a productive night at the plate with the double and sac bunt, but he racks up two strikeouts. That is now 12 strikeouts in 12 games.

Jerry Gil (Estrellas Orientales, RP) - H (3), 1 IP, perfect, 2 K - Gil's inning of perfect relief earns him his third hold of the LIDOM season.

Jose Ramirez (Toros del Este, 3B) - 3-5, 2 R, 1 2B - Ramirez seems to be turning a corner as the calendar turns from October to November. He has hits in his last three games and is 6-for-15 during that span.

Erik Gonzalez (Leones del Escogido, SS) - 1-3, 1 BB, 1 SB - Gonzalez has a solid night at the plate, continuing a solid winter season. He continues to be one of the bigger surprises in 2013, and he also finally drew his first walk.

PUERTO RICAN WINTER LEAGUE

Carlos Moncrief (Gigantes de Carolina, RF) - 0-4, 1 K, 1 E - Moncrief has a rough second outing of the LBPRC season, dropping to 1-for-7 on the season and picking up his first error of the winter season. Admittedly, it is hard to take anything away from just two games.

AUSTRALIAN BASEBALL LEAGUE

Ryan Battaglia (Brisbane Bandits, 1B) - 1-2, 1 2B, 3 RBI, 2 BB, 1 K - Battaglia improves on his 0-fer ABL debut on Saturday with this big day. He's been in the ABL a few years now, so his comfort there will hopefully help him shine a little more than normal with the bat.

Ezequiel Carrera

Isn't he a FA?

I'm assuming he is still Indian property:

Ezequiel Carrera of

1 year (2013)
1 year (2013)
re-signed by Cleveland 3/11/13
claimed by Philadelphia off waivers 4/2/13 after being DFA by Cleveland 3/25/13
claimed by Cleveland off waivers 5/2/13 after being DFA by Philadelphia 4/30/13
DFA by Cleveland 5/5/13, sent outright to Triple-A 5/7/13
1 year (2012)
re-signed by Cleveland 3/9/12
1 year (2011)
re-signed by Cleveland 2/11
1 year (2010)
contract purchased by Seattle 11/20/09
re-signed by Seattle 2/26/10
acquired by Cleveland in trade from Seattle 6/27/10 (Branyan deal)
acquired by Seattle in trade from NY Mets 12/11/08 (J.J. Putz deal)
signed by NY Mets as amateur free agent from Venezuela
ML service: 0.144 (through 2012)

Sancti Spiritus Gets First Win in the 53rd Cuban Baseball Season

Elsa Ramos en Monday, November 4, 2013

Sancti Spiritus’ Roosters obtained their first victory in the 53rd Cuban Baseball National Season by beating Guantanamo’s Indians 6×5 in a close fought encounter.

The game at the Van Troi park, in the eastern province of Guantanamo, started wrong for the visiting team, whose ace Ismel Jimenez allowed three early runs which caused his squad to come from behind.

However, the star hurler from Trinidad, managed to recover and allowed his teammates to tie and take the lead to finally conquer his first triumph in the recently opened 2013-2014 baseball championship.

Roosters’ key men at the offense played the roles as expected. Thus, Yunier Mendoza shot a double to tie actions to 3, and Eriel Sanchez and Livan Monteagudo brought over home plate the decisive runs.

Also important were Duniesky Barroso (4-2, 1RBI) , Yoandy Baguet (4-3, 3 R) and Frederich Cepeda (3-1, 2R), especially the first two who were included in the starting line up due to the absences of the Gourriel brothers.

So, Sancti Spiritus’ win was a product of team work, in which the three areas combined to finally suceed.

Young Carlos Sierra was essential in Ismel Jimenez getting his first victory of the series as he got the last three outs of the game when Indians had narrowed the scored 6×4.

Sancti Spiritus and Guantanamo will continue their subseries during Monday (7:15pm local time) and Tuesday (1:15pm).

The rest of the games ended as follows: Villa Clara 2×1 Matanzas, Santiago de Cuba 6×3 Industriales, Holguin 2×1 Ciego de Avila, Las Tunas 7×0 Artemisa, and Mayabeque 4×3 Cienfuegos.

Winter Ball Notebook: Naquin is making strides in the AFL

Tyler Naquin's strong showing leads to spot in AFL Rising Stars game

By Steve Orbanek

November 4, 2013

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The final winter league started play this week as competition began in the Puerto Rican Winter League on Friday. With all the various leagues now in action, Cleveland Indians fans can just sit back and watch as a number of Tribe players work to hone their skills this fall and winter.

We keep waiting and hoping for a number of players to break out this winter, and there certainly have been numerous candidates. In particular, Jesus Aguilar has left a strong impression, but the exact same thing can also be said for the AFL’s Tyler Naquin and the DWL’s Erik Gonzalez.

With a slew of new players beginning play in the PWL this week, even more players now have an opportunity to make a lasting impression with the Indians. Who will be next to impress? Well, that’s a question that will certainly be answered in the days to come.

With that being said, here are some notes deep and shallow in regard to this past week’s winter ball action…

Player of the Week

Tyler Naquin — Outfielder, Surprise Saguaros

5 G, 7-for-21, 6 R, 2 2B, 1 HR, 5 RBI, 2 BB, 3 K, 1 SB

Everyone has been waiting for 2012 first round pick Tyler Naquin to display some power this fall, and the left-handed hitting outfielder did just that this past week as he collected two doubles and a home run. Overall, Naquin is now hitting .360 (27-for-75) in the Arizona Fall League, and it’s impossible to not be impressed with his progress. Perhaps what is most encouraging is the plate discipline that Naquin has shown as he has struck out just 11 times so far and drawn eight walks. This, of course, comes after a season in which Naquin drew just 46 walks and struck out 134 times. Fall leagues like the AFL are all about players continuing to make positive strides while also working on their weaknesses, and it appears as if Naquin is doing just that. The former Texas A&M outfielder was rewarded for his strong performance this past week by earning a spot in the AFL’s Rising Stars game, which was held Saturday night. Naquin again impressed in that contest as he went 1-for-4, but legged out a triple, which seemed destined to be just a double. Few Tribe minor league players have endured the same level of criticism that Naquin has in the past two seasons, but the bottom line is that there really is nothing negative that can be said about his current fall performance.

News & Notes

— Outfielder Carlos Moncrief made his debut Saturday evening in the PWL and proceeded to go 1-for-3 with an RBI. It was especially nice to see Moncrief elect to play in the PWL as he is certainly a prospect with lots to prove this offseason. The left-handed hitting outfielder is coming off a season in which he hit .284/.354/.470 with 17 home runs and 75 RBI in 129 games with Double-A Akron. Moncrief also made tremendous strides in terms of plate discipline as he drew 55 walks and struck out just 98 times, which was a noticeable decrease from any of his previous seasons. Last winter, we saw Jose Ramirez rapidly rise through the Indians’ system thanks to his stellar winter performances. The end result saw Ramirez actually being added to the Indians’ Major League roster in September. Moncrief is a player who has the ability to make a similar impact this winter. After his stellar 2013 season, he has already raised the eyebrows of many in the Indians’ front office, and that will only continue if his winter performance is in line with what he did at Akron.

— The Indians started their offseason with several moves this past week and one of them was the acquisition of left-hander Colt Hynes in exchange for cash. The 28-year-old Hynes is actually competing for Estrellas de Oriente in the DWL, and he’s already made seven appearances thus far. The thought is that the Indians acquired Hynes for the chance that he could become a LOOGY option for the team in the future, and it appears if Estrellas de Oriente is also content to use him in that manner. In his seven appearances thus far, Hynes has yet to record more than one out. However, he also has allowed just three hits and zero runs, so it’s clear that he’s being used in the proper manner. There is no telling as to whether or not Hynes will have a legitimate shot at making the Indians in 2014, but it is interesting to follow his winter ball stats, simply because he seems to be being used in the exact way that he would likely be used in Cleveland. Also, while we can never buy too much into winter ball statistics, you have to be impressed with the results thus far.

— Elvis Araujo made two appearances during this past week. In the first one, the left-hander recorded one out against the only batter that he faced. Yet, on Saturday, Araujo was allowed to face more than just one batter for the first time this winter. In that appearance, the big lefty allowed two hits and one run in 2 1/3 innings of work while also recording one strikeout, which also happened to be his first strikeout so far. It would be nice to see more outings like this from Araujo and hopefully Aguilas del Zulia decides to loosen his leash a bit more as the winter season progresses. The entire 2013 season was basically lost for Araujo, yet he remains an interesting piece to the puzzle because of his size, stuff and for the simple fact that he is left-handed. Araujo is also now 22 years old, so the clock is really not on his side anymore. Now is the time for him to go out and impress the Indians’ front office, and he has the opportunity to do just that this winter. It will be interesting to see where the Indians decide to start him out in 2014, and there also seems to be a good chance that his winter performance may have some bearing on that.

— For much of this notebook, we’ve talked about some of the good, but now it’s time to turn our attention to one of the more negative Indians stories in winter ball right now. Shortstop Ronny Rodriguez has played in nine games for Estrellas de Oriente thus far, and the results have been just downright awful. After going 1-for-4 in his first contest on October 22, Rodriguez has since gone 0-for-16 in eight games. Perhaps the only positive is that Rodriguez has been able to draw three walks during that eight-game span while striking out just two times. Nonetheless, Rodriguez is a player that has always excited Indians fans with his potential, so a performance like this is a tad underwhelming. Rodriguez is coming off an up-and-down 2013 season where he performed okay at the plate and did limit his strikeouts (76 in 116 games), but he also still has struggled with walks (16 in 2013), and his power basically evaporated as he hit just five home runs this past season after hitting 19 in 2012 and 11 in 2011. Of all the Indians players that are playing in the winter leagues, perhaps none need a productive winter season more than Rodriguez. However, unfortunately he has not gotten off to a good start.

After a sluggish start to the winter ball season, Jose is starting to pick it a little. His .225 batting average last week has risen to .298 over the past 4 ball games. I guess 8-18 will do that. Ramirez had 2 of the Toros 4 hits, 1 was his 6th double, and he scored 1 of the Toros 3 runs. Today was his 3rd straight ball game playing at third base.

Toros del Este

ESTRELLAS

Although he did not win, starter Greg Smith, limited the Toros to four hits in six innings and gave no walks, which speaks well of his control ... Baseball Rarity: the six hits the Toros accumulated off of the Stars pitching yesterday left the bats of Jose Ramirez and Eugenio Velez, who distributed them equally .....

Cecchini's day helps Surprise expand division lead

Red Sox No. 7 prospect Garin Cecchini went 2-for-4 with two RBIs as the first-place Saguaros rallied late to stretch their lead over the Desert Dogs to 4 1/2 games

Third baseman's RBI double opens door for five-run eighth inning

By Teddy Cahill / MLB.com | 11/4/2013 7:15 P.M. ET

With Surprise looking to complete another late-innings comeback in the Arizona Fall League, third baseman Garin Cecchini stepped to the plate in the eighth inning Monday with the go-ahead run in scoring position.

Cecchini, a left-handed hitter, had seen nothing but left-handed pitchers all day. It would be no different in this at bat against Glendale reliever Edgar Olmos. But Cecchini was ready when Olmos left a pitch up and out over the plate, driving it to right field for an RBI double.

"Those were some tough lefties today," Cecchini said. "I just wanted to grind out at-bats. I was making adjustments from at-bat to at-bat and pitch to pitch. He threw a pitch I thought I could handle and I put a good swing on it."

Left fielder Mitch Haniger followed Cecchini with a three-run home run to cap a five-run eighth inning, and Surprise defeated Glendale, 9-6, at Camelback Ranch. The victory was the Saguaros' third in their last four games.

Cecchini finished the day 2-for-4 with two RBIs and a run. He also struck out twice, something of a rarity for the Red Sox's No. 7 prospect.

After drawing 94 walks and striking out 86 times in 129 games this season between Class A Advanced Salem and Double-A Portland, Cecchini knows he has developed a reputation as a patient, disciplined hitter. Before striking out twice Monday, he had more walks than hits in 13 games this fall.

Cecchini said he doesn't go to the plate looking to work a walk. Instead, he wants to have a good at-bat and make life difficult for the pitcher. He credits the Red Sox and his parents for teaching him that approach.

"I want to be productive and make it tough on the pitcher that day," Cecchini said. "I always try to take it as the last at-bat of my life. I want to grind out at-bats every single day."

Helped by Cecchini's go-ahead double, the Saguaros scored seven runs in the game's final three innings. Center fielder Tyler Naquin, the Indians' No. 5 prospect, went 3-for-5 with two runs and two RBIs. (Naquin is now batting .375) Haniger, the Brewers' No. 12 prospect, finished the game 2-for-4 with a double to go with his home run.

The Saguaros have the league's highest scoring offense, which, Cecchini said, helps them believe they're never out of a game.

"Our offense is unbelievable," Cecchini said. "Everyone grinds out at-bats. It's a fun group to be with."

Surprise's late rally was enough to overcome a two-homer game from Glendale right fielder Yorman Rodriguez. The Reds' No. 15 prospect hit a two-run home run in the sixth inning to give the Desert Dogs the lead. He went deep again in the eighth inning, halving their deficit.

But Glendale could get no closer. Surprise added a run in the ninth and right-hander David Goforth closed out the victory with a scoreless inning. It was his fourth save, moving the Brewers' farmhand into a tie for the league lead.

Rodriguez finished the game 2-for-4 and has four home runs in 16 games this fall. Third baseman Colin Moran, the Marlins' No. 4 prospect, went 3-for-5 and scored two runs.

Cecchini hasn't always been the flashiest player in the AFL. He has a .391 on-base percentage and is hitting .250 with just three extra-base hits. But, like his approach at the plate, Cecchini is grinding out a productive fall.

"I'm not worried what I hit out here," Cecchini said. "I couldn't care less if I hit .400 or .100. I'm refining my defense, trying to get consistent there and be consistent on the bases and get great reads every single time.

"I want to stay with my offensive approach. I know it's been successful for three seasons and it'll stay successful in the future."

Tyler Naquin

By Michael Hattery

November 5, 2013

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Around the Farm (ATF) takes a quick look at some of the daily performances by Indians prospects. This is a special fall and winter ball version of ATF that recaps all the offseason action by Indians players in the Arizona Fall League and the Caribbean Leagues. The positions listed below are where the player was playing in the game.

Note, the Venezuela Winter League and Australian Baseball League were off on Monday and no Indians players participated in the Puerto Rico Winter League.

Arizona Fall League

Tyler Naquin (Surprise Saguaros, CF): 3-5, 2 R, 2 RBI. Another huge night for Naquin who is destroying the AFL. A few really positive signs over the past week have been his increased frequency of extra base hits and continued limitation of strikeouts. I would talk about overreacting to small samples but really ATF is all about discussing small samples. This start has not dispelled all or even most of the concerns surrounding Naquin but he is making important strides, especially in terms of plate discipline.

Will Roberts (Surprise Saguaros, SP): 4.1 IP, 5 H, 2 ER, 2 BB, 4 K. The definition of a mediocre line. While this is one of his better outings in the AFL, Roberts has not been particularly impressive. The walk rate is acceptable but he is allowing a lot of good contact and not forcing any swings and misses.

Dominican Winter League

Jose Ramirez (Toros del Este, 3B): 2-3, 2 2B, R, BB. I admit that I must be somewhat brief in talking about Ramirez or else my gushing will become excessively obvious. This kid just rakes and his plate discipline and contact ability are incredibly impressive for a guy his age. Jose’s ascendency should not be underrated. What he offers defensively combined with his discipline and impact on the bases makes for a promising big league career.

Juan Diaz (Estrellas de Oriente, 3B): 0-4, K. Diaz put forth a line many Tribe fans are used to seeing from him with an 0-fer. Throw in the strikeout and you have a pretty common showing from Diaz during his time in the minors. I in no order wish to be unfair as Diaz always had a good glove and was an enjoyable guy to follow, but his destiny as minor league lifer seems to be all but inevitable at this point.

Erik Gonzalez (Leones del Escogido, SS): 1-3, R, K. Nothing compelling or disappointing this evening for Gonzalez. The only concern for me would be that his K/BB ratio in winter league is 15 to 1.
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PRI 6-IJV 1

ART 3-LTU 2

CFG 13-MAY 2 (KO7) Slaughter Rule

CAM 3-GRA 2

In the ninth , down 2-1 and facing the Granma closer Cesar Garcia, the Bulls began their last chance effort with consecutive singles by Yasiel Bartholomew and Mederos and a decisive triple by Henry Quintero to clinch the victory .

Another important point to note was the start of the young Granma pitcher Diez Espinosa Asiel, who went 7 innings of shutout, one hit baseball against Camaguey. Garcia surrendered 3 runs, 2 earned in the bottom of the ninth to take the loss.

The stellar Alfredo Despaigne who was 1-4 with a homer in the opener on Saturday had a pair of doubles in four at bats, scoring a run and batting in another in a losing cause on Sunday. Despaigne is off to another great start to another season.

How sweet it is: Eagles pitcher Masahiro Tanaka (left) sprays manager Senichi Hoshino with beer as Rakuten celebrates its first Japan Series title on Sunday. | KYODO

Baseball / Japanese Baseball

High-flying Eagles reign supreme after eight-year rise to top

by Jason Coskrey

Staff Writer

Nov 4, 2013

SENDAI –

To say simply that Senichi Hoshino put Masahiro Tanaka in the game during the ninth inning of the Japan Series finale somehow does the moment a disservice.

Hoshino didn’t so much insert Tanaka into the game as force him in.

Eyes full of fire and brimstone while three outs away from the biggest win of his long managerial career, Hoshino (who later said Tanaka had to convince him to get in the game) screamed at the home-plate umpire, despite only a few centimeters separating the two, as he made his final pitching change.

“Tanaka!”

And so the Tohoku Rakuten Golden Eagles finished their greatest season with the biggest star the club has ever produced striking out the Yomiuri Giants’ Kenji Yano to secure the team’s first-ever Japan Series title.

“When Tanaka fanned the last batter, I felt like it was finally over, and that we’d won the Japan Series,” said shortstop Kazuo Matsui, who got his first title after coming up short three times with the Seibu Lions and once in the World Series with the Colorado Rockies.

Rakuten defied most preseason predictions, riding a solid pitching staff and an improved offense to the Pacific League pennant. The Eagles then moved past the Chiba Lotte Marines in the Climax Series.

That set up a matchup against Hoshino’s eternal rivals, the Yomiuri Giants, who as usual were full of stars and came in as reigning Japan Series champions.

“For sure, if it didn’t come against the Giants, we might not have been quite as pleased,” Hoshino said. “As I always say, when I became a pro, the Giants were in their V-9 era, and they taught me both joy and frustration.

“Our players are even more proud because this came against the Giants.”

After beating Yomiuri in Game 5 at Tokyo Dome, Hoshino promised the fans in Sendai that they would see him tossed in the air during a victory doage. He kept his word, and the Eagles tossed the 66-year-old into the air nine times to celebrate their triumph.

“I was thinking, ‘how many times are they going to throw me into the air,’ ” Hoshino said. I was like, ‘put me down now.’ But it felt great.”

The Japan Series played out like the ultimate underdog story, with mighty Yomiuri and all its history and 22 titles against an upstart that even didn’t exist a decade ago.

Rakuten began play as an expansion team in 2005, when the merger of the Osaka Kintetsu Buffaloes and Orix BlueWave led to the creation of the current Orix Buffaloes franchise, and left the PL in need of a sixth team.

The Eagles struggled mightily in their early years, finishing 51½ games out of first-place in their maiden season, but eventually reached the postseason, getting all the way to the PL Climax Series Final Stage, in 2009, their final season under the club’s second manager Katsuya Nomura.

That was followed by a lean year under manager Marty Brown, which led to Hoshino’s hiring in 2011, with the new manager leading the team to a fifth-place finish in his first season and a fourth-place finish in 2012.

This year Rakuten added key pieces in draft pick Takahiro Norimoto and free-agent signings Andruw Jones and Casey McGehee. Those players meshed with an existing core that included Tanaka, Matsui, Motohiro Shima, and upstarts like Kazuya Fujita and Ginji Akaminai, to help form the crux of the franchise’s first championship team.

The team followed Tanaka’s lead as the 25-year-old went 24-0 during the regular season. Norimoto pitched in with a 15-5 rookie campaign, while Akaminai, Jones and McGehee gave the Eagles the offensive punch they’d lacked for years.

Jones had a home run and five RBIs during the series and Fujita drove in four runs. Akaminai finished with five RBIs and jokingly said he was hoping to win the MVP award.

“I was looking for it to be honest with you,” he said.

That honor went to Manabu Mima, a right-handed pitcher who rarely received the attention Norimoto and Tanaka garnered.

“Well, I guess that’s alright,” Akiminai sighed.

Mima was more than alright during the series, he was great. He made two starts against the Kyojin and threw 11⅔ scoreless innings in a pair of victories.

“Mima had been great since the Climax Series, so we had high hopes for him,” Hoshino said.

Norimoto made three appearances in the series, starting Game 2 and coming on in relief during Games 5 and 7.

“I would like to tell my family about this,” Norimoto said afterward.

Tanaka returned to the mound on Sunday, after a Herculean 160-pitch outing in a loss the night before, to get three outs for a series-clinching save.

“I took the loss yesterday, and so many people were worried about me,” Tanaka said. “But I had another shot, and I wanted to avenge myself and do a better job this time.”

Popular opinion was that after the seemingly unbeatable Tanaka lost for the first time in more than a year in Game 6, that Yomiuri was on the fast track to the title.

But if there was any pressure on Rakuten, Hoshino didn’t let it show.

The veteran skipper cracked jokes during batting practice, and sent the team out with a simple message just before the biggest game of most of their lives.

“During our pregame meeting, I told the guys to make me shed tears of joy at the end,” Hoshino said. “I just told them that.”

I think Will Roberts has not been particularly impressive because he is not particularly good.

Meanwhile BA's lines of the day include (both were already noted by Joe, I believe)

CLE AFL Tyler Naquin, CF 5 2 3 2 .375
CLE DWL Jose Ramirez, 3B 3 1 2 0 .298 2 2B (6)

They are likely to be our No. 4 and No. 3 prospects in this year's ratings.

Am I forgetting some pitcher who could rate higher than No. 5? Around that level we'll find Lee and Crockett and Bauer.

I think Jesus Aguilar might break that top 5 Civ. Especially if he continues his assault on Venezuelan pitching.