11 losses for the second year in a row…another head-scratcher Tanaka, 197 career wins, 4.91 ERA, last in the league

He shook his head again.

Rakuten Eagles right-hander Masahiro Tanaka, 35, suffered his 11th loss of the season. He started on Feb. 2 against the SoftBank Hawks in Fukuoka and gave up three runs in five innings. He allowed five hits, walked one and struck out one.

Since his seven-game win over SoftBank on Aug. 26, he has lost just three games in five starts. His ERA in that span was 5.65. On September 18, he was pulled after giving up five runs in 2⅓ innings against the Orix Buffaloes in Osaka.

Four pitchers had 10 losses by the previous day (Sept. 1), tied for the most in the Pacific League. It’s likely to be the second straight year with the most losses. In 2022, he went 9-12 with a 3.31 ERA. It was the first double-digit loss in nine seasons in Nippon Professional Baseball.

Rakuten dropped to fourth place after a 0-6 shutout loss to second-place SoftBank. It’s a tough loss for the team’s leading pitcher.

The Chiba Lotte Marines, who defeated the Seibu Lions 7-3 earlier in the day, leapfrogged Rakuten into third place by 0.5 games. There is one game separating second-place Spotbank from fourth-place Rakuten. SoftBank has three games left, Rakuten has four, and Chiba Lotte has five. Tanaka could start the final game of the pennant race for his team.

It was unfortunate that we gave up two runs in the bottom of the first inning. .

The leadoff hitter, Ukyo Shuto, singled to right. A sacrifice bunt put runners on first and second. Softbank’s center field was strong. No. 3 Yuki Yanagita singled to left. 0-1. No. 4 Gensuke Kondo grounded out to second, second to third. Akira Nakamura #5 singled up the middle.

Another leadoff walk in the bottom of the second. No. 7 Tatsuru Yanagimachi doubled to center field. Two more runs scored on two infield grounders.

Tanaka was hit on the right ankle by a Gondo pitch in the bottom of the third inning, but continued to pitch. He settled down in the bottom of the third and pitched three scoreless innings with one hit and one walk through the fifth.

After two days, Tanaka is 7-11 with a 4.91 ERA, which ranks last among the 10 pitchers who have completed a full game.

Tanaka has 119 wins with Rakuten and 78 with the New York Yankees in Major League Baseball. He has 197 career wins in Japan and the United States. 메이저사이트

Tanaka had a stellar 2013, going 24-1 with no losses and a 1.27 ERA. He led Rakuten to a Japan Series title in its inaugural season, and then moved on to the major leagues. He spent seven years with the New York Yankees before returning in 2021.