Despaigne and Raidel Continue Shining in Japanese Baseball

September 14, 2022

With the good statistics recorded during Wednesday's games, Cubans Alfredo Despaigne and Raidel Martínez were key figures in the victories of their respective teams in the Japanese Professional Baseball League.

Despaigne maintained his excellent offensive performance from recent games and hit a two-run double in four plate appearances today, in addition to scoring once to lead the SoftBank Hawks to a 6-1 victory over the Seibu Lions.

At the Pay Pay Dome in Fukuoka, and in the Pacific League zone, the slugger from Granma who has accumulated four RBIs in his last three games, maintained his average at .261 and increased his total RBIs to 33.

Meanwhile, right-hander Raidel Martínez recorded his thirty-fourth save of the year after allowing one hit with no runs in a relief inning, in the close 3-2 victory of the Chunichi Dragons over the DeNA Stars, at the Vantelin Dome in Nagoya.

Martínez, who retook sole possession of second place in saves in the Central League, lowered his ERA to 1.09.

In that same game, his teammate and fellow Camagüey native, relief pitcher Yariel Rodríguez allowed a single and struck out a batter in an inning of work, to improve his ERA to 1.32.

For the Dragons, and in the offensive lineup, Villa Clara infielder Dayán Viciedo went 3-for-2, with two singles and a walk, to raise his average to .289, while Matanzas outfielder Ariel Martínez failed in two opportunities to lower his to .283.

The competitive landscape shows two very different pictures for the teams in which these Cuban players participate, as SoftBank leads the standings in the Pacific League with a record of 68 wins, 58 losses, and two ties, giving them a two-game advantage over the Orix club.

But the Dragons occupy the sixth and last place in the Central zone, with a dismal record of 58 wins and 71 losses, 16.5 games behind the leaders Yakult.