Great performance by Raidel Martínez in Japanese baseball

October 29, 2021

The Cuban Raidel Martínez threw a perfect relief outing this Tuesday in the Chunichi Dragons' 4-0 victory over the Hanshin Tigers at Koshien Stadium in Nishinomiya.

The tall right-hander completed the Japanese professional baseball regular season with 23 saves, 59 strikeouts and a 2.06 ERA in 49 appearances from the bullpen.

His compatriot and teammate Ariel Martínez went 4-0 with three strikeouts to leave his final average at .244, with two home runs and seven RBIs in 82 at-bats.

With four games remaining until the end of the regular phase, the three qualifiers in each league are already determined. In the Central League, the Yakult Swallows were crowned champions, followed by the Hanshin Tigers and Yomiuri Giants. In the Pacific League, the Orix Buffaloes lead over the Lotte Marines and Rakuten Eagles. There are still four games to be played, the last of those on October 30.

The first playoff series in each league begin on November 6, scheduled for three games between the teams in second and third place, and always at the home of the runners-up.

The winners of those matchups will face the leaders of each circuit in best-of-seven series, with the peculiarity that the latter start with a 1-0 advantage. That is, at most six games would be played on each side.

The Japan Series will be played in the second half of the month.