Moinelo Achieves His First Victory as an Opener in Japanese Preseason

March 19, 2024

Everything seems to indicate that the left-handed pitcher from Pinar del Río will change roles with the SoftBank Hawks in the season that begins on March 29.

Cuban pitcher Liván Moinelo achieved his first victory this Sunday in the current preseason of the Japanese Professional Baseball League. And he did it as an opener.

The left-handed pitcher from Pinar del Río with the SoftBank Hawks pitched 5.1 innings in which he allowed five hits and two runs against the Seibu Lions, reports Jit.

In addition, he gave up only one walk and struck out six rival batters, contributing to his team's 9×3 success at the Pay Pay Dome in Fukuoka.

According to the specialized media outlet, "everything seems to indicate that the Hawks manager, Hiroki Kokubo, decided to use Moinelo in the role of opener for the season," scheduled to begin on March 29.

The possibility that the Cuban would change roles in Japan had already been discussed by the press and the pitcher himself, even since his participation in the II Elite League of Cuban Baseball with the Artemisa team.

In that tournament, Moinelo reinforced the eventual runners-up during the playoffs, but he did so in his usual role as a relief pitcher. However, he did pitch more than three innings in a game, something that, Jit recalls, he did not do in the Japanese league, where he usually pitched in the seventh and eighth innings.

Last year, the pitcher from Pinar del Río was unable to finish the season in Japan after having to undergo elbow surgery. After that procedure, he completed his recovery in Cuba and pitched in the Elite League.

Before going under the knife, he had participated in 27 games for his team and had a record of 3-0 with five saves.

According to the official statistics of the Japanese league, he had struck out 37 rivals in just over 27 innings of play and had allowed only three earned runs, which gave him an ERA of 0.98.

Since his arrival with the Hawks, Moinelo has become one of the pillars of their bullpen, and his contribution, along with those of fellow Cubans Alfredo Despaigne and Yurisbel Gracias—who are no longer on the roster—was decisive in the team winning several titles in Japan.

In turn, he has established himself as one of the most reliable relief pitchers in the Japanese circuit. Over seven seasons, he has an ERA of 1.95, has accumulated 19 wins and 9 losses, and has distributed 422 strikeouts.