Fall baseball awaits.
Yokohama BayStars right-hander Trevor Bauer, 32, has returned from injury and is preparing to pitch in the Climax Series (postseason). He participated in a first-team workout at Yokohama Stadium in Kanagawa Prefecture on Saturday. He threw a total of 86 pitches in simulated batting practice. It was his second appearance following a live pitching session with the second team.
He faced a total of 22 batters in four innings. According to Japanese media, he faced eight balls for strikes. He threw a 151-kilometer-per-hour fastball to the last batter, Daishi Kusumoto, who grounded out to the outfield.
Yokohama manager Daisuke Miura (50) said, “The ball had power. The ball itself was good.” Miura said Bauer is scheduled to pitch one more time in 11 days.
Bauer, the reigning Cy Young Award winner, has been a force on the Yokohama mound this season. After struggling early in the season, he’s settled in and has been a key part of the 1-3 starters alongside left-handed aces Katsuki Azuma and Shota Imanaga. In addition to his powerful pitches, he also showed a strong competitive spirit. In July, he played in the All-Star Game.
He started 19 games until his injury on August 30 against the Hanshin Tigers, going 10-4 with a 2.76 ERA. He struck out 130 batters in 130⅔ innings pitched.
In June, he started four games and went 4-0 with a 2.08 ERA and was named MVP of the month. He went 3-1 with a 1.67 ERA in August before being sent down.
On Aug. 30, he injured his leg while fielding a pitch in Hanshin and had his registration expunged. He has recovered well from the injury and is working on improving his game.
Yokohama finished last among the six teams in the Central League in 2021, when Miura, a former pitching legend with 172 career wins, took over. They rebuilt the team and finished in Class A (4th-6th out of 6 teams) for the second year in a row.스포츠토토
Last season, Bauer finished second behind Yakult Swallows. This year, they entered the Climax Series in third place behind Hanshin and Hiroshima Capps. They lost second place to Hiroshima by half a game. They had to settle for a 0-1 loss in the final game against the Yomiuri Giants on April 4. Ace Azuma pitched an eight-inning, one-run complete game.
They begin the first stage of the best-of-three series against Hiroshima on Thursday. Due to the schedule, Bauer is the favorite to start Game 3 on the 16th.
Bauer pitched a scoreless 10th inning against Hiroshima on Aug. 3. He threw a total of 123 pitches in that game.
“I want to pitch in front of the home fans at Yokohama Stadium,” Bauer said. Bauer will have to advance to the Japan Series by winning the first and final stages of the Climax Series. All games in the Climax Series are played at the home stadiums of the top teams in the regular season.