Japan beat China 16-0 in Asiad baseball tournament
4/12/2006 16:14
Japan defeated China 16-0 in the baseball tournament at the 15th Asian
Games in Doha on Sunday while defending champion South Korea crushed the
Philippines 12-2.
The Japanese squad opened the scoring at top of the second
inning with two runs. China saw a scoring chance at bottom of the second, but
designated hitter Wang Wei was picked off on second base by a perfect throw from
Japanese catcher Nakano Shigeki.
The upset Chinese squad received a fatal
blow in the third inning, with Japan sending 14 players up to bat and scoring 9
runs. It was the first time in the tournament that a team had batted
around.
In the fifth inning, third baseman Ueyama Kosuke added a grand slam
to seal the 16-0 win.
The performance of the Chinese team was "not so good,"
said Chinese coach Luo Weijun after the match. "At the beginning we did not play
well, and the pitchers were out of control."
"The second inning is a crucial
turning point for the Chinese team," said Chinese Taipei coach Jung-Tang
Kung.
"Had the Chinese squad scored one or two runs in the second, the result
would have been different," he said.
With Sunday's win, Japan moved into
first place in the six team round-robin competition. Chinese Taipei, favorite
for the gold medal, was two for two in the previous games.
The two baseball
powers will meet in a decisive game on the last day of the
tournament.
Earlier in the day, defending South Korea claimed its first
victory at the Asian Games with an easy 12-2 victory over the
Philippines.
However, the victory may come too late for South Korea, as with
its defeats to Chinese Taipei and Japan, it was virtually out of the race for
the gold medal at the Asian Games.
Xinhua News
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