Blu Boys bow to Japan, need to sweep last games to advance

The Philippines bowed to Japan, 5-0, Tuesday and faced the tough job of winning its last two Pool A elimination round assignments to salvage a place in the quarterfinal round of the 2009 World Men’s Softball championship in Saskatoon, Canada. The Japanese pummeled rookie Leo Barredo and battle-scarred Roger Rojas with 12 hits, scoring what turned out their needed two runs at the bottom of the second inning and never looked back. And as in their previous meetings, the Japanese, again reserved their best pitchers where it mattered most against their arch-rivals. Tatsuya Hamaguchi worked on a three-hit, no run six-inning job before yielding the mound to Kunihiko Yamaguchi who fanned all the three batters he faced to end the Blu Boys’ agony. The duo combined with 13 strikeouts. That two runs by the Asian champions in the second came through courtesy of centerfielder Hiraku Yokohama and shortstop Ryuji Hazeyama, who sacked a pair of solo home runs each on two mis-pitches by the lefty Barredo.

The Blu Boys could have changed the colors of the game twice, first in the opening frame when they sent a pair on the bases, but Hamaguchi stranded both. In the third, the Blu Boys, in a two-out situation, filled the bases with Oscar Bradshaw at the plate. The team’s designated hitter failed to send any of his three teammates home. The Blu Boys face Botswana Wednesday (Thursday in Manila) and Denmark the following day, games they cannot afford to lose or be eliminated from the Final 8. Botswana, if it’s any consolation, remained winless after five games, losing to the United States, 2-1, also Tuesday. The Danes, like the Filipinos, were defeated by Pool A leader New Zealand, 16-0, in an abbreviated four-inning contest. The loss dropped the Filipinos to a tie fifth place with the Danes, both with 2-3 win-loss records, from a three-way tie for third with the Japanese, who were now in solo third with 3-2. After five days of play, the three-time defending champion Kiwis led Pool A with a clean 5-0 slate to virtually earn their place in the Final 8, followed by the Americans (4-1) and the Japanese. Noticeably, Great Britain, which the Philippines nipped, 4-3, in the opening day, shared third place with the Japanese and most-likely, will be the Blu Boys’ rivals for the last quarterfinal berth. In Pool B, play, meanwhile, host Canada matched New Zealand’s immaculate 5-0 card by ending Venezuela, 5-4. Australia remained in second with 4-1 by handing Indonesia its fifth loss on a 1-0 victory in only five innings. - GMANews.TV