The Chiba Lotte Marines crushed the Hanshin Tigers 10-0 yesterday in Game 2 of the Japan Series, that country’s baseball championship. Chiba won Saturday's Game 1 by 10-1.
Being a Mets fan, while I was happy with the way the team performed this season under Willy Randolph, I still think Bobby Valentine got the short end of the stick for Steve Phillips’ goofs when he got canned. Regardless of how the media might have portrayed him, Bobby V was certainly a favorite of mine and I think he got the most out of his players as a shrewd manager and a good motivator. So, it’s no surprise to hear the recent news:
The Marines, once a Pacific League doormat, have excelled since Valentine returned for his second stint with the club.
When they face the Central League champion Hanshin Tigers in the best-of-seven championship starting Saturday, the Marines will be bidding for their first title since 1974, when they were known as the Lotte Orions.
It will be Valentine’s first trip to a championship since he went to the World Series in 2000 as manager of the Mets. They lost to the New York Yankees in five games.
“The Marines and the Mets of 2000 are quite similar,” Valentine said. “If it came down to a question of bullpens, I would say the Marines are better.”
Former Mets Benny Agbayani and Matt Franco, who were with Valentine in 2000, had productive season and are expected to play a key role in the Japan Series.
Valentine, very popular among Lotte’s fans, is the first foreign manager to reach the Japan Series since Hawaiian-born Wally Yonamine in 1974.
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