Timely bunt rallies Japan past DR in 9th in Olympic opener

FUKUSHIMA, Japan (AP) — At risk of an embarrassing defeat to start the Olympic tournament, the Japanese baseball team turned things around with its signature fundamentals.

Fans of Major League Baseball, be ready: bunting is already big at the Tokyo Olympics.

Kai Takuya drove in the tying run with a perfectly placed squeeze bunt, Hayato Sakamoto followed with a game-ending, bases-loaded single and the Japanese rallied from three runs down in the ninth inning to beat the Dominican Republic 4-3 in the Olympic baseball opener Wednesday.

The underdog Dominicans led 3-1 entering the ninth after starter Cristopher Mercedes dominated a lineup he knows well from his years in Nippon Professional Baseball. Outfielder Johan Mieses also threw out a runner at home in the eighth inning to preserve the lead.

Jairo Asencio (0-1) got the first out of the ninth, then forgot to cover first on Yuki Yanagita’s grounder to first baseman José Bautista, letting Yanagita reach for Japan’s fifth hit of the game.

Asencio allowed two more hits, then Takuya dropped his bunt along the first-base line to easily score pinch-runner Sosuke Genda from third.

"We needed to get some runs in there," Japan manager Astunori Inaba said through an interpreter.

Hardly the play baseball fans from the Western hemisphere might expect — the bunt has fallen out of favor there, but it remains a prized skill in Japan.

“This is something that happens a lot in baseball in Japan, and it’s something we were expecting might happen,” Dominican Republic manager Hector Borg said through a translator. “Unfortunately, we weren’t able to respond to it correctly.”

After Tetsuto Yamada singled to load the bases, Jhan Martinez replaced Asencio. Sakamoto, the 2019 Central League MVP, then drove a ball to the warning track in center...

source https://www.chron.com/sports/article/Japan-rallies-in-9th-to-beat-DR-4-3-in-Olympic-16344889.php