September 18, 2023: Hanshin Tigers, League Championship （阪神タイガース、リーグ優勝）
The Hanshin Tigers, a professional baseball team, won the 2023 season. It has been 18 years since they won the 2005 season. They won the championship by beating Yomiuri Giants, their eternal rivals, at their home ground, the Koshien Stadium. I was lucky enough to see the moment they beat the Giants on live TV. I watched the game from start to finish with breathless interest. When the Tigers scored three runs in the bottom of the sixth, I was very excited and threw my arms in the air. At the top of the last inning, their lead was narrowed by a run, but they managed to get out of the inning. At that moment, I was overwhelmed and shouted 'Banzai!' in a low voice.
Looking back, the team was strong from start to finish. They started the season with three straight wins against the Yokohama Baysters in the opening series. Since then, they have gone from strength to strength, recording nineteen wins in May. I could not believe that they were so strong and thought that they would return soon to what they were used to. But I was wrong. They kept on winning and finally, won the season. The team does not have players who are extremely good at batting, but they are very strong as a batting line-up. This is the characteristic of the team this year. I do not have to forget the manager, Akinobu Okada, either. He managed the team so well that I believe that the team would not have won this season without him.
The team moved me a lot with their great plays and tactics. Among them was a scene in the game against Yakult Swallows on August 11, which struck me the most. It was the scene in the bottom of the eighth. Akinobu called up a pinch hitter, Kento Iothara, with a runner, Seiya Kinami, on first base. Then, surprisingly, he hit a line drive to a deep right-centre field, allowing Seiya to run straight home from the first base. Kento's double was so good that it gave me the creeps. At that moment, I was convinced that the team would win this season.
I am really grateful to the manager, coaches, and players for keeping me entertained for so long with their great performances.
阪神タイガースが優勝しました。2005年以来、18年ぶりの優勝です。甲子園球場で、永遠のライバル・巨人を破っての優勝です。幸運にも、この試合を生中継で見ることができました。試合が始まると、最後まで固唾を飲んでみていました。６回に３点を挙げた時は、興奮してバンザイをしました。９回には１点差まで詰め寄られましたが、無事、逃げ切り優勝です。その瞬間、本当にうれしくて、小さな声で、バンザイと叫びました。
それにしても、今年の阪神は最初から最後まで強かったです。開幕戦のベイスターズ戦に３連勝しました。それからどんどん強くなり、５月には19勝しました。そのころは、「ウソやろ。また元に戻る。」と思っていたのですが、ボクが間違いでした。最後まで勝ち続け、優勝しました。打力で言えば、特別秀いでた選手はいませんが、打線にするとすさまじいパワーを発揮しました。岡田監督のマネジメント力も忘れてはいけません。岡田さんがいなければ、優勝はなかったと思います。
今年の阪神は何度も、素晴らしいプレート作戦で感動させてくれました。中でも、ボクが一番印象に残っているのは、８月11日のヤクルト戦です。８回裏の木浪選手が一塁ランナーに残っていた時に、代打で糸原選手がでてた場面です。糸原選手は見事に、右中間を破る二塁打で、一塁ランナーの木浪選手が一気にホームに戻ってきました。このバッティングに鳥肌がたちました。そして、この時、阪神の優勝を確信しました。監督、コーチそして選手の皆んさん、楽しませていただき、ありがとうございました。
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