By Betty Kraker, Lupin Times

9/8/2010: Toyama, Japan – We, the Lupin Cliff Hangers, just finished the first week of September and we won only one of seven games.  But the season will soon be over.

We are dead last in the Bright Blade Group.  But we can only get better.

We are ranked sixth in our division for the second season in a row.  But we are not last in the league.

We have the lowest attendance figures ever.  But we are running a profit.

We are twenty-seven games out of first place.  But our injuries are not what’s dragging us down.

We have a .351 record.  But we made some good trades.

We have the worst record in team history.  But we’ll get a good draft pick.

We are 5^th or 6^th in every pitching category, except we are 2^nd in bases on balls.

We are 5^th or 6^th in every batting category.  But our Minarai Domei (AAA) club, the Yamauchi Plumbers, are 1^st in batting average.

We are last in the league in fielding percentage.  But our bench coach is one of the best fielding instructors in all of baseball.

We have played progressively worse each month.  But we have the opportunity to reverse that trend in October.

We are losing our best pitcher to free agency.  But we’ll have $16,970,000 in payroll freed up for next season.

Shuji Rin has an ERA of 11.09.  Katsuhiko Rin has an ERA of 4.19.

We are playing like a bunch of losers.  But we have an extremely loyal fan base and a large market to work with.

We have virtually nothing to trade away for improvements.  We will have free agent spending room next season.

I think things are looking rather positive in Lupin.  Wait till next season.