LRSDaily.com
October 23, 2013

Quotes in advance of the Kure Arsenal/Shin Seiki Evas SSG Wasei Junkesshou match-up:

“We’ve got a number of the guys that can hit the ball out of that park.  It’s just that people don’t think of them as home run hitters because they play half their games in Kure, where it’s very difficult to hit home runs.  The problem isn’t that we don’t have home run hitters.  The problem is that they have more home run hitters… and those home run hitters hit a lot of home runs.”
— Kure Arsenal Manager Toyokazu Morita

“It’s not something I spend a lot of time thinking about, to be honest.”
— Evas 1B Ton “Dracula” Nakamura on the team’s failure to advance beyond the Wasei Junkesshou for five consecutive years. 

“I think it’s a pretty different situation than when I was there.  There’ll be a few familiar faces in the other dugout, but not too many, actually.  It’s a different team in Kure, a different attitude.  From what I’ve heard, it’s pretty much all different.”
— Evas starting catcher Tadakuni Samurakami on his former days as a player for the Makurosu Hunters/Kure Arsenal franchise.

“I think I’ve met him once.  I mean, I respect him as a player.  He’s a good catcher.  Beyond that I don’t have much feeling one way or the other.”
— Arsenal starting catcher Takamasa Yoshida, who was traded from the Evas, along with two 4th round picks and 2B Bai-luo Xiang, to Kure for Samurakami in 2011

“It’s a war.  It’s always a war when we play those guys.  We don’t like them; they don’t like us.  We’re going to approach this series in the same way we approach every game with the Evas.  We’re going to try and pound them into the ground.  Anything less will be a complete disappointment.”
— Arsenal starting pitcher Tashiro Meshizuka

“There’s no real secret.  We just happen to have a lot of talented hitters on this club.  Every one of these guys knows how to hit, and this season they’ve all pretty much hit the heck out of the ball.  I don’t expect anything to change in the playoffs.”
— Evas hitting coach Masatake Nakayama

“Do I wish I was part of it?  Of course I do.  I called coach Morita last night and congratulated him.  He told me, `Hey, this is amazing, but it’d sure put it over the top if you were still here.’  I said, `Hey coach, believe me, I wish I was there too.  But I’m going to be sitting at home with a beer watching you guys on TV and hoping like heck you guys can pull this off.’  And I meant it, too.  I’ve got a Kure Arsenal jersey hanging on my wall right next to my Makurosu Hunters jersey.  Those things aren’t coming down.  They’re part of me forever.”
— Former Makurosu Hunter/Kure Arsenal 2B Ton Nan, who announced his retirement from baseball last month

“Epic.  Unreal.  He was unstoppable.”
— Evas pitcher Tsumemasa “Muscles” Abe on facing Nobuhito Daikawa as a member of the Niihama-shi Ghosts in the 2010 Wasei Junkesshou

“He’s the best closer in the LRS.  When manager Morita told me I’d be closing in 2013, after so many years as a setup man, I went and looked at film of him pitching… how he handles himself on the mound… how he comes into pressure situations.  The guy is the best, and he’ll go down as the best we’ve seen in that role.”
— Arsenal closer Osamu Kohara on Evas closer Sachi “Swamp Fox” Sakurai

“It’s been just a great year for all of us.  It’s nice to get a nod… it’s an accomplishment, but even winning a batting title is a team effort.  It’s not just about an individual putting the bat on the ball.  It’s nice, but it’s in the past.  I’m focused on the Wasei Junkesshou and what we have to do as a team to win this thing and get to the Neo-Tokyo Cup.
— Evas shortstop Ton Matsumoto on winning the 2013 SSG batting title with a .337 average

“I’m not really in the business of making predictions…the Arsenal has been very tough over the past few weeks.  We came up against that last week and found out that team is very much for real.  The pitching is good and the offense is underrated.  I like the team speed with guys like (Naoaki) Kichida and (Katsumi) Hayagawa running around out there.  But the thing is, the Evas have a lot of guys that can hit the ball out of the park.  And their pitching is – it’s crazy to say – underrated.  I think the Evas will probably win the series.  Kure is tired, they’ve had a big month, but the Evas have been on a mission all season.  I like the Evas in 5 or 6 games.”
— Hyakujuu Shinkansen leftfielder Jon Wood on who he expects to win the SSG Wasei Junkesshou

“Kure absolutely stepped up and seized the day.  NT playing under .500 for the last 2 months of the season opened the door for them.  Not the results a playoff team would have.  We got what we deserved… I consider this a massive choke job by the Akira, and heads will roll.”
— Ron Hiscock, GM Neo-Tokyo Akira

“It should be fun.  Above all else, it’s going to be a fun series.  We’re going to come to play; they’re going to come to play.  May the best team win.  That’s about all you can say.  Let’s just hope for a competitive series where both teams are at their best.  I mean, I hope we beat them.  Don’t get me wrong.  I hope we beat the living crap out of them.  But hopefully the fans will have something to remember.  I think the 2013 Shining Star Group Wasei Junkesshou is going to be something special.”
— Arsenal rightfielder Tomiji Watanabe

“No doubt, this is going to be a battle.  They’re playing great.  We’re division champs.  We’re going to go out there and leave it all on the field.  May the best team win.  That’s all I’ve got to say.”
— Evas DH Tashiaki Tanaka

Compiled by staff reporters