By Shin Suitougakari, Naha Shisa correspondent

August 19, 2018: Kuwana, Japan — Greetings everyone! I am honored to be able to do my internship as a Communications major at the University of Tsukuba by becoming the acting Naha Shisa correspondent. You may remember me from the popular Shisa Toons way back in 2010; the successful children’s show Shin! from 2011-2016; and the total bust that was my sports roundtable show Shisa Shin! , which was cancelled after one year in 2017. I am most humbled at my young age of 20 to learn that not everything I touch turns to gold.

I want to thank former Naha Shisa correspondent Jim Bouton for all that he taught me. He is currently retired and living back in his hometown of Newark, New Jersey.

Now what about those Naha Shisa? This has been an extraordinary year for my favorite team in the whole universe!

Last year the Shisa had very few problems with injuries. But the team struggled to play .500 ball and made the playoffs by the skin of their collective teeth. This year it seems like somebody new is going on the disabled list every week; yet the team is running away with the BBG, holding a ten-game lead and playing .659 ball.

Of course, the most recent spate of injuries will really put the organization to the test. In the last week three more pitchers have gone on the DL, two of them for the rest of the season. Currently there are seven players on the DL, six of whom are pitchers! That will put any organization’s depth chart to the test.

Most galling of all was when the team used its limited cash reserve to invest in former PEBA pitcher Er Hang to replace Alberto Ramon in the rotation. Hang started off great, going 4-1 with a 1.93 ERA. But then he too went down for the rest of the season with a partially torn labrum, and this after an entire career of no such serious injuries.

So as of this writing the team is down four starting pichers and two set-up relievers. Alarmingly, two other relievers, closer Sadao Ichihara and Michinori Endo, have been struggling with arm issues. Worst of all, the team says it has no more resources to sign any more free agents! I have heard that there are trade discussions going on with Kuwana, so hopefully I will have good news to report when I submit this article before deadline.

So who are the new pitchers that will pick up the slack?

Tsuginori Honma: Honma was Naha’s number one draft pick for 2018. Yes, that is this year. I jumped up and down like a little schoolgirl when I saw that Honma dropped to Naha’s 10^th pick in the draft! GM Feestold me he had Honma ranked 2^nd overall on his rating’s sheet. Instead of getting seasoning with the AAA club, Tsuginori was promoted to the big team after pitching a single game in professional baseball (albeit a complete game shutout). Honma has performed admirably as the new number one setup man, going 3-1 with a 2.45 ERA. He may have to join the starting rotation now, though. Extremely charismatic, Honma may be the glue that holds this pitching staff together at the tender age of 21! Yes, I know that’s a year older than I.

Yoshiaki Rin: Everyone is calling him “Janku Jin” (Junk Man) because he has no fastball and all of his pitchers dodge and dart like a spastic butterfly. Our catchers look as if they are trying out for the Japanese Olympic floor exercise team every time he’s on the mound. Unfortunately, Yoshiaki often doesn’t know where his own pitches will end up. But so far this season he has really improved his control. Still, I can see that our manager, Kijuro Yoshida, gets really nervous whenever he takes the mound.

Alfredo Nava: He scares me. Not only does he undress me with his eyes; he chops me into freezer storable-sized pieces for later consumption. I hope he goes away soon.

Takafumi Harada: Harada was picked in round nine in the 2014 draft and has surprised many scouts by becoming a pitcher who will fit in nicely as a middle reliever someday. But he’s just not ready yet! The fact that he’s not really excited to be here is an indicator of that. He seems to have no confidence whatsover. I do worry about him.

Oh, joy! I just received word that the Shisa have traded for Bill Bradley! He has really struggled for Kuwana this year and has been a brooding presence in their clubhouse; but hopefully he will turn things around here in Naha! Best of all, I just saw the bad man (Nava) walking out of the park with suit case in hand. Hopefully he won’t be coming back!

Yodo Yoshida: Well we call him Yoda, of course. He shaves his head and looks like the Buddha, which is very fitting for a lifelong Buddhist. He has had success at AAA, but was shelled in his one previous call up to the big club. He is very bright and hard-working, so hopefully this time he will find his groove.

So the question is whether Naha can continue to win with a decimated pitching staff. True, Bill Bradley will help, but the once proud relief corp is only a shell of itself. Leon Fernandez, while still popular with fans because of his on-top-of-the-dugout cheerleading schtick, cannot seem to locate his pitches any longer. There’s a chance that Shohei Sanu will make it back in time for the playoffs, but other than that, what you see is what you get.

Ah, the playoffs. That’s a sore subject for another day.