September 8, 2019 — While Lupin’s ballplayers prepare to complete a home series with Kuwana, and Naha’s try to focus on Edo, fans of the teams are engrossed with only the big Cliff Hanger vs. Shisa match-up scheduled to being this Monday evening and run for three days.  Emotions are running high in both fan bases because with 38 games left to play in the regular season, the Cliff Hangers hold a slim 1-game lead in the Bright Blade Group over the Shisa.  With the rest of the group at least 18 games out of contention, the group championship looks like a mad dash between these two teams.

Unless something changes, the opener promises to see Lupin’s Akira Watanabe (10-7, 3.25) face off with Naha’s Kawanari Masuda (4-6, 4.13).  This would seem to slant in Lupin’s favor, but game 2 should pit Lupin’s Tsuyoshi Nishiyama (11-6, 3.53) against Masaru Nishikawa (12-4, 3.39). and game 3 would see converted reliever Yoshiteru Sato (2-2, 3.38) face Tsuginori Honma (7-3, 3.08)–both of which look to favor the home Shisa.

This series marks the first of three, and will serve to set the table for the rest.  Naha will travel to Lupin for three games in late September, and then Lupin will return to Naha for three games in mid-October.  Clearly, any team who comes out of these nine games with a clear advantage will be in prime position to earn the coveted home-field advantage in the post season.

“We’re really happy to be in this position,” Lupin GM Ron Collins said during a fan luncheon yesterday.  “The team has faced a lot of adversity this year, losing three key players for the season, and there others for much of the year.  But Jim left us in a great position as far as organizational depth, and we think we’ve played that spot well.  The guys deserve this.  The fans deserve this.  It’s a lot of fun.”

That last comment drew rabid cheers from the luncheon’s attendees, and chant “10 Years!  10 Years!  10 Years!” echoed through the hall, a reference that the club has finished in the lower group for ten straight seasons, and that during that span and have never been closer than 20 games out of first place.  In fact, the team has not seen a .500 record since 2008.

You can see, perhaps, why they are so focused on Naha.

Shisa fans, on the other side of the coin, may have been caught with their pants down just a tiny bit.  Their ball club has been to the post season for the past four seasons, and won the group title three of those four.  One might see where they expected a bit more of a cake-walk.