This article is part of our Dream11 Fantasy NPB series.
Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters (22-21-2) at Chiba Lotte Marines (24-20-1)
Wednesday, July 12nd, 5:00 AM EDT
Projected Starters
Marines: LHP Kazuya Ojima (3-3, 4.23 ERA)
Fighters: LHP Takayuki Katoh (0-1, 4.96 ERA)
Game Preview
The Marines and the Fighters are in a tough spot regarding the postseason qualification – Chiba sit in third place with a 24-20-1 record, but Hokkaido are sitting right behind them with two fewer wins. The meetings between both franchises this week could prove to be decisive in the race for a playoff spot this season, and the fact that both teams are riding strong results of late – both are 4-1 over their last five contests – will make things even more interesting. The pitching matchup for this contest will feature two lefties, as Kazuya Ojima will get the ball for the Marines and Takayuki Katoh will do so for the Fighters. Both pitchers have had similar results thus far, although Ojima has 26 strikeouts in 38.1 innings, while Katoh has fanned 15 in only 16.1 frames. Katoh might represent a stronger Dream11 alternative due to his high strikeout totals.
Injuries
Katsuhiko Kumon - Out - Upper Leg
7/31 1:37 AM IST - Kumon was deactivated Thursday and is expected to miss four weeks due a strained adductor muscle in his left leg, Jim Allen of JBallAllen.com reports. Kumon picked up the injury in his appearance in Wednesday's game against the Buffaloes, during which he blew a one-run lead. The lefty reliever owns a 4.97 ERA
Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters (22-21-2) at Chiba Lotte Marines (24-20-1)
Wednesday, July 12nd, 5:00 AM EDT
Projected Starters
Marines: LHP Kazuya Ojima (3-3, 4.23 ERA)
Fighters: LHP Takayuki Katoh (0-1, 4.96 ERA)
Game Preview
The Marines and the Fighters are in a tough spot regarding the postseason qualification – Chiba sit in third place with a 24-20-1 record, but Hokkaido are sitting right behind them with two fewer wins. The meetings between both franchises this week could prove to be decisive in the race for a playoff spot this season, and the fact that both teams are riding strong results of late – both are 4-1 over their last five contests – will make things even more interesting. The pitching matchup for this contest will feature two lefties, as Kazuya Ojima will get the ball for the Marines and Takayuki Katoh will do so for the Fighters. Both pitchers have had similar results thus far, although Ojima has 26 strikeouts in 38.1 innings, while Katoh has fanned 15 in only 16.1 frames. Katoh might represent a stronger Dream11 alternative due to his high strikeout totals.
Injuries
Katsuhiko Kumon - Out - Upper Leg
7/31 1:37 AM IST - Kumon was deactivated Thursday and is expected to miss four weeks due a strained adductor muscle in his left leg, Jim Allen of JBallAllen.com reports. Kumon picked up the injury in his appearance in Wednesday's game against the Buffaloes, during which he blew a one-run lead. The lefty reliever owns a 4.97 ERA and 11:4 K:BB across 12.2 innings this season.
Brandon Laird - Out - Back
8/5 11:54 PM IST - The Marines deactivated Laird on Wednesday while he contends with a stiff back, Jim Allen of JBallAllen.com reports. Laird's back issue first cropped up Tuesday, resulting in him being pulled in the sixth inning of the Marines' game against the Buffaloes. Rookie Hisanori Yasuda is expected to take over as the Marines' everyday third baseman in place of Laird, who is batting .233 with six home runs and 15 RBI across 147 plate appearances.
Yuji Nishino - Out - Elbow
6/30 10:26 AM IST - Nishino (elbow) underwent Tommy John surgery Monday. Nishino suffered a torn medical collateral ligament in his right elbow in mid-June, and he underwent surgery to repair it Monday. If all goes smoothly, he should be able to resume throwing in approximately four months.
Yuki Nomura - Out - Finger
7/9 4:21 AM IST - Nomura had successful surgery Wednesday to address the broken right pinkie finger he suffered in Tuesday's loss to the Buffaloes, Full-Count.jp reports. Nomura is expected to face a three-month recovery from the procedure, effectively taking him off the radar for the remainder of his rookie season. The 20-year-old had been a lineup regular at third base for the Fighters, going 10-for-46 (.217 average) with two home runs and eight RBI through his first 13 NPB games.
Takashi Ogino - Out - Biceps
7/23 3:09 PM IST - Ogino was removed from the Marines' active roster Thursday with a right biceps injury. Ogino suffered the injury Wednesday, and he'll miss at least 10 days as a result. It's unclear exactly how much time he'll miss. In his absence Shuhei Fukuda should see an uptick in playing time.
Eito Tanaka - Out - Elbow
7/10 6:41 AM IST - The Fighters announced Thursday that Tanaka underwent successful arthroscopic surgery on his right elbow, Full-Count.jp reports. He's expected to be sidelined for two months before starting a throwing program. The 20-year-old made his NPB debut for Nippon-Ham in September of last season, giving up two runs in a two-inning appearance. Since he'll still need to complete more rehab work once he starts up his throwing program, Tanaka's absence could extend to the three-month mark or longer. The Fighters likely aren't counting on him to hold a major role once he's healthy again.
Atsuki Taneichi - Out - Undisclosed
8/3 7:10 AM IST - The Marines deactivated Taneichi on Sunday, Jim Allen of JBallAllen.com reports. The 21-year-old's demotion comes after he followed up a 10-strikeout, four-hit shutout July 25 against the Lions with a disaster of an outing in Saturday's 8-0 loss to the Eagles. He struggled with locating his pitches in the start, giving up all eight runs on 12 hits and three walks over 5.2 innings. Assuming there's no physical issue behind his deactivation, Taneichi will likely head to the Marines' farm team for the next week or so to get his command woes figured out before he rejoins the big club.
Hiroshi Urano - Out - Chest
6/30 8:47 PM IST - Urano required an appendectomy Tuesday and is expected to be sidelined for four weeks following surgery, Yahoo Japan reports. Urano will be hospitalized through Saturday before taking the next three weeks off to rest up and recover from the emergency procedure. The 30-year-old had yet to appear in a game for the Fighters this season after going 3-1 with seven holds and a 4.98 ERA over 25 appearances in 2019.
Christian Villanueva - Out - Foot
7/31 1:32 AM IST - The Fighters deactivated Villanueva on Thursday after he fouled a ball off his left foot in Wednesday's game against the Buffaloes, Jim Allen of JBallAllen.com reports. An already rough second season in NPB has gotten even worse for Villanueva, who slashing just .186/.288/.273 over 66 plate appearances before he sustained the injury. He'll likely be in store for a reserve role with the Fighters once he's activated, presumably in the next 1-to-2 weeks.
Chiba Lotte Marines Expected Lineup
4. Katsuya Kakunaka
5. Seiya Inoue
Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters Expected Lineup
2. Taishi Ohta
4. Sho Nakata
5. Ryo Watanabe
6. Toshitake Yokoo
8. Shingo Usami
Top Picks From Each Team
Leonys Martin, Marines: Martin represents the best choice for the Marines, as he enters this matchup with 12 home runs and 32 RBI while slashing a strong .282/.411/.564 in 190 plate appearances. He leads the team in both categories, although Seiya Inoue (10 HR, 35 RBI) is quite close.
Sho Nakata, Fighters: Nakata is one of the premier power hitters in the NPB, and he enters this matchup with 13 home runs and 45 RBI – just like Martin in the Chiba Lotte Marines, he also leads the team in both categories. Nakata's game is all about power, however, as he is hitting a subpar .228 in 158 at-bats in 2020.
Captaincy Options
- Leonys Martin
- Sho Nakata
- Seiya Inoue
- Kensuke Kondoh
Dream11 Team
P – Takayuki Katoh
C – Tatsuhiro Tamura
IF – Seiya Inoue
IF – Sho Nakata (VC)
IF – Toshitake Yokoo
IF – Kenshi Sugiya
OF – Leonys Martin (C)
OF – Kensuke Kondoh
OF – Tsuyoshi Sugano
