Matsuzaka Watch: Episode 5

Daisuke Matsuzaka's 5th start of the year was an off night, in which the star hurler gave up 4 runs on 6 hits, including 3 doubles and a home run. The damage came in only 4.1 innings of work, so the upside to the poor outing is the low pitch count, at 67.

The Orix Buffaloes have been just awful this season, and should be thankful that the Rakuten Golden Eagles are in the Pacific League or they would be firmly in the basement in the standings and in every major statistical category on earth. The early success they had against Matsuzaka included a first inning 2-run shot off the bat of failed Major Leaguer and former Dodger, Norihiro Nakamura. It wasn't to last, however, as Seibu's bats came alive in the 7th inning to put up a 5 spot and seal a victory for the first place club.

Matsuzaka stayed out of the loss column thanks to a 7th inning, pinch hit, grand slam by superstar Alex Cabrera. Other home runs for Seibu included a 2nd inning shot by third baseman Takeya Nakamura, and a 3rd inning blast by G.G. Sato.

Let's see how young Daisuke rebounds in his next outing in about a week. Here's his updated line on the season: