Raidel Martínez notched his 20th save of the year after allowing three hits and with no runs allowed, while also fanning two batters to close out Chunichi’s 5-2 victory over the Yakult Swallows at the Meiji Jingu Stadium in Tokyo.
The right-hander from Pinar del Río,Cuba has yet to allow an earned runs so far this season. The right’s ERA remains at 0.00 and he once again tied for the Central League saves lead. His countrymen and teammate Dayán Viciedo went 1 for 4, with a single and a strikeout, to leave his average at .226 on the season.
¡OTRA VEZ COLÍDER! 🇨🇺Raidel Martínez igualó hoy por enésima vez el liderato de salvados de la Liga Central de la #npb y sigue sin permitir carreras limpias.
👇👇👇👇👇https://t.co/xxhbvIduLE pic.twitter.com/tfMD6iImgE— Béisbol Japonés.com (@beisboljapones) July 11, 2023
Ariel Martínez swatted two hits in four trips to the plate in the Nippon Ham Fighters’ 3-2 defeat against the Rakuten Eagles. His average rose to .247 and the NPB All-Star also sports a robust .349 on base percentage.
In Korea or Taiwan there wasn’t any Cuban action on the night. In reference to the CPBL the league is on a two week break, something that usually happens between the first and second half of the season. Elían Leyva of the Rakuten Monkeys will pitch in the Chinese Professional Baseball League All-Star Game.