Ariel Martínez hit his sixth home run of the campaign and a double in four at-bats while also driving in two runs, but his best efforts were insufficient to avoid a 4-3 defeat by the Nippon Ham Fighters against the DeNA Stars in the Es Con Hokkaido Field.
The native of Matanzas,Cuba extended his consecutive game hit streak to four, raised his average to .263 and his total RBIs to 27 on the season leaving him third in that offensive category in the Pacific League. The Cuban is making a great case for his second straight All-Star Game in the NPB.
Raidel Martínez notched his 16th save of the year after tossing a scoreless inning of relief in the Chunichi Dragons’ 2-1 victory over the Orix Buffaloes at the Kyocera Dome in Osaka. The right-hander from Pinar del Río, Cuba recorded his third save in three outings, saw his ERA drop to 0.75 and took over the sole possession of the lead in saves in the Central League.
Cuban action on the night:
NPB:
Ariel Martínez (NH) 4-2,2B,HR,2RBI,R
Dayán Viciedo (CD) 4-1
Raidel Martínez (CD) 1.0IP,H,0ER
Carlos Moiner (CD) 4-1**
BCL:
Andy Martín (IB) 3-1
KBO:
Guillermo Heredia (SSG) 4-1
CPBL:
No Cuban action on the day
**Minor Leagues