Yasiel Puig homered (410 ft, left field at Gocheok Sky Dome off American Andrew Anderson, his second on the young KBO season. The Kiwoom Heroes outfielder is having a much better start to the season than in 2022, batting .385 Avg (10-for-26) with a .467 OBP in six games. The Heroes downed SSG 9-3.
Cuban-American Ruben Cardenas also got in on the act with a hit in three trips to the plate, an RBI and also scored on an occasion to raise his average to a robust .417 on the season. The slugger has been a key acquisition in the team’s lineup those far this season.
Raidel Martínez made his debut with the Yomiuri Giants in spectacular fashion. The star closer, a former Chunichi Dragons player, earned the win in the season opener. He pitched a perfect tenth inning against the Yakult Swallows, retiring all three batters he faced on just eight pitches during the Giants 6-5 victory.
His fastball topped out at 95 mph. The Pinar del Río, Cuba native thus becomes the seventh Cuban player to play for the legendary franchise based in the Tokyo Dome.
Cuban action on the night:
KBO:
Guillermo Heredia (SSG) 3-1
Rubén Cárdenas (KH) 3-1,RBI *
Yasiel Puig (KH) 5-2,2B,HR,2RBI,2R
NPB:
Raidel Martínez (YOM) 1.0IP,0H,0ER
CPBL:
No Cuban action on the night