Raidel Martínez recorded his 16th save of the season on Tuesday and further solidified his position as the saves leader in NPB’s Central League. During the Yomiuri Giants’ 3-2 victory over the Orix Buffaloes in front of 42,085 fans at the Tokyo Dome, the native of Pinar del Río tossed a scoreless ninth inning in which he allowed a hit and struck out one batter.
It was the 228th save of the Cuban right-hander’s career at Japan’s major league level. With that save, he moved into a tie with Masahide Kobayashi for 10th place on the NPB all-time saves list. Martínez now has two more saves than José Quijada (Yakult) this season. Martínez currently owns a 1.96 ERA (18.1 IP, 4 ER), has recorded 22 strikeouts, and is holding opposing hitters to a .159 batting average over that span
In the KBO Guillermo Heredia swatted a two-run in four trips to the plate to do his part in the SSG Landers’ 5-4 win over the Kiwoom Heroes. The Cuban outfielder has now gone yard eight times to go along with 44 runs batted in and a .265 batting average in 219 at-bats on the campaign. Heredia hits .331 and has homered 54 times in his four seasons with the Korean club.