The way Shota Imanaga was pitching with a one-run lead took almost all the mystery out of Samurai Japan's game against Taiwan. Well, all of the mystery except the question of whether the next batter would strike out swinging or looking.
Fresh off a Japan Series in which he turned in two great performances for the Yokohama BayStars, the lefty starter was on top of his game again under the bright lights. This time, it was for Samurai Japan and it was the Taiwanese national team he was mowing down.
Imanaga went on a six-inning strikeout spree and got plenty of run support as Japan bulldozed Taiwan 8-1 on the third day of the Asia Professional Baseball Championship on Saturday at Tokyo Dome.
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