Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters Change Lineup to Avoid Elimination
Listen to the story
The Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters are facing a difficult situation in their baseball playoff series. They have not won a single game so far. If they lose today, they will fall behind zero wins to four losses, which would end their season.
To try to turn things around, the team has made a bold decision. They changed their starting lineup for this important game. Player Kiyomiya Koutarou has been moved to bat third in the batting order, a change the team hopes will help the offense score more runs.
On the pitching mound, the Fighters are sending out Kitayama Kouki, a right-handed pitcher who has recorded more wins than anyone else on the team this season. The team is counting on him to pitch a strong game and keep them alive in the series.
Their opponents, the Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks, have some good news of their own. Player Yanagita Yuuki missed the first game because of neck pain, but he has since fully recovered. He said he is ready to play at any time and revealed that he had actually been prepared to come in as a pinch hitter during that first game.
Two other Hawks players have also drawn attention for their strong performances. Kondou Kensuke hit two doubles in the opening game of the series. Meanwhile, Nomura Yuuki has been even more impressive, getting five hits in ten at-bats so far in the playoffs. Both players will be important for the Hawks as they try to close out the series.
Vocabulary8 words
- playoff series
- a set of games teams play to decide who moves on
- starting lineup
- the group of players who begin the game
- batting order
- the order players take turns hitting the ball
- pitching mound
- the small hill where the pitcher stands
- right-handed pitcher
- a pitcher who throws with the right hand
- pinch hitter
- a substitute player who bats instead of someone else
- doubles
- hits that let the batter reach second base
- at-bats
- times a player gets a turn to hit
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Quiz
Answer key
1. To try to win and avoid being eliminated 2. He had been ready to come in as a pinch hitter 3. True
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Fill-in-the-blank listening
Play the audio again and fill in the missing words as you listen.
The Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters are facing a difficult situation in their baseball playoff _____.
They have not won a single _____ so far.
If they lose today, they will fall to zero wins and four _____.
The team changed their _____ for this important game.
Kiyomiya Koutarou has been moved to bat _____ in the batting order.
The Fighters are sending out Kitayama Kouki, a _____ pitcher.
He has recorded more _____ than anyone else on the team this season.
Yanagita Yuuki missed the first game because of neck _____.
He revealed he had been prepared to come in as a _____ hitter.
Kondou Kensuke hit two _____ in the opening game of the series.
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