"Leadoff hitter, designated hitter, Lin Guanglai."
"Leadoff hitter, designated hitter, Lin Guanglai."
As Lin Guanglai's face appeared on the big screen of the Eagle's Vision, the fully-seated Yahoo Dome stands erupted, with the crowd standing up and applauding the young player who had led the team forward.
The game had reached the bottom of the eighth inning, and the home team, the Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks, and the visiting Chiba Lotte Marines were tied at 3-3; in the previous at-bats, the SoftBank team had used small ball tactics to advance runners to third base at the cost of two outs.
In the home bullpen, the team's closer, Sarfate, who had already secured double-digit saves this season, was warming up, giving SoftBank fans reasons to believe that if Lin Guanglai could drive in the go-ahead run, they would secure victory in this game.
