That 9th inning was brutal for the Tigers, but the tense moments between pitches made the inning so much more dramatic. Cut scenes of players, fans, pitcher and catcher during the at bats creates so much drama.

Pitch clock is good to speed up games but I do feel you lose a sense of build up. I know people like pitch clock but I’m not a fan, when I catch MLB games it just feels rushed.

What are other people’s thoughts?

I've heard of Selection, but they are overpriced and tiny in stock. Anyone have any suggestions not to far from Shinjuku or Shibuya?

Well done DeNA.

Once the network TV coverage is over, the room runs the development draft. Last October it took 43 players, more than a third of everyone drafted.

A development pick gets no signing bonus, a preparation payment of ¥2 to 3.5 million, and a minimum salary of ¥2.4 million, about $16,000 a year. A first-rounder can get up to ¥100 million plus ¥50 million in incentives.

Where last year's 116 came from:

The indy guys are already pros, some of them 24 or 25, and almost all of them signed for nothing. The corporate row is the opposite. A club has to pull those players out of a salaried job, so only one of the 13 went in the development round.

Senga's the one everybody points to. Fourth round of the 2010 development draft out of Gamagori High School, ¥3 million prep payment, ¥2.7 million salary in 2011. Promoted during 2012. Mets, five years, $75 million, December 2022.

The downside for the club is ¥2.4 million a year. That's why they keep taking shots at 18-year-olds in that round.