Taiwanese Ace Hsu Dominates as Hiroshima Carp Extend Losing Streak to Six Games

The Hiroshima Carp suffered their sixth consecutive defeat, falling 1-3 to the SoftBank Hawks, largely due to a dominant performance by Taiwanese pitcher Hsu Ruo-hsi. Hsu stifled the Carp's offense over six innings, recording seven strikeouts and allowing no runs, effectively shutting down their bats.

In a crucial moment during the first inning, Carp outfielder Ryoma Oosho was at bat with a runner on first base and a full count. Instead of swinging, Oosho stood his ground and was called out on strikes, resulting in the runner being caught stealing. This sequence of events, which turned a potential scoring opportunity into two outs, weighed heavily on Oosho.

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Losing today is my fault.

Reflecting on the play, Oosho admitted he overthought the situation. "I think the strategy at the time was for me to attack fastballs," he explained. "Even if I swung and missed at a breaking ball, the runner might have had a chance to get to second base. But at that moment, I couldn't think calmly about these things."

Oosho took full responsibility for the loss, stating, "Losing today is my fault." His performance at the plate mirrored his struggles, as he went hitless in four at-bats and struck out twice, dropping his batting average to .216 for the season. The Carp will need to find a way to break their losing streak as they continue their season.

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I think the strategy at the time was for me to attack fastballs. Even if I swung and missed at a breaking ball, the runner might have had a chance to get to second base. But at that moment, I couldn't think calmly about these things.