Raidel Martinez reached 38 saves in Japanese baseball

Cuban Raidel Martinez got his 38th save of the season today, in the 3x1 victory of the Chunichi Dragons over the Yakult Swallows, in the Japanese Professional Baseball League 2024.

At the Vantelin Dome, in Nagoya, the speedy right-hander from Pinar del Río allowed a runless hit in a solid one-episode relief, to add his sixth save in six outings.

Thus, he was one save away from his personal record (39) in the Japanese league, signed in the 2022 season with the Dragons.

With this performance, he improved his effectiveness to 1.04 and assumed the sole lead in saves in the Central League. 

So far, Raidel has appeared in 54 games, in which he has pitched 53 innings, with 52 strikeouts, 30 hits, 10 tickets and only six clean runs allowed.

In another game with Cuban presence, the Nippon Ham Wrestlers won 1x0 against the Seibu Lions at the Es Con Field, in Hokkaido.

For Nippon Ham, Matanzas starter Ariel Martínez struck out in a relief appearance to leave his average at .239.