Really hate the call to have Yuta Izuguchi bunt after a hustle double by Go Matsumoto to lead off the inning.
You get the tying run to third, but it brings up a strikeout-prone Bobby Dalbec against the high-octane stuff of Sean Reynolds. He popped out on a full count.
Takumi Ohshiro then flew out to end the game.
Izuguchi is an elite bat-to-ball guy and was one of the hottest hitters in the league over the final weeks of the season. He was also 2 for 5 against Reynolds this year with no strikeouts.
I like his odds of getting a hit or putting it in play and facilitating something more than banking on a sac fly in a power-on-power matchup between Dalbec and Reynolds.
Most Japanese managers would do the same thing, but Hideki Hashigami needs to have the guts there to let Izuguchi swing away.