Shigeno Goro at His Major League Baseball
[ 0 Comments ] Posted on 03.10.08 in Sports Anime
As the new MLB season began, Goro performed extremely well for the Hornets in the exhibition matches. On his first official MLB match, he pitched a no-hit no-run game up until the 8th inning, when he suddenly lost control. On his second game, his pitches started to go wild by the 5th inning. Suspecting yips, his catcher King stopped Goro from voluntarily stepping off the mound, gambling on the chance that Goro can overcome his fears with a new success. Unfortunately, Goro ended up pitching a dead ball at the batter’s helmet, and was ejected by the referee. On his third game Goro was unable to take out a single batter. He was removed from the game in the first inning and sent back to 3A Bats until his situation improves.
Believing that Goro’s defeat at the hands of Gibson Jr. was the cause of his yips, the Hornets sent Goro to Billy Oliver, a sports psychologist, for treatment.
Anyway, I’ve got all this information at Wikipedia.org… And hopefully I can put some videos here of this great Sports Anime… So, Lets wait and say…
Shigeno Goro at His Baseball World Cup
[ 0 Comments ] Posted on 03.10.08 in Sports Anime
After the baseball season was over, Goro returned to Japan. Shimizu finally told Goro her feelings for him, and they became a couple. On the other hand, Goro learned from Toshi that there is going to be a Baseball World Cup the following year hosted in America, and for the first time, Major League players will be allowed to compete in it. Due to Goro’s impressive performances in the practice match between Rookies and the All-Star Japan team, he was selected as a replacement pitcher starting the second round of preliminaries. Goro pitched as the closer against Venezuela and South Korea, earning a win and a save respectively. Then Mayumura earned a win, pitching as closer against the Dominican Republic, advancing Japan to the semi-finals.
Shimizu came to America to cheer Goro on, and encountered Toshiya’s younger sister, Miho Satoh. The day before the semi-finals match against Cuba, Toshiya accidentally ran into his sister, and the traumatic memories of being abandoned by his parents 7 years ago were reawakened. Toshiya’s body went into involuntary shock, and was temporarily hospitalized. Miho felt guilty about the incident, but Toshiya called her on the phone, and asked her to come watch the next game. By knowing his sister is somewhere in the audience, Toshiya felt he would be able to do his best. Toshiya made several excellent plays against Cuba’s aggressive offensive in the semi-finals, and Goro got the win as the closer.
After the Cuba game, Gibson Jr. revealed to the Team USA’s manager as well as Goro that his father, Joe Gibson, had angina pectoris. Junior hoped that the manager and Goro might be able to dissuade Gibson from getting on the mound and potentially kill himself. However, with players mostly in a “exhibition game” mentality, Gibson got on the mound in the 8th inning in the USA vs Venezuela semi-finals, risking his heart to awaken the baseball spirit of his teammates.
The following day, Gibson collapsed during practice session, and Goro rushed to the hospital to see Gibson. Gibson revealed to Goro that in a chance meeting with Momoko 10 years ago, he asked her why she had not accepted any monetary compensation from him. Momoko smiled gently, and asked Gibson to remain a top-class baseball player until Goro grows up, so that Goro could be proud of having a father who hit a home run from such a great pitcher, and that would be enough for her and for Goro. Momoko’s kind words had been the pillar that supported and drove Gibson all these years, but he felt if he could not complete this Baseball World Cup, and play against Goro on the mound, he would have failed Goro and Momoko. Goro comforted Gibson, telling him that he had done enough, and to just watch Goro and Junior’s showdown on TV.
The Japan vs USA finals game began with Japan taking a five run lead, prompting Gibson to leave the hospital and went to the stadium to cheer his teammates on by their side. Japan had to send out Goro at the 8th inning to protect their remaining 1 run lead, but Junior scored a home run off Goro’s 100 mile fast ball. The game went into extra innings, and Gibson walked onto the mound again, determined to lead USA to victory. But Goro was very determined to strike out Gibson Jr.. And Goro pitch his fastest pitching in his life and in the sports Baseball. However, Gibson Jr. hit a home run off Goro’s 102mph pitch. USA won the match.
Shigeno Goro at His Minor league baseball
[ 0 Comments ] Posted on 03.10.08 in Sports Anime
Despite losing the match against Kaido, Seishū Highschool was the only team that actually put up a fight against the Koshien champion. As a result, Goro attracted the eyes of many scouts, including the Yokohama Marine Stars and the Tokyo Shiants. However, upon learning that Joe Gibson is still pitching in MLB, and dedicated his 300-win achievement to his “young friend in Japan”, Goro lost any interest in Japanese professional baseball, and went to America to try out for the Major League.
Goro’s 95 mile mile fast ball (99 mph in anime), while ineffective against Major League sluggers, allowed Goro to start in Triple A instead of the rookie league. In Triple A Goro found a new rival — Joe Gibson Jr, son of Joe Gibson and an outstanding slugger. Junior blamed the death of Goro’s birth father as the cause of the tragedy that befell on his own family, and he challenged Goro to a bet: If Junior hit a home run off Goro, Goro is to return to Japan and never set foot on American soil again; On the other hand, if Goro can strike out Junior, then Junior will visit Goro’s father’s grave and apologize for his insults. Goro managed to strike out Junior with his fast ball, now at 100 mile/h, and lead his team to victory in the AAA Championship.
Honda Goro at His High School Baseball
[ 0 Comments ] Posted on 03.10.08 in Sports Anime
Junior High
Goro moves back to Mifune when his stepfather is traded back to the Blue Oceans and finds his little league friends grown up and attending Mifune East Junior High School. He surprises his friends when he tells them that he has been playing soccer and doesn’t plan on playing for the junior high baseball team,revealing that he had blew his shoulder out in Fukuoka. Goro changes his mind after confronting a bully who is threatening one of his friends. Together, Goro and his friend Komori Daisuke rebuild the junior high baseball team. The team becomes strong enough to enter the regional junior high tournament and, once again he finds himself playing against his friend and rival Sato Toshiya, who plays on the Tomonoura Junior High School team. Mifune eventually beats Tomonoura in a tight game and Goro and Toshiya vow to play on the same high school team together.
Kaido High School selection
After the tournament, Goro, his friend Komori, and Toshiya decide to try out for the baseball team of the prestigious private high school, Kaido.
Kaido High School
Goro and Toshiya make the junior varsity team and spend a year and half together as teammates. However, in their second year, Goro reveals that his true desire is to challenge the excellent players of Kaido instead of play on the same team as them. His friend Toshiya is hurt by Goro’s decision, but respects him for it. The season ends with Goro leading the junior varsity team to victory over a scrimmage against the varsity team, and with Goro quitting Kaido High School to play for another team.
Seishū High School
Goro has returned home after quitting Kaido. Upon his arrival, his mother voices her displeasure with the fact that he did not consult with her about his leaving. She insisted Goro to be accountable for his actions and to accept the responsibility of paying the application fees on which ever schools he chooses to enroll in. Goro’s enrollment had been refused by several schools due to the assistant coach of Kaido (Egashira) threatening to sue the other schools. Goro was able to finally avoide Egashira’s interference by enrolling in Seishū High. Having been an all girls school until just two years ago, Sheishū didn’t have a baseball team. Goro enrolls, determined to create a baseball team from scratch.
Honda Goro at His Little League Baseball
[ 0 Comments ] Posted on 03.10.08 in Sports Anime
Three years has passed since Momoko Hoshino, unmarried, adopted Goro as her own son upon Honda’s death. Goro began school as a fourth grader, and was finally old enough to join the local little league team, the Mifune Dolphins. However, the local kids were mostly interested in soccer, and Goro had to get new friends he made at school to join in order to have enough members to keep the team from being abolished.
Goro showed himself to be an extremely gifted baseball player. So much in fact that the Dolphins coach hated to see Goro waste away his potential with the other less-talented Dolphins players. The coach recommended Goro to join the nearby Yokohama Little team instead, which has better players, coach, and resources. When Goro visited, he discovered that not only was his old buddy Toshiya at Yokohama Little, but his own father, Shigeharu Honda, had been a member of the Yokohama Little with the current coach. Goro was torn, because if he were to follow his father’s footsteps, that meant he would be abandoning the friends he asked to join the Mifune Dolphins. Goro had a big fight with Momoko over the issue, and Momoko sought advice from Hideki Shigeno, Honda’s old buddy and teammate. While meeting with Shigeno, Momoko coughed blood, and was hospitalized. While it turned out it was just a gastric ulcer, it made Goro realize the living people are much more important than the dead.
At that time, Joe Gibson had just returned to the MLB after pitching in Japan for three years. He sent an invitation to Goro to travel to America, all expenses paid, and watch the MLB All-Star game, where Gibson was going to be the starting pitcher for the National League. At the game, he declared to the American League’s player that he would only pitch fast balls. Gibson threw 18 strikes, not a single slugger of the AL’s top rotation could touch Gibson’s pitch despite knowing what’s coming, and Gibson earned standing ovation from the audience. This was Gibson’s own way to show Goro how great a slugger Honda had been, as Honda had hit a home run off Gibson’s best pitch in a duel of only fast balls. After the game, Gibson allowed Goro to throw a hardball at him, where ever Goro wants to, if it would make Goro feel any better. Goro responded that he would postpone this “punishment” until the day he could pitch as well as Gibson, which was Goro’s own way of acknowledging Gibson’s greatness.
Back in Japan, with renewed determination, Goro led the Mifune Dolphins through various trials and practice matches, intending to defeat Yokohama Little, the best team in the region. At the end of the season, Goro’s adoptive mother marries Shigeno Hideki and the new family moves to Fukuoka when Shigeno is traded from the Marine Stars.
