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Kenji Yamagata leads the Senior League in batting
Jets players huddle on the mound during a brief break in their Senior League game against the Red Sox. The Jets? Kenji Yamagata leads the division in batting race. (Roselyn B. Monroyo)
The Jets’ Kenji Yamagata took the early lead in the batting race in the Senior League division of the 2014 Saipan Little League Baseball.
As of Feb. 9, Yamagata has been the lone batter to post a batting average above .500 with his .600. In four games with the Jets, he went 6-for-10 at bat to lead 15 others in the batting chart. The Jets slugger also made it to the leaderboard in the RBIs category with his five, just one RBI behind the Red Sox’s Jhace Palacios. Yamagata’s teammate K.J. Deleon Guerrero and the Fielders’ Franklin Lizama have four apiece to share the No. 3 spot.
There was also a tie for second place in the batting race with Palacios and another Jets player Nathan Camacho averaging .454. Both hit 5-for-11 at bat. Palacios’ teammate Jobe Reyes is alone at the No. 3 spot with his .444 (4-for-9), followed by the Jets’ Jesse Brel (.416), Deleon Guerrero (.416), the Enforcers’ Freddy Songao (.400), the Red Sox’s Craig Aguon (.333) and Jerald Cabrera (.333), the Enforcers’ Verlance Secharmidal (.333) and Darion Jones (.333), the Fielders’ Mike Muna (.300), the Enforcers’ Peyton Lizama (.300), and the Red Sox’s Vincent Leon Guerrero (.300), Bradley Lieto (.272), and Henry Lizama (.272).
Besides barging into the Top 15 in the batting chart, Aguon and Cabrera also made it to the leaderboard in runs category, tallying five apiece and sharing the top spot with the Jets’ Jesse Brel. Lieto, Devyn Flores, and J.J. Lifoifoi have four each.
In triples, Brel, Franco Nakamura, and Verlance Secharmidal had one apiece, while six players have gained one double each early this season.
Meanwhile, Palacios took the No. 1 spot in the pitching race with his 0.50 ERA. In 14 innings pitched, he gave up only one run. He is ahead of the Muna, who pitched 12.1 innings and allowed three runs for a 1,70 ERA. Only two pitchers entered the leaderboard, as the statistics were based on nine or more innings pitched.
In the strikeouts category, Muna is in a three-way tie with the Enforcers’ Darion Jones and the Jets’ Nathan Camacho. All three have 10 strikeouts to lead the Red Sox’s Palacios (9) and the Lions’ Perry Celis (8).
