Dennis Houlton (SOF) was taken off the active roster today with tightness in his right adductor muscle.  Houlton apparently suffered the injury while fielding a ground ball off the mound during his last start last night.

It seems the Softbank Hawks are ready to go with a platoon of Jose Ortiz and Roberto Petagine at DH.  That could put Ortiz in the starting line-up on Thursday against lefty Masaru Takeda (HAM).  Until then, Ortiz will likely be used off the bench.

Daijiro Oishi will most likely return next year as the Hawks' head coach.  It seems the front office likes how Oishi and Koji Akiyama worked together this year and wants to keep the pair intact for the 2011 season.

Tadashi Settsu (SOF) became just the third pitcher in NPB history to appear in 60 or more games in two consecutive seasons, beginning with their rookie year, when he made his 60th appearance yesterday during a game against the Chiba Lotte Marines.

The other two pitchers: Kazuhisa Inao (1956 - 1959) and Hiroshi Gondo (1962 - 1963)

The Softbank Hawks are hoping to add both Jose Ortiz (right knee) and Nobuhiko Matsunaka (left wrist) to the active roster over the next few days -- Ortiz on the 31st (series with Nippon Ham) and Matsunaka on 9/3 (series with Orix).

The Hawks decided to add Ortiz to the active roster after he spent three days, beginning on the 27th, working out with the team at Yahoo Dome (BP and base-running exercises) and convinced the manager and the coaches that he was ready to play.

As for Matsunaka, a lot will depend on how he does in three Ni-gun games against Orix (between 8/31 and 9/2).  Assuming he's feeling ok, he'll be added to the active roster for the team's three game series against the Orix Buffaloes that begins on 9/3.

In addition, Roberto Petagine could see a drastic cut in playing time based on how well Ortiz and Matsunaka perform.  But that could be a good thing for Petagine since his knees have apparently been bothering him a bit as of late.

Nikkan Sports brings news that Toshiya Sugiuchi (SOF) could be hurting and mention a hip joint injury as being a possibility.  Worst case, Sugiuchi could be taken off the active roster.

Losing Sugiuchi at a time like this would certainly put a big strain on the Hawks' already weak starting rotation.

For the month of August:

Yuichi Honda (SOF) stole two bases today for a total 51 stolen bases on the year.  He becomes the first Softbank player to break 50 stolen bases since Arihito Muramatsu stole 58 bases in 1996.

8/30/2010 12:09am JST

It seems more and more likely that the Hawks will offer Saito an Ikusei contract.  If Saito isn't ready to accept an Ikusei contract, he could be released from the club.

8/28/2010 9:05pm JST

The Hawks have apparently started talking to Kazumi Saito about a contract extension.  Saito has struggled with his right shoulder over the last 3 seasons and hasn't managed to log any innings at Ichi-gun since 2007.  But as long as Saito has a chance at a comeback, the Hawks appear to have an interest in bringing him back for another season.  An Ikusei contract could also be a possibility.

Jose Ortiz (SOF) worked out with the Ichi-gun roster on Friday and took BP in front of Koji Akiyama and the other coaches.  Seems the Hawks will use the next three days to determine whether or not Ortiz might be ready for the active roster.

Ortiz is working his way back from a right knee injury.

Nobuhiro Matsuda (SOF) was held out of the starting line-up tonight.  He apparently still felt pain after getting hit by a pitch on his left wrist last night and skipped pre-game BP.  Matsuda is day-to-day.