Ace of Diamond

At the Baseball Kingdom magazine office, Mine looks back to the summer tournament. The game between Yakushi and Seido was an exciting watch. Seido played their pitcher relay in order to face Yakushi's powerful batting lineup.

Monthly Baseball Kingdom continues their recap of the Summer Tournament by reviewing the Seido, Inashiro Tokyo West regional championship game. The recap covers until Eijun heads to the mound.

Monthly Baseball Kingdom finishes their recap of the Summer Tournament by finishing the review on the Seido, Inashiro regional championship game. The recap covers all of Eijun's pitches right up until Inashiro gets the game-winning hit off of Kawakami.

Seido ends up in the fall's most competitive bracket. In order to have any chance to advance they will have to overcome regular national tournament participant Teito, a school that has advanced to nationals 27 times and won in twice. As if that weren't enough, Teito has an unrivaled first year pitcher who can see the strike zone three dimensionally. Coach Kataoka comes up with a strategy that could give Seido the ability to advance if they can pull it off, and he delivers a few words to Sawamura when Sawamura asks if he can switch to being a sidearm pitcher.

Seido and Teito begin playing in the rain. Every time Seido goes out to field the rain seems to pick up. Making things harder is Teito's pitcher is using his 3D strike zone to its fullest, keeping Seido from getting on base. As things pick up in the sixth the rain gets heavier. Furuya gets in the zone and throws his best pitches of the day. Everyone thinks Furuya will be unbeatable, but as the top of the sixth ends a pause is called for, ruining all of Furuya's focus.

The game is paused due to the rain. Mukai stretches in his dugout, Furuya looks spaced out, and Sawamura is pitching in the bullpen. The game resumes, and Miyuki immediately gets a double. However, Mukai is keeping it cool on the mound.

Sawamura makes a great relief. However, Mukai, as the self-proclaimed best pitcher his year, continues to toy the Seido batters. Kuramochi fights for a walk to first and Haruichi follows up with a hit. Can they score?

Mukai scatters his pitches offensively, but Tojo puts up a good fight and gets on base. Kuramochi follows after, and the Teito battery walks Haruichi to load the bases. It`s two outs and bases loaded at the bottom of the eighth. Immense pressure is on Maezono.

Seido beats Teito, and the team is excited to play Inashiro again. Being influenced by how Maezono swings his bat every day after dinner, many follow suit. However, some aren`t exactly on the same page.

It`s Seido vs Nanamori, and Coach Kataoka has made a big roster change. Haruichi, Furuya, Tojo, and Kanemaru — four first-years are in the starting lineup. To top it off, the starting pitcher is Sawamura. Now that he`s gained confidence in his outside pitch, Miyuki feels that Sawamura needs his inside back.

Sawamura overcomes the yips and shows off an impressive pitching job against Nanamori Academy. "You can be in contention for the ace position now," says Miyuki. Inashiro and Ugumori are playing at Ota Stadium, and Inashiro`s victory might be in danger.

Inashiro vs Ugumori. At the bottom of the seventh, Tadano and Narumiya are having a difficult time seeing eye to eye against the highly offensive Ugumori batters. Umemiya hits a big one and Ugumori turns the game around with two runs! The runner-up team at nationals is cornered.

Ugumori's team celebrates their win over Inashiro Industrial while at Seidou, there is a fallout between Miyuki and Maezono. On the day of the match, Sawamura, Furuya, and Haruichi encounter Umemiya in the washroom.

The third round of the fall tournament begin. There is an air of tension in Seidou's dugout after the fallout between Miyuki and Maezono the night before. Miyuki however, is quick to remind the team to focus on beating the opponent and they agree. At game time, Furuya recalls what Umemiya had told him in the washroom just before their match, and disobeys Miyuki's lead.

Umemiya pitches a power curveball to finish off Miyuki, but Miyuki manages to react quickly, thanks to Watanabe`s scouting, and hits an RBI into the center field. Maezono follows up with a nice long hit along the left foul line to match Miyuki`s RBI for a second run to Seido.

Seidou High continue to expand their lead. But despite being down by five, Ugumori's team however, remain unperturbed and cheerful. Finding inspiration from Matsubara's strong will he's continued to show the team, and the cheering crowd behind them, Ugumori's batters attack relentlessly with no plans of stopping.

After Seidou's failed attempt for a double play, the team is in a pinch with bases loaded and no outs. Yet Seidou decides to face Ugumori's momentum head on. Ugumori however, doesn't back down and manage to scale down Seidou's lead to one. Kataoka decides to leave the eighth inning to Furuya, then have Sawamura pitch in the ninth.

Sawamura replaces Furuya on the ninth but feels overwhelmed by the cheering crowd, and Umemiya's fighting spirit. Aware of Sawamura's state of mind but at full count, Miyuki takes the time to decide what pitch to call. He thinks of Kataoka's strategy before their defense, but Miyuki calls for a pitch to the inside to strike Umemiya out.

Seidou pulls off a double play to beat Ugumori High. In a different stadium, Shunshin decides to face Raichi head-on at the bottom of the eighth. He corners him but Raichi eventually hits a home run. The Ugumori team reflects on the last pitch and remain optimistic for the summer. At Seidou, Miyuki and Zono are still at odds and later, Furuya's injury is found out.

With Miyuki and Maezono still at odds, Isashiki talks to Maezono while Miyuki seeks Yuuki's advice. Kataoka informs the team of Furuya's condition and Sawamura feels the fate of the team is now in his hands. During practice, Nabe tells Maezono that he is satisfied with how things are, while Ochiai observes the players then thinks of his future coaching plans.

Days before the quarter finals, the Ouya and Seidou baseball teams prepare for their up coming match-up. At Ouya, the team practice seemingly in a hurry, while at Seidou, Ochiai expresses his disappointment in Miyuki and teaches Sawamura a breaking ball.

Sawamura is able to throw his own unique changeup. At game time, Miyuki calls for the change-up after Sawamura strikes out Ouya's first and second hole. Will Sawamura be able to throw it successfully in a real game?

Ouya High scores two runs at the bottom of the first and seems to have Seidou all figured out. Sawamura however, does a good job keeping Ouya to two runs. On top of the sixth and thanks to Nabe's scouting talent, Seidou have a plan to use against Ouya.

Aided by Nabe's keen observation on Ouya's plays, Seidou scores two runs on top of the sixth. Coach Araki is quick to notice Seidou's strategy and comes up with a counter.

Sawamura successfully throws the changeup and the pitch combined with Miyuki's clever game calling makes it difficult for Ouya's batters to focus on a pitch. At the bottom of the ninth, with Ouya failing to turn the game around, Seidou takes the win.

Following Seidou's win against Ouya, Seiko Academy wins against Sensen Academy. Meanwhile, Inashiro Industrial have a scrimmage against Kokaidai Sagara.

Sawamura receives praise from the coaching staff and his teammates for his performance the last match, and motivates Furuya who asks Ochiai to teach him a breaking ball. Kawakami meanwhile, wants to keep up and thinks of throwing sinkers again. At practice, seeing that the non regulars try their best to earn a regular spot, Kataoka proposes an intra-squad match between the first string and the second string.

The intra-squad match begins with Sawamura pitching for Team B. Ochiai, in charge of Team A, makes Haruichi use a metal bat instead of his signature wooden bat and then instructs the team to go for Eijun's high change-ups.

The intra-squad game continues. Kataoka's former coach, Sakaki Eijirou arrives and observes the team. He joins Haruno and Club President Oota in the staff room and tells the story of Kataoka when he was just 15 years old and was then called "Demon Child".

The top four teams of the Fall Tokyo Tournament: Seiko High, Yakushi High, Sankou, and Seidou High make their preparations for the semi-final match-ups.

The game begins. Seidou scores early in the game and expands their lead, prompting Seiko to switch their ace with Tsunematsu. Tsunematsu prevents Seidou from scoring more than five runs and at the bottom of the third, Seiko's batters swing strongly affecting Furuya's pitching.

Seidou successfully prevents Seiko from scoring on top of the fourth with a double play. Furuya's injury however seem to be hurting which Kudo notices. Kataoka wants to switch him out but Furuya is determined to continue pitching.

Seiko Academy scores another run on top of the seventh. At the bottom, Seiko's battery continue to strategically walk Miyuki. The next inning, Nagata hits a two-run home run off Sawamura. Will the home run affect Sawamura's confidence?

Sawamura manages to prevent Seiko from scoring additional runs. And at the bottom of the eighth, Seidou fails to score. The next inning, Tsune runs straight to the plate and tackles Miyuki, shocking everyone.

Seiko Academy and Seidou High's match reach its conclusion. Seiko Academy is defeated and Seidou High advances to the finals.

The second match of the semifinals is a rematch between Yakushi High and Ichidaisan High. With Ichidaisan's returnee and new ace, Amahisa Kosei, can the team avenge their bitter Summer loss?

With Ichidaisan on the lead and a confident Amahisa on the mound, Yakushi sends Sanada to pitch, and the score is put to a standstill. On top of the eighth, runners on base and Raichi at-bat, can Yakushi turn the game around?

Amahisa strikes out Raichi but Sanada changes the flow of the game. Amahisa is switched out and despite Ichidaisan's efforts, they lose to Yakushi High for the second time.

The Seidou High players looks forward to the finals match against Yakushi High. While Furuya is determined to play, Kataoka leaves it to the doctors opinion. At Yakushi High, the players share their goals to the third years.

Kuramochi talks to Shirasu about Miyuki's injury, while the coaching staff talks about the possibility of Furuya not playing, and the pitcher order: Kawakami will start then Sawamura. On the day of the finals, Kuramochi confronts Miyuki.

The finals match begin with Seidou's offense. Kuramochi shows his prowess as Seidou's lead-off but despite making it to third, Seidou doesn't score. At the bottom, Kawakami starts for Seidou and Miyuki calls for the sinker.

Seidou scores the first run of the game with Maezono's bat while Kawakami pitches strongly at the bottom. On top of the third, Seidou on scoring position and Miyuki at-bat, Raizou makes his move sending in Raichi to the mound to face Miyuki.

Kawakami continues to hold Yakushi's batters down. At the bottom, at-bat, he face off against Raichi. Kawakami hits but the strength of Raichi's pitch numbs his hand. Will this affect Kawakami's pitching?

Kawakami gives up a home run to Raichi and a hit to Sanada. Kuramochi and Haruichi gets a double play in order to back Kawakami up. However, Kawakami loses control of the ball and gives up a base on balls and a hit by pitch.

Maezono's pressure overwhelms Raichi and hits a fly allowing Kuramochi to come home and tie the game. Raichi comes to realization of what it means to stand on the mound. Coach Todoroki notices Raichi's change in attitude and quickly puts Sanada on the mound.

It's the bottom of the fifth, and Yakushi is up to bat. Mishima stands in the batter's box ready to hit but falls short before Sawamura's four-seamer. Sawamura surprises the crowd by striking out Mishima. Next up is Raichi Todoroki, Yakushi's cleanup. Can Sawamura keep him down?

Miyuki gets his ribs checked out. In the bottom of the sixth, Sawamura shows a strong performance going three for three. With the sides retired, Haruichi stands in the batter's box with a wooden bat, and Sanada looks confident.

Sawamura strikes out Raichi three for three! He also strikes out Sanada! Sawamura and Miyuki put up a strong fight against Yakushi's heart of the order, and the crowd goes wild. Shirasu starts in the top of the eighth. Will Seido turn around the one-run deficit?

The Tokyo Fall Tournament Final is nearing its end. With Yakushi leading 3-4, we go into the top of the ninth inning. Kuramochi hits a fast hit, but Yakushi's all-in defense stops it. Next up is Tojo. The Seido supporters in the crowd are cheering as loud as they can.

At the top of the ninth, Seido is behind 3-4. Haruichi gets a base hit, and Miyuki follows up with one as well. Next up is Maezono. He stands in the batter's box with a mission. Swing and miss. Swing and miss. With two strikes, his back's on the wall.

It's the bottom of the ninth, and Seido leads 5-4. Furuya stands on the mound putting fear into Yakushi's batters with his pitch. This is the final moment. Seido is looking energetic with victory within reach. Coach Kataoka can't stay quiet either. Can Seido take the game?