As the 2013 Japan pro baseball season enters its final month, recent injuries to the leading hitter in the Central League batting race and the Pacific League's top home run hitter have thrown wide open the competition for those titles.
Chunichi Dragons third baseman Hector Luna appeared to be a shoo-in to win the CL batting championship just prior to the All-Star break in July. He had gotten off to a hot start and maintained a .400 average well into May. Luna sank below that mark, of course, but was still hitting .370 in early July, maintaining about a 40-point lead over the pack.
The Dragons were so pleased with his performance and the way he adjusted to Japanese baseball, the team made the unusual midseason move of extending his contract beyond this year.