Seibu Lions outfielder Shogo Akiyama became only the sixth player in Japanese baseball history to record 200 hits in a season during a game against the Chiba Lotte Marines on Sunday.
Akiyama, 27, beat out an infield hit to third base in the fifth inning and later singled to right in the seventh at Seibu Prince Dome, bringing his tally to 201 hits this season.
With 12 games remaining, Akiyama has a chance to surpass the single-season mark of 214 set by Hanshin Tigers outfielder Matt Murton in 2010. Ichiro Suzuki had 210 hits in 1994 with the Orix BlueWave.
Akiyama, who had a 31-game hitting streak, third longest in NPB history, from June to July, was selected to join Seibu in the third round of the 2010 draft.
