Search - baseball

 
 
BASEBALL / BASEBALL BULLET-IN
Jun 6, 2001

Power surge in the Pacific League

Instead of playing up the Monday night games innovation (which it really is not doing anyway), the Pacific League should exploit the sudden increase in home-run power this season. Either they've juiced the ball or the guys are taking some go-go juice (just kidding), and Seibu Lions slugger Alex Cabrera...
SPORTS / SPORTS SCOPE
May 10, 2001

Nomo still getting job done his own way

As interest in Major League Baseball in Japan grows exponentially with each passing day, it could be easy to forget the man who is most responsible for the current tidal wave of attention the game in North America is enjoying here.
BASEBALL / MLB
Mar 23, 2001

Giants' Maru-chan talks softly and carries a big stick

No one would've blamed Domingo Martinez if he never returned to Japan after the 1998 baseball season. After hitting .283 and smacking 30 home runs for the Pacific League champion Seibu Lions that year, the designated hitter wasn't given a gold watch or even a thank-you note for his efforts. Instead he...
BASEBALL / MLB
Jan 13, 2001

Koyama named to Hall of Fame

Former Hanshin Tigers ace Masaaki Koyama, whose 320 career wins ranks third all-time, was named to the Japanese baseball Hall of Fame on Friday along with the late Rikuo Nemoto, the architect of championship teams for Hiroshima, Seibu and Daiei.
BASEBALL / BASEBALL BULLET-IN
Dec 10, 2000

Japanese players strike: believe it when you see it

A number of articles appeared in the press this past week, leading us to think there may be a players strike on the horizon in Japan pro baseball. To my thinking, however, a work stoppage by the players here is about as unlikely as a no-hitter being pitched on opening day or Yomiuri selling the Giants....
BASEBALL / MLB
Oct 29, 2000

Sasaki reflects on first season in majors

Seattle Mariners closer Kazuhiro Sasaki said he enjoyed his first year of pitching in the major leagues, but contends that Japanese baseball is still "interesting."
BASEBALL / MLB
Sep 30, 2000

BayStars manager Gondo a goner in '01

The Yokohama BayStars front office told manager Hiroshi Gondo on Friday that the Central League club will not renew its contract with the stoic, unconventional manager.
SPORTS / SPORTS SCOPE
Sep 14, 2000

Time to weed out Olympic imposters

So, what's in a name? A lot, apparently.
BASEBALL / MLB
Aug 25, 2000

Wakatabe hurls Hawks by Lions

Kenichi Wakatabe tossed a two-hit shutout against the Pacific League-leading Seibu Lions on Thursday, leading the Daiei Hawks to a 1-0 victory in a tight pitchers' duel at the Seibu Dome.
SPORTS / SPORTS SCOPE
Jul 27, 2000

Sasaki talking the talk in Seattle

SEATTLE -- The good news is that Kazuhiro Sasaki is learning a little English. The bad news is that his teacher is Seattle Mariners teammate Jay Buhner.
BASEBALL / MLB
Jul 12, 2000

Kiyohara clouts 400th homer as Giants destroy Carp 18-3

Kazuhiro Kiyohara went 3-for-4 with four RBIs and notched his 400th career homer with a solo blast in the third inning as the Central League frontrunning Yomiuri Giants ripped the Hiroshima Carp 18-3 on Tuesday at Sapporo's Maruyama Stadium.
SPORTS / SPORTS SCOPE
Jun 29, 2000

Redemption just a haircut away

We've seen how popular shaved heads have become in sports. Whether for fashion or function, Michael Jordan, Andre Agassi and Brazilian soccer stars are among countless male athletes noted for taking it all off.
SPORTS / SPORTS SCOPE
Jun 15, 2000

What does the 'i' stand for anyway?

I know we've covered this territory before, but under the heading, "They just don't get it," comes the following:
BASEBALL / MLB
Jun 15, 2000

Giants fans give silent treatment

The Yomiuri Giants tried to bring a North American feel to the Tokyo Dome on Wednesday evening, asking their fans to leave the drums, trumpets and megaphones at home as they took on the Yokohama BayStars.
BASEBALL / MLB
Jun 14, 2000

Giants ask fans to turn down volume

Anyone familiar with Japanese baseball and the nonstop cheering that goes on in the outfield bleachers for nine innings may find Wednesday's matchup between the Yomiuri Giants and Yokohama BayStars a rather quiet affair.
BASEBALL / BASEBALL BULLET-IN
Apr 30, 2000

Lotte closer Warren can't get a game in

Perhaps the most frustrated player in Japan pro baseball at present is Chiba Lotte Marines relief ace Brian Warren. With the team off to such a bad start in the 2000 Pacific League pennant race, Warren can't get into many games. As the team's closer, he's been extremely underworked, because Lotte has...
BASEBALL / MLB
Mar 31, 2000

Cubs' catcher no ordinary Joe

Life has come full circle for Chicago Cubs catcher Joe Girardi and he seems pretty happy about it. The owner of three World Series rings -- earned during his last four seasons as a member of the New York Yankees -- Girardi is a profile in success.
BASEBALL / BASEBALL BULLET-IN
Mar 12, 2000

New Fighters skipper Oshima faces foreign slugger dilemma

Nippon Ham Fighters freshman manager Yasunori Oshima will be faced with a dilemma of sorts when the 2000 Pacific League baseball season begins April 1. He's got three quality foreign hitters but, once the exhibition schedule comes to an end, he'll only be able to play two of them. Japanese baseball rules...
BASEBALL / MLB
Feb 16, 2000

One-on-one with new Red Sox hurler Samson

SEOUL -- Lee Sang Hoon, "Samson" to his Japanese fans, is one of the most talented pitchers to ever come out of South Korea, but also one of the most misunderstood.
BASEBALL / MLB
Jan 26, 2000

Korean owners play hardball, expel players from professional league for organizing union

After a group of Korean professional baseball players from the Korea Baseball Organization (KBO) formally announced they had formed a player union last Friday, the KBO and team presidents held an emergency meeting the following morning in Seoul and expelled all union members from the league.
BASEBALL / BASEBALL BULLET-IN
Jan 3, 2000

Bad predictions ring out 1999; New Year to see games in Nagano

Apparently, my ability to predict where Japanese free agent ballplayers would sign new contracts is no better than my infamous skill at picking pennant winners. You may recall in the Nov. 21 Baseball Bullet-In, I speculated on which teams the three high-profile Japanese free agents would eventually sign...
Japan Times
BASEBALL / Japanese Baseball
Mar 31, 2023

Fighters debut 'best stadium in the world' as NPB kicks off new season

The Hokkaido Nippon Ham Fighters have touted the opening of their new home, Es Con Field Hokkaido, as the dawning of a new generation.
BASEBALL / Japanese Baseball / NPB Preview
Mar 30, 2023

Central League rivals hoping to prevent Swallows three-peat in 2023

Hanshin’s pitching staff has turned run prevention into an art. If the hurlers get more help from the batters, Hanshin can win the pennant.
Japan Times
SOCCER / J. League
Jul 11, 2023

How a 'Muppets' artist became a part of J. League mascot history

Among American writer Guy Gilchrist's achievements over a career that has spanned more than 40 years is the creation of Shimizu S-Pulse mascot Pul-chan.

Longform

Growing families are being priced out of Tokyo’s condo market, forced to choose between downtown convenience and suburban space.
Is living in central Tokyo still affordable?