Search - baseball

 
 
Japan Times
BASEBALL / MLB
Dec 26, 2022

Mets' Kodai Senga well equipped to meet MLB challenge

“He's got Ohtani stuff on the mound. He's not hitting home runs, but on the mound, pitch-for-pitch, they have the same stuff.
BASEBALL / MLB
Dec 16, 2022

Red Sox introduce Masataka Yoshida

Masataka Yoshida helped lead the Orix Buffaloes to the franchise's first Japan Series title since 1996 this season. The Boston Red Sox haven't waited nearly as long for an MLB crown, but Yoshida wants to help add another to the trophy case at Fenway Park all the same.
Japan Times
BASEBALL / MLB
Oct 28, 2022

World Series between Astros and Phillies first without any U.S.-born Black players since 1950

'I don't think that that's something that baseball should really be proud of,' Astros manager Dusty Baker said Thursday.
Japan Times
PODCAST / deep dive
Oct 26, 2022

Japanese pop culture in China: It’s complicated.

Japan and China recently celebrated 50 years of relations and, since then, Japanese art, film and music has had a major impact on Chinese society. Recently, however, the Chinese market has become increasingly difficult to navigate.
Japan Times
BASEBALL / MLB
Oct 14, 2022

MLB's playoff series set to swap cities in drama packed weekend

It will be the Phillies' first home playoff game since 2011 when they ultimately fell in five games in the NLDS to the St. Louis Cardinals.
BASEBALL / Japanese Baseball
Oct 4, 2022

Roki Sasaki and Munetaka Murakami highlight Samurai Japan's November squad

Manager Hideki Kuriyama's men will face the Fighters and Giants at Sapporo Dome on Nov. 5 and 7, respectively, before a pair of games against Australia on Nov. 9 and 10.
BASEBALL / Japanese Baseball / Sac Bunts
Oct 4, 2022

Munetaka Murakami earns place in NPB history with dominant season

The Swallows slugger broke new ground for a Japan-born player on Monday when he finished the regular season with his 56th home run, wrapping up the Triple Crown in the process.
Japan Times
BASEBALL / MLB
Sep 16, 2022

Tampa Bay Rays make history with all-Latin American lineup

The milestone also coincided with Roberto Clemente day, which honors the first Latin American player to be enshrined in the Baseball Hall of Fame.
BASEBALL / Japanese Baseball / NPB NOTEBOOK
Sep 12, 2022

Pacific League pennant race heading toward photo finish

The Pacific League standings have been tight all year, and the season is heading into its final stretch with five of the six teams still in the title race.
BASEBALL / Japanese Baseball / Sac Bunts
May 26, 2022

Is the next Shohei Ohtani already in NPB?

The American League MVP's historic 2021 season has inspired more Japanese players to try walking down their own two-way path.
Japan Times
JAPAN / Regional Voices: Hokkaido
Feb 28, 2022

Hokkaido, a pioneer in esports, draws fans and pro teams

The region has joined the boom, and has seen professional teams sprouting up one after another in anticipation of further growth and the Hokkaido Esports Festival.
Japan Times
BASEBALL / MLB
Nov 22, 2021

'Too early': Ohtani turned down Japan national honor after MVP season

The Japanese government said the Los Angeles Angels two-way player declined the idea of receiving the People's Honor Award as he concentrates on attaining still greater heights.
Japan Times
BASEBALL / MLB
Nov 7, 2021

Carp's Seiya Suzuki to be made available to MLB teams

The five-time NPB All Star, a member of Japan's gold-medal-winning Olympic team, is expected to be one of the most coveted outfielders of the offseason.
Actor Sadao Abe accepts the 2024 U-Can New Word and Popular Phrase Award for ふてほど (futehodo), the abbreviated title for his series, “Futekisetsu nimo Hodo ga Aru!” (“Extremely Inappropriate!”).
LIFE / Language / BILINGUAL
Dec 12, 2024

How often do Japan's buzzwords make it into the vernacular?

We crown a new one every year, but trendy terms tend to disappear from public consciousness if they're related to pop culture.
The head priest of Kiyomizu Temple writes the kanji "kin," which was chosen by the public as the character that best represents 2024, on Thursday in Kyoto.
JAPAN
Dec 12, 2024

'Kin' selected as the kanji of 2024 after strong year for Japanese athletes

The choice also reflected the Liberal Democratic Party’s slush-fund scandal and the spate of robberies involving shady part-time jobs.
Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba's meeting with U.S. President Donald Trump will likely aim at maintaining the status quo, avoid new trade issues and ensure Japan isn’t targeted by tariffs.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Feb 7, 2025

A new golden age for U.S.-Japan? I don’t think so.

Ishiba won’t be looking for any great breakthrough, a dramatic defense re-posturing, or support for any of his long-held foreign policy goals
U.S. President Donald Trump (center), Secretary of State Marco Rubio (left) and Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth attend a Cabinet meeting at the White House in Washington on Wednesday.
WORLD / Politics
May 1, 2025

Trump's Cabinet shrugs off economic contraction, at odds with pledges

Figures show U.S. gross domestic product contracted at an annual rate of 0.3 percent in the first quarter.
Ahead of Children’s Day, a survey of kids entering elementary school in Japan found their top dream job was cake shop and bakery worker, followed by police officer and athlete.
JAPAN / Society
May 4, 2025

Cake shop workers and police officers high on dream job list in Japan

Cake shop and bakery worker topped the overall rankings covering both boys and girls, chosen by 11.7% of the respondents.
In part due to low awareness that placing bets using overseas sports gambling sites is illegal, access to such platforms in Japan has surged in recent years.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
May 15, 2025

Illegal wagers on overseas sports betting sites top ¥6.4 trillion, study finds

The findings, reported by a sports organization, comes after two baseball players were sent to prosecutors earlier this month for allegedly placing bets from Japan.
A worker tries to cool down a street in central Tokyo Tuesday as wide swaths of the Kanto region sweltered under intense heat. In Gunma Prefecture, the temperature rose 41.8 degrees Celsius, the highest ever recorded in Japan.
JAPAN / Society
Aug 5, 2025

Japan swelters as previous heat record melts

The country experienced its new hottest day ever on Tuesday at 41.8 degrees Celsius, beating the previous record set just last week.

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?