While one team is no stranger to the biggest stage, the other squad returned there for the first time in nearly two decades.
For both teams, the mental approach for the 2017 Japan Series is essentially the same: Try to keep playing the way they have all season.
Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks veteran star Seiichi Uchikawa admitted that there was a unique mood surrounding his team at practice on Friday, one day before the series starts at Yafuoku Dome.