There is still a certain novelty to interleague baseball in Japan.

Unlike in MLB, where there are almost daily matchups between American and National League teams under the current format, regular-season contests between Central and Pacific League clubs in NPB happen during a fixed period on the calendar.

The rarity allows the format to avoid becoming too stale. Interleague play is still an event, with teams often participating in various collaborations. While it is similar to a cup competition in soccer, with a champion team and MVP crowned at the end, the games count and impact the pennant and postseason races. Some clubs have been able to use interleague play as a springboard to a championship run, while others have come out the other side weighed down by a poor performance.

Interleague is generally a time of celebration in the Pacific League. Since its introduction in 2005, Pa League teams have claimed 13 of the 17 interleague titles (the schedule was scrapped due to COVID-19 in 2020), with the Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks winning eight times. The PL has finished with the most overall victories 14 times.

The Central League has struck back recently, finishing with the most wins in the past two seasons. Central League teams were Nos. 2 to 5 in the standings in 2021, while the Tokyo Yakult Swallows earned the interleague crown in 2022.

That recent history may bode well for the Hanshin Tigers.

Hanshin enters interleague play as the hottest team in Japan after beating the Yomiuri Giants on Sunday to stretch its winning streak to eight games. The Tigers have not lost since May 19 and are 18-4 during the month.

“There aren’t that many interleague games, so basically we’ll play our style of baseball,” manager Akinobu Okada said after Sunday’s game.

The team leads NPB in runs scored and trails only the Chiba Lotte Marines in runs allowed. Hanshin’s 2.64 ERA is the best in Japan.

Outfielder Koji Chikamoto leads the team with a .319 average and has 26 RBIs and a .908 on-base plus slugging percentage, while Yusuke Oyama is batting .303 with five homers, 29 RBIs and an .847 OPS.

The club’s leading pitcher is Kotaro Otake, a PL transplant.

The Tigers acquired the left-hander from the Hawks in NPB’s first-ever active player draft over the offseason. Otake has thrived in his new surroundings and is 6-0 with an 0.40 ERA in seven starts. He has thrown seven scoreless innings in three of his last four outings — the outlier being six innings of one-run ball against the DeNA BayStars on May 13.

The Tigers are riding a massive wave of momentum into the interleague schedule. Now the club will test its might against opponents like the Hawks’ Yuki Yanagita, who has a .318 average and eight homers, and the Orix Buffaloes’ Tomoya Mori, who is batting .300.

Hanshin, though, will gain an extra bat during games in PL parks, where the designated hitter rule will be in effect.

“I’m just going to go with the normal flow,” Okada was quoted as saying by Daily Sports after Sunday’s game.

The Tigers are six games ahead of the second-place BayStars and looking to strengthen the foundation of their bid to win the CL pennant for the first time since 2005.

Recent history is on their side, as the Tigers have played well against PL clubs the last two years, finishing second with an 11-7 mark in 2021 and as the runner-up again last year at 12-6.

The Tigers can not win the pennant during interleague play, but playing well works out more often than not.

Since 2005, six interleague winners have gone on to win the Japan Series, while overall, 14 teams that finished in the top half of the interleague standings claimed the title.

On the other hand, of all the teams that finished in the lower half of the interleague standings, only three went on to win the Japan Series that same season, and just five managed to win their league's pennant.

Hanshin’s path begins with a road series against the Seibu Lions before a showdown at home against the Marines, currently the first-place team in the Pacific League.

If the Marines’ pitching schedule remains the same, that series could see Lotte phenom Roki Sasaki pitch against the Tigers at historic Koshien Stadium.

That’s a cool twist fans get to enjoy during the interleague portion of the schedule.

Since the games also count for more than just early summer bragging rights, that series could also help each team on its quest to set up a rematch this fall, when the real prize will be on the line.