It is harder to stay at the top than to get there.

The Hanshin Tigers are about to test that theory as they begin the season as the hunted after winning the Central League pennant and ending a 38-year wait for a Japan Series title.

Hanshin will not just have to fend off the rest of the Central League but overcome the hangover of an offseason that was busier than usual after a triumph that felt cathartic for much of the Kansai region.

In Kanto, the rival Yomiuri Giants stocked up on pitching over the offseason in order to make a bid for the title as the rest of a competitive league makes preparations to pounce should the Tigers falter.

The following is the first of a two-part NPB preview beginning with the 2024 Central League.

In order of predicted finish:

Hanshin Tigers

Last season: 85-53-5 (1st)

The 2023 Tigers escaped the shadow of the celebrated 1985 championship squad by outlasting the Orix Buffaloes in seven games to win the Japan Series. They will run it back with the same core players after an offseason with no major additions.

The Tigers led the league in runs scored and on-base percentage last season by buying into manager Akinobu Okada’s strategy that emphasized drawing walks — Hanshin led the CL — to get on base. The Tigers only hit 84 home runs last season, but created and cashed in on opportunities to score.

Teruaki Sato and Yusuke Oyama are the main home run threats while second-year outfielder Shota Morishita has the potential to hit 15 to 20 homers to help boost the power numbers. The club has an MVP candidate at the top of the order in Koji Chikamoto, who arguably should have won the award last season, and a rising star in Takumu Nakano to help set the table out of the No. 2 spot.

Japan’s top rotation returns intact and should be just as good if Shoki Murakami, the CL Rookie of the Year and MVP, is more than a one-hit-wonder. Hanshin will be even better if Koyo Aoyagi rebounds from a tough season and reliever Atsuki Yuasa, limited to 14⅓ innings last year due to injury, returns to form.

The Tigers’ young core has a postseason run under its belt and could come back even better thanks to the experience. It took the team 38 years to win another Japan Series after the '85 triumph. It might only take one this time.

Yomiuri Giants

Last season: 71-70-2 (4th)

The Giants have not won the pennant since 2020 — a veritable eternity in Yomiuri years.

As the team heads into its third post-Tatsunori Hara era (the manager stepped away in 2003 and 2015 only to return a few years later both times), it’s up to new skipper Shinnosuke Abe, a Hara protege, to right the ship.

The biggest question is the pitching rotation — other than ace Shosei Togo and Foster Griffin, who was quietly very good in his first year in Japan. If things go right for Abe, Tomoyuki Sugano will start to resemble his old self, and young righty Iori Yamasaki will maintain the momentum he built late in 2023. Closer Taisei Ota is back to full health, and the club bolstered its pitching staff by signing Kyle Keller from the Tigers and acquiring Rei Takahashi and Keisuke Izumi in a trade with the Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks.

The hard-slugging Giants hit 164 home runs last season — by far the most in NPB — and led the CL with a .710 on-base plus slugging percentage (OPS). Kazuma Okamoto is one of Japan’s top homer threats. He led NPB with 41 round-trippers last year and has six straight seasons with at least 30. The Kyojin also feature Hayato Sakamoto, a more all-around talent who hit 24 four-baggers in 2023.

The Giants traded Adam Walker to SoftBank for pitching and let Sho Nakata walk, but still have Yoshihiro Maru and Takumi Oshiro to help provide run support. The high-profile addition of Rougned Odor, however, flamed out three days before opening day when the former MLBer asked to be released rather than start the year on the farm.

If Abe, a former catcher, can whip his pitching staff into shape, the Kyojin and their powerful offense should be back in pennant contention.

Tokyo Yakult Swallows

Last season: 57-83-3 (5th)

The Swallows won consecutive pennants in 2021 and 2022 but plummeted 26 games under .500 to finish fifth last season.

Offense was not the problem. The Swallows were hit by injuries (Yasutaka Shiomi) and down seasons (Tetsuto Yamada) but still finished second in runs scored, OPS and homers behind Munetaka Murakami, Japan’s premier slugger, Jose Osuna and Domingo Santana. That trio is not likely to slow down and either Shiomi or Yamada — or both — should bounce back.

Scoring runs won't be an issue. Preventing them, however, might be. The Swallows posted the worst overall ERA in the CL, with their starters finishing last among the six teams and the bullpen ranking fifth.

The team probably will not have to worry too much about Yasuhiro “Ryan” Ogawa or Cy Sneed. The issue is filling out the rotation behind them without knowing which version of Keiji Takahashi shows up or how much gas 44-year-old lefty Masanori Ishikawa has in the tank. Second-year righty Kojiro Yoshimura is another wild card who could help keep the starter’s heads above water with a good year. Yasunobu Okugawa flashed ace potential in 2021 but has not been able to stay healthy since then.

The Swallows, like the Giants, have the bats to slug their way into playoff contention — as long as they get a little help from their pitchers.

Hiroshima Toyo Carp

Last season: 74-65-4 (2nd)

The Carp seemed to feed off the energy of new manager Takahiro Arai on an entertaining run to second place last season. On the other hand, the team’s numbers were middling overall, suggesting Hiroshima merely punched above its weight as it finished fifth in runs, OPS and batting average and fourth in run differential and team ERA.

Muddying the waters further is the departure of Ryoma Nishikawa in free agency.

The team has a nice young trio to build around as it moves forward. Catcher Shogo Sakakura is a good player who hit 12 home runs and had 3.8 wins above replacement, while Shota Suekane hit 11 while batting .273. Kaito Kozono finished with a .286 average a year ago. Their improvement and the contributions of veteran 30-somethings Shogo Akiyama, Shota Dobayashi and Ryosuke Kikuchi will determine if Hiroshima sinks or swims.

The team parted ways with Matt Davidson, who led the club with 19 homers but batted .210, and restocked the foreign pool with Matt Reynolds and Jake Scheiner.

The Carp may be on the upswing again, but it will probably take longer than last season's sudden brush with success might suggest.

Yokohama DeNA BayStars

Last season: 74-66-3 (3rd)

The BayStars experienced a rash of departures in the offseason.

Pitchers Shota Imanaga and Edwin Escobar found work with the Chicago Cubs organization. Controversial pitcher Trevor Bauer is also in North America desperately trying to find an MLB contract. Slugger Neftali Soto, meanwhile, signed with the Chiba Lotte Marines.

On the plus side, Shugo Maki, whose 6.4 WAR was tied for the best in the CL, is back. The team also won a three-team draft lottery for electric outfielder Ryuki Watarai, who hit the ground running in the spring with a .434 average in 16 games. Toshiro Miyazaki is a consistent performer and Tyler Austin can be a game-changer in the lineup when healthy, which has been a challenge.

Katsuki Azuma is the top returning pitcher, and Shinichi Onuki had a great spring — one earned run allowed and 11 strikeouts in 13 innings — and has been a quality arm for the team. Yokohama will need both to step up again to cover for the losses. Righty Andre Johnson, a former MLB pitcher, is another interesting player to watch to see where he fits in.

The BayStars have a lot of ifs. If enough things go right, the team could win it all. On the other hand, if they fall, they could fall hard.

Chunichi Dragons

Last season: 56-82-5 (6th)

It would be one thing if the Dragons only struggled in a few areas, but Chunichi was dead last in just about every major offensive category last year.

That led to an offseason of signing 35-year-old Sho Nakata, who was not going to get regular at-bats with the Giants, and 42-year-old Hiroyuki Nakajima, who might not have gotten any at-bats with the Giants. Seiji Uebayashi, a Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks castoff, is at least on the right side of 30.

Nakata will help, but the team probably needs more than any one player can provide. Uebayashi might be a useful addition if he wasn’t an outfielder, since he is unlikely to unseat either Seiya Hosokawa, coming off a 24-homer year, or Yuki Okabayashi, though the latter is dealing with a shoulder issue.

As usual, the Dragons have plenty of pitching. Raidel Martinez is the best closer in Japan. Yuya Yanagi, Hiroto Takahashi, and Shinnosuke Ogawara are good pitchers and 2020 Sawamura Award winner Yudai Ono returns after missing most of 2023 with an injury.

It won't be easy to score runs against the Dragons, but if this year is like the last few, it won't take that many to beat them either.