BASEBALL

Japanese Baseball

Sadaharu Oh, chairman of the SoftBank Hawks, has expressed frustration over his team's third-place finish in the Pacific League
BASEBALL / Japanese Baseball
Nov 28, 2023
Oh vows return to top of Japanese baseball for Hawks
For the third consecutive year, the once-dominant Hawks did not win the league title or advance to the Japan Series.
Shota Imanaga pitches for Japan during the World Baseball Classic final in Miami on March 21.
BASEBALL / Japanese Baseball
Nov 27, 2023
BayStars post pitcher Shota Imanaga to clear way for MLB move
The 30-year-old led the Central League with 174 strikeouts over 148 innings this year, while having a 7-4 record and a 2.80 ERA in 22 games.
Buffaloes ace Yoshinobu Yamamoto was named to his third straight Best Nine team on Monday.
BASEBALL / Japanese Baseball
Nov 27, 2023
Yoshinobu Yamamoto named to third straight Best Nine team
Yoshinobu Yamamoto was the runaway choice as the best pitcher in the Pacific League on Monday, when the winners of NPB’s annual Best Nine awards were announced.
Tigers players Kento Itohara (left), Fumihito Haraguchi (second from left), Ryutaro Umeno (third from left) and Suguru Iwazaki pose for photos during the team's victory parade in Kobe on Thursday.
BASEBALL / Japanese Baseball
Nov 24, 2023
Triumphant Tigers and Buffaloes hold parades in Kobe and Osaka
Around 1 million fans attended victory parades for the Tigers and Buffaloes in Kobe and Osaka on Thursday.
Shota Imanaga speaks during a news conference at Yokohama Stadium on Monday.
BASEBALL / Japanese Baseball
Nov 13, 2023
BayStars lefty Shota Imanaga hoping to face Shohei Ohtani in MLB
The BayStars have given the 30-year-old pitcher permission to use the posting system this offseason.
Hanshin second baseman Takumu Nakano (right) and outfielder Koji Chikamoto were among the team's five Golden Glove winners this season.
BASEBALL / Japanese Baseball
Nov 10, 2023
Japan Series champion Tigers lead way with five Golden Glove winners
The Tigers set a franchise record with five Golden Glove selections.
The Tigers' Sheldon Neuse (center, No. 7) celebrates with his teammates following his three-run homer in the fourth inning of Game 7 of the Japan Series against the Buffaloes at Kyocera Dome Osaka on Sunday.
BASEBALL / Japanese Baseball
Nov 6, 2023
Sheldon Neuse and the catch that ended the Tigers' 38-year drought
For the American, a win in the Japan Series was a perfect ending to a year that did not go the way he had hoped during the regular season.

Longform

Tokyo Healthcare University professor Takayuki Mifune explains how he is trying to re-create bonito broth from 1,300 years ago.
The quest to re-create what the Japanese ate 1,300 years ago