Atsunori Inaba to remain in charge of Samurai Japan for 2020 Olympics
The former outfielder, who represented Japan at the 2008 Beijing Games, remains steadfast in his goal of achieving a gold medal at the postponed competition.
Olympic delay could send Samurai Japan back to drawing board
One of the common threads in the comments from many of Japan’s top players before spring training was about how much each was motivated by the prospect of trying to win gold on home soil during the 2020 Tokyo Olympics. They can still do that, ...
Samurai Japan has chance to reach new audience at Tokyo Olympics
Samurai Japan manager Atsunori Inaba, during a lecture in Hokkaido last month, noted there was no parade after the national team's win in the Premier12 in November. The Premier12, after all, was a tournament featuring the top 12 teams in the world, though without their ...
Japan digs deep to win Premier12
Samurai Japan finished its Premier12 campaign in successful fashion on Sunday night with a 5-3 victory over South Korea in the gold medal game at Tokyo Dome. While it was an accomplishment by itself, the feat was an appetizer en route to the ultimate goal ...
Japan fights back to win Premier12 final
Four years ago, the Samurai Japan bullpen fell apart in a loss against South Korea in the Premier12 semifinals at Tokyo Dome. This time, with the title hanging in the balance, Japan's relievers got to taste both sweet revenge and the championship. Tetsuto Yamada gave Japan ...
U.S. hands Japan first loss at Premier12
Japan had usually been able to find a way to come up with the big hit or big play when it absolutely needed to at this Premier12. The difference on Tuesday night was the Japanese found themselves against an opponent who was always ready with ...
Seiya Suzuki tearing it up at the plate for Samurai Japan
Seiya Suzuki changed his bat for the Super Round of the Premier12, but he didn't really have a good reason for doing so. "There's really no reason," he said on Monday night, after helping Japan to its fourth straight victory, 3-2 over Australia, of the ...
Samurai Japan will head home to the Premier 12 super round having completed a sweep of Group B with an 8-1 win over group host Taiwan on Thursday. Both teams were playing for pride having already clinched a spot in the six-team round robin next ...
Fighters' Kotaro Kiyomiya named to Samurai Japan squad for Mexico friendlies
Japan manager Atsunori Inaba named 11 new players Monday to the national team's squad for upcoming international friendlies with Mexico, including Hokkaido Nippon Ham Fighters teenager Kotaro Kiyomiya. Along with the 19-year-old first baseman, Fighters outfielder Haruki Nishikawa, 26, and Orix Buffaloes outfielder Masataka Yoshida, ...
NPB, MLB squads to vie for bragging rights in All-Star series
Atsunori Inaba already knows he'll be managing Samurai Japan during the 2020 Tokyo Olympics. When it comes to Don Mattingly and Team USA, well, never say never. Right now, the two managers are preparing to face off in the Japan All-Star Series which begins Friday and ...
Japan suffered a 6-5 loss against Taiwan in an international friendly Wednesday, two days before Samurai Japan takes on a team of major league all-stars. With both teams struggling to get a hit, Taiwan came alive first by breaking a scoreless tie in the fifth ...
Samurai Japan unveils roster for series against MLB stars
Kazuma Okamoto has spent all season showing why many think he could be one of Japan's next great slugging stars. Now he'll get to show it against some of MLB's best. Okamoto, the Yomiuri Giants' 22-year-old cleanup hitter, was given his first call-up to the Samurai ...
