Seemingly content without MLB, MVP Hayato Sakamoto on track for big things in Japan
Hayato Sakamoto is the one who stayed. In the midst of an era of increased player movement and Japanese stars departing for the major leagues, Sakamoto is one of biggest names, among the age group making the jump, to seemingly decide the grass is actually ...
Giants get off to quick start, downing Tigers in Climax Series Final Stage opener
The Yomiuri Giants hadn't played a game that really counted for anything since clinching the Central League pennant on Sept. 21. They hadn't played any official games at all since Sept. 28. When they finally did get back on the diamond, it didn't take long ...
Central League clubs enter 2019 hoping to dethrone Carp
The following is the last of a two-part NPB preview ending with the 2019 Central League. In order of predicted finish: Yomiuri Giants Manager: Tatsunori Hara 2018 record: 67-71-5 (3rd) Yomiuri skipper Tatsunori Hara, back for a third stint with the team, has a roster with plenty of big ...
The Seibu Lions didn't make it to the Japan Series, but the Pacific League champions dominated Monday's Best Nine Award announcement. The Lions won the PL by 6½ games over the Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks, and six of their starters were named in a poll of ...
Ayatsugu Yamashita goes long in 11th inning as Eagles beat Fighters 10-8
Catcher Ayatsugu Yamashita hit an 11th-inning walk-off homer for his first home run of the season on Tuesday as the Rakuten Eagles earned an 10-8 come-from-behind win over the Nippon Ham Fighters. Eagles' right-hander Takahiro Norimoto gave up six runs in six innings as both ...
PL ends scoreless tie in fifth, wraps up two-game NPB All-Star Series sweep
The Pacific League completed a two-game sweep of the NPB All-Star Series with a 5-1 win over the Central League on Saturday night. While both teams scored early in the PL's 7-6 win Friday at Kyocera Dome, the 13,760 spectators at Kumamoto Fujisakidai Stadium did ...
Back-to-back RBI singles in the seventh inning by Alfredo Despaigne and Hotaka Yamakawa lifted the Pacific League to a 7-6 victory over the Central League in the NPB All-Star Series opener on Friday night. With the score tied 5-5 in the seventh inning, Fukuoka SoftBank ...
The Yokohama BayStars hit five home runs, including a pair from cleanup hitter Yoshitomo Tsutsugo, to crush the Hiroshima Carp 9-3 on Tuesday and deny the Central League champion a second straight berth to the Japan Series. The victory gave the league's third-place team a ...
Swallows delay Carp's pennant celebration for at least one more day
The Hiroshima Carp will have to wait another day to clinch their second straight Central League pennant after blowing a three-run lead in a 5-4 loss to the Tokyo Yakult Swallows on Saturday afternoon. The Carp, the NPB's best pinch-hitting team this season, got a ...
Uchikawa delivers late-game heroics for PL in triumph over CL in NPB All-Star Series opener
Pacific League elder statesman Seiichi Uchikawa scored the tying run and singled in the go-ahead run in a 6-2 NPB All-Star Series Game 1 victory over the Central League on Friday. Before 36,111 at Nagoya Dome, the 34-year-old Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks star tied the ...
Carp set sights on repeat performance in Central League
The following is the second of a two-part NPB preview beginning with the 2016 Central League champions. In order of predicted finish: Hiroshima Toyo Carp 2016: 89-52-2 (1st) The Carp won the CL by 17½ games last season, doing so with a plus-187 run differential. That's a wide ...
After earlier struggles at home, hot-hitting Jones gaining confidence at Tokyo Dome
Garrett Jones might have felt a huge weight lifted off his shoulders over the past two nights at Tokyo Dome. In two games against the Chunichi Dragons this week, on Wednesday and Thursday, the Yomiuri Giants outfielder was 4-for-8 with a home run and eight ...
