Milestones in play for many in 2020 season
With the NPB season set to begin on March 21, it won't be long before players are back in uniform and training with their teams in preparation for 2020. In addition to getting ready for the new campaign, a handful of NPB stars will also ...
Handful of players from 'Matsuzaka Generation' still holding on
Daisuke Matsuzaka returned home on Wednesday, solidifying a deal to spend his 20th season in pro baseball with the Saitama Seibu Lions, the club he spent Year 1 with back in 1999. While the reunion angle is nice and all, Matsuzaka's signing is also a ...
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 ...
Hayato Sakamoto, Tomoya Mori named league MVPs
It was pretty apparent early in the NPB season that it might be a special year for the Yomiuri Giants' Hayato Sakamoto and the Seibu Lions' Tomoya Mori. Eight months later, that was proven true as they stood side-by-side as the top players in their ...
Japan drives past Mexico as Hayato Sakamoto breaks out of slump
Japan manager Atsunori Inaba professed his belief in shortstop Hayato Sakamoto, even as the star infielder struggled at the plate during the Premier12. With Japan looking to bounce back from its first loss of the tournament and facing undefeated Mexico, Sakamoto was back in a ...
Japan national team announces 28-man roster team for Premier12
Yomiuri Giants captain Hayato Sakamoto was among the 28 players named Tuesday to the Japan national team for the upcoming Premier12, an international baseball event that doubles as a qualifier for the 2020 Tokyo Olympics. Sakamoto and four Giants teammates headline the roster for the ...
Shinnosuke Abe says goodbye to Giants fans on a winning note
Everyone at Tokyo Dome knew what Yomiuri Giants public address announcer Daisuke Takahashi was going say. They just needed to hear him say it one more time, one last time. "Catcher, Abe Shinnosuke," Takahashi, voice rising to a scream, announced as the Giants took the ...
Yomiuri Giants catcher Shinnosuke Abe made his retirement official on Wednesday, saying he felt ready to step away from the game after he ticked enough boxes this season, his 19th in Nippon Professional Baseball. As the former captain of the Tokyo-based Central League club, the ...
Giants' Hayato Sakamoto sets personal record with 32nd homer in triumph over Tigers
Just like the weather outside of the relatively comfortable and cool confines of Tokyo Dome, the Yomiuri Giants are starting to heat up again. Giants captain Hayato Sakamoto set a career-high with a solo home run in the first inning, rookie starter Yuki Takahashi kept ...
BayStars slugger Yoshitomo Tsutsugo's move to No. 2 in order could help spark change
Yoshitomo Tsutsugo is not your typical No. 2 batter. Or is he? The answer probably depends on the brand of baseball you prefer. The BayStars slugger isn't a speedster nor much of a bunter. He's a destructive force at the plate with 193 career home ...
Giants beginning to hit stride ahead of All-Star break
Following a spring training game against the Seattle Mariners in March, Yomiuri Giants manager Tastunori Hara mused that the MLB club's lineup looked similar to his own. Hara was specifically referencing the Mariners using one of their best hitters, Mitch Haniger, in the No. 2 ...
Giants grab early lead against Dragons, extend winning streak to five
All it took was one ball, right were Hayato Sakamoto likes it, for the suddenly surging Yomiuri Giants to get off and running toward another victory. Sakamoto connected on his first grand slam in six years, Nobutaka Imamura ended a long winless drought and the ...
