NEWSWORTHY
Kiyomiya already getting star treatment from NPB world
On the night Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks captain Seiichi Uchikawa reached the 2,000-hit milestone, one of the the first items on public broadcaster NHK's 9 p.m. national news program was a breathless retelling of the first NPB home run hit by Kotaro Kiyomiya, the Hokkaido ...
Hawks' Seiichi Uchikawa reaches 2,000-hit milestone during win over Lions
Seiichi Uchikawa became the 51st player to reach Japan's iconic 2,000-hit milestone on Wednesday with an eighth-inning single in the Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks' 3-0 win over the Seibu Lions. "I finally, finally got it," said Uchikawa, who had gone hitless for two games since getting ...
Eagles' Takayuki Kishi shuts out Fighters in Kotaro Kiyomiya's debut
Takayuki Kishi surrendered marquee rookie Kotaro Kiyomiya's first hit but finished with a three-hitter, leading the Tohoku Rakuten Golden Eagles to a 1-0 win over the Hokkaido Nippon Ham Fighters on Wednesday. Before 27,661 at Sapporo Dome, Kishi (2-1) walked two and struck out 10 ...
Fighters' Brandon Laird still getting kick of out fans' excitement
Brandon Laird was on his way back to the clubhouse after practice on Saturday when he spotted a young boy looking down on him from the stands. The boy wore a yellow shirt and black-rimmed glasses and a baseball glove covered one of his ...
No. 1 draft pick Kotaro Kiyomiya was called up to the Hokkaido Nippon Ham Fighters' top team Tuesday after starting the season with the Pacific League club's farm team due to abdominal issues. The 18-year-old Kiyomiya is set to make his debut as early as ...
Shohei Ohtani's MLB fireworks wow Japanese baseball world
The Hokkaido Nippon Ham Fighters were busy preparing to face the Chiba Lotte Marines on Saturday afternoon when the events happening at Angel Stadium in Anaheim, California, reached the visitors' clubhouse at Zozo Marine Stadium in Chiba. Shohei Ohtani, their former teammate who is in ...
'Reborn' pitcher Naoyuki Uwasawa off to good start for Fighters
Naoyuki Uwasawa declared himself reborn in mid-December. In 2017, he was still getting back on track after an 2016 elbow injury. But that winter, newly married and with a new uniform number, trading in No. 63 for No. 15, the Hokkaido Nippon Ham Fighters righty ...
Taishi Ota, Oswaldo Arcia power Fighters past Marines
The Hokkaido Nippon Ham Fighters have been working hard to put up good results over the past several days. So they're not about to take their feet off the gas now just because it's Golden Week. Taishi Ota sent two balls into the stands, Oswaldo ...
Hirotoshi Takanashi tosses 91-pitch complete game to help Fighters top Buffaloes
Hirotoshi Takanashi worked his way out of three jams to pitch the Hokkaido Nippon Ham Fighters to a 4-1 victory over the Orix Buffaloes on Wednesday at Sapporo Dome. Takanashi (1-1) needed just 91 pitches to complete a six-hitter. The right-hander walked none but hit ...
Kiyomiya shows off power on farm
After a slow start to his first season as a professional, Kotaro Kiyomiya provided fans with a small glimpse of what made him the most sought-after player in last fall's NPB draft. The Hokkaido Nippon Ham Fighters rookie hit his first two pro home runs ...
Timely homers, stellar relief pitching propel Fighters past Lions at Tokyo Dome
Usually when the Hokkaido Nippon Ham Fighters face another Pacific League team at Tokyo Dome, they're the home team. This time, the Fighters were cast in the unfamiliar role of visitors at the Big Egg. Not that it stopped them from making themselves right at ...
In Shohei Ohtani, Japan finally has its world-beater
It must take a considerable amount of willpower for Hokkaido Nippon Ham Fighters manager Hideki Kuriyama not to respond to questions about his former player Shohei Ohtani with a simple, "I told you so." Although the sly smile he lets slip on occasion more ...
