Tag - japan-series

 
 

JAPAN SERIES

SoftBank pitcher Ryosuke Otsu is greeted by teammates at the bench in the fifth inning of Game 4 of the Japan Series at Koshien Stadium in Nishinomiya, Hyogo Prefecture on Wednesday.
BASEBALL / Japanese Baseball
Oct 30, 2025
SoftBank pitcher's Japan Series hit may be one of the last ever
Next year’s Japan Series will mark the final time a pitcher, at least according to the rules, will have to bat in an NPB game.
Hawks starter Ryosuke Otsu pitches against the Tigers during Game 4 of the Japan Series at Koshien Stadium in Nishinomiya, Hyogo Prefecture, on Wednesday.
BASEBALL / Japanese Baseball
Oct 29, 2025
Hiroki Kokubo pushes right buttons as Hawks move to brink of Japan Series title
The Hawks are one win away from clinching the title.
SoftBank shortstop Imamiya (right) celebrates after making a catch off Hanshin's Sakamoto's hit in the sixth inning at Koshien Stadium on Tuesday.
BASEBALL / Japanese Baseball
Oct 29, 2025
Imamiya's spectacular Game 3 catch may live on in SoftBank lore
​The veteran shortstop said the key to his performance is preparation, especially when it comes to playing on a surface as unfamiliar as Koshien Stadium’s all-dirt infield.
Hotaka Yamakawa celebrates with his teammates after hitting a home run against the Tigers in Game 3 of the Japan Series at Koshien Stadium in Nishinomiya, Hyogo Prefecture.
BASEBALL / Japanese Baseball
Oct 28, 2025
Hawks edge Tigers on road to grab lead in Japan Series
The Hawks lead the series 2-1.
Hawks players celebrate victory over the Tigers at Mizuho PayPay Dome Fukuoka on Sunday.
BASEBALL / Japanese Baseball / NPB NOTEBOOK
Oct 27, 2025
Hawks aim to bring energy from Japan Series blowout to Koshien
The Hanshin Tigers' famously fervent supporters will likely kick it up another few levels as the Japan Series shifts to their home park.
SoftBank's Ukyo Shuto rounds first base after hitting a double in the seventh inning at Mizuho PayPay Dome Fukuoka on Sunday.
BASEBALL / Japanese Baseball
Oct 27, 2025
Ukyo Shuto's run into Japan Series history shows game is about more than speed
Shuto set a Japan Series record in the Hawks’ 10-1 rout of the Hanshin Tigers in Game 2 on Sunday.
Hawks slugger Hotaka Yamakawa (left) celebrates with his teammates after hitting a three-run home run against the Tigers during the second inning in Game 2 of the Japan Series in Fukuoka on Sunday.
BASEBALL
Oct 26, 2025
Hotaka Yamakawa powers Game 2 rout as Hawks get even in Japan Series
Yamakawa drove in five runs to help the Hawks even the series at 1-1.
Tigers starter Shoki Murakami pitches against the Hawks during Game 1 of the Japan Series in Fukuoka on Saturday. Murakami pitched seven innings, allowing just one run and six hits.
BASEBALL / Japanese Baseball
Oct 26, 2025
Tigers pitcher Shoki Murakami perseveres in Fukuoka, turning rocky start into ‘amazing’ outing
Murakami did not have his best stuff and found it hard to get into a rhythm early, but he stuck to his guns and bounced back.
The Tigers' Teruaki Sato hits an RBI double against the Hawks during the sixth inning in Game 1 of the Japan Series in Fukuoka on Saturday.
BASEBALL / Japanese Baseball
Oct 25, 2025
Tigers slip past Hawks in Game 1 of Japan Series
Hanshin won its fourth straight postseason game.
Hikaru Kawase and the Hawks will try to finish the job in this year's Japan Series after falling short in 2025.
BASEBALL / Japanese Baseball
Oct 24, 2025
Hawks motivated to take down Tigers after last year's Japan Series collapse
Fukuoka hosts Hanshin Tigers in Game 1 of the Japan Series on Saturday night — and is determined to finish the job this time.
The Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks' Ryoya Kurihara hits a two-run double against the Seibu Lions in Tokorozawa, Saitama Prefecture, on Saturday.
BASEBALL / Japanese Baseball / Sac Bunts
Sep 29, 2025
Hawks take step toward Japan Series redo with Pacific League title
Unlike last year, this team is battle-tested, with injuries being the source of much of the adversity the Hawks have faced.
BayStars manager Daisuke Miura is tossed into the air as the team celebrates after Game 6 of the Japan Series on Nov. 3.
BASEBALL / Japanese Baseball
Nov 11, 2024
BayStars manager Daisuke Miura says team never lost faith during Japan Series run
The BayStars defeated the Hawks to win the Japan Series for the first time since 1998.
The BayStars toss manager Daisuke Miura into the air after defeating the Hawks in Game 6 to win the Japan Series in Yokohama on Sunday.
BASEBALL / Japanese Baseball / Sac Bunts
Nov 4, 2024
BayStars turn tables on Hawks after 2017 loss to capture Japan Series title
For the first time in 26 years, the BayStars are Japan Series champions.
Hawks infielder Hotaka Yamakawa celebrates after hitting a two-run home run against the BayStars in Game 2 of the Japan Series in Yokohama on Sunday.
BASEBALL
Oct 28, 2024
Hawks halfway to third straight Japan Series sweep as series heads to Fukuoka
The Hawks have won 14 straight Japan Series games.
BayStars slugger Tyler Austin hit two homers against the Giants during the final stage of the Central League Climax Series.
BASEBALL / Japanese Baseball
Oct 26, 2024
BayStars aim to complete Cinderella run against Hawks in the Japan Series
To say the Yokohama DeNA BayStars are underdogs against the Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks in the Japan Series would be putting it mildly, but titles are not decided on paper.
Sayaka Ishii will compete in the quarterfinals of the Pan Pacific Open on Friday.
TENNIS
Oct 24, 2024
Sayaka Ishii making name for herself in tennis while cheering on famous father and BayStars
Like the BayStars, Ishii has battled past higher-ranked opponents and will be hoping to continue to thrive in the role of underdog.
JAPAN
Nov 14, 2023
Civil servants face different treatment at Kansai baseball parades
Kobe and Hyogo government workers working at the parades will be treated as being on duty, but those of the Osaka governments will not be.
PODCAST / deep dive
Nov 9, 2023
Japan’s 'four-eyed tax hiker' and the curse of Colonel Sanders
Baseball writer Jason Coskrey and editor Joel Tansey discuss the Hanshin Tigers’ Japan Series victory; Gabriele Ninivaggi explains how the prime minister hopes to get a home run with his tax plan.
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.
JAPAN
Nov 6, 2023
Osaka erupts in celebration as Tigers win Japan Series
A heavy police presence made sure that incidents after past Tigers’ successes would not be repeated.

Longform

Mamoru Iwai, stationmaster of Keisei Ueno Station, says that, other than earthquake-proofing, the former Hakubutsukan-Dobutsuen (Museum-Zoo) Station has remained untouched.
Inside Tokyo's 'phantom' stations — and the stories they tell