NEWSWORTHY
Swallows bring veteran reliever Ryota Igarashi back into fold
The Tokyo Yakult Swallows said Wednesday the Central League club will acquire former major league reliever Ryota Igarashi, who was released by the Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks last month. Akimitsu Ito, the Swallows' head of player personnel, said the 2018 Central League runner-up hopes the 39-year-old ...
The Tokyo Yakult Swallows have reached an agreement to acquire former major league pitcher Albert Suarez, the Central League club said Wednesday. The 29-year-old Suarez played Triple-A ball for the Reno Aces, the Arizona Diamondbacks' affiliate, this past season. He went 0-1 with a 4.97 ...
The Hokkaido Nippon Ham Fighters and Tokyo Yakult Swallows have agreed to a four-player deal, the two NPB teams announced Tuesday. The Fighters, in need of relief pitchers, sent right-hander Hirotoshi Takanashi and infielder Kengo Ota in exchange for right-hander Ryo Akiyoshi and infielder Ryota ...
Giants riding wave of momentum into final stage showdown against Carp
Tomoyuki Sugano turned, slapped his glove and thrust both arms into air once the ball was safely secure in Daikan Yoh's glove in center field. He wore a broad smile as catcher Seiji Kobayashi enveloped him in a hug near the mound at Jingu ...
Giants seize opportunities in Game 1 triumph over Swallows
Without hesitation, the Swallows sent their Giants killer to the mound for Saturday's postseason series opener, but it did not work out the way they had hoped. Instead, the Giants who came through, scoring key late runs and relying on solid pitching in their 4-1 ...
The race to the Japan Series begins Saturday as the Central and Pacific League Climax Series' first stages get underway in Tokyo and Fukuoka. Each league's second-place team will host their third-place league rival in the three-game first stages. Each first-stage winner will advance to ...
Swallows starter Matt Carasiti, bullpen hold BayStars in check
Matt Carasiti tossed four solid innings on Wednesday and the Tokyo Yakult Swallows' bullpen maintained an early lead for a 2-1 victory over the Yokohama BayStars. Despite outhitting the Swallows, the BayStars were unable to take advantage of several chances at Jingu Stadium and suffered ...
Wladimir Balentien bashes pair of homers in Swallows' victory over BayStars
Wladimir Balentien knocked in a pair of home runs, helping 21-year-old starter Keiji Takahashi pick up his first professional win as the Tokyo Yakult Swallows edged the Yokohama BayStars 3-2 on Tuesday night. The result in front of 28,328 at Jingu Stadium erased Yokohama's half-game ...
Swallows set to release hard-throwing pitcher Yoshinori Sato
The Tokyo Yakult Swallows have decided to release right-hander Yoshinori Sato, once the fastest throwing pitcher in NPB, at the end of the season, club president Tsuyoshi Kinugasa said Tuesday. Kinugasa told reporters Yakult did not have a choice as the 28-year-old, who was drafted ...
Keiji Obiki belts pair of homers as Swallows beat Giants 8-5
Keiji Obiki went 3-for-4, including a pair of home runs, while Yasuhiro Ogawa struck out eight as the Yakult Swallows beat the Yomiuri Giants 8-5 in the Central League on Monday night. The Giants dropped from third to fourth with the loss at Jingu Stadium, ...
Carp rout Swallows to clinch third straight Central League pennant
Aren Kuri threw eight scoreless innings to help the Hiroshima Carp to clinch their third straight Central League pennant in grand fashion with a 10-0 win over the Tokyo Yakult Swallows on Wednesday. For two straight days, the Carp had needed one win or one ...
Victories by BayStars, Swallows prevent Carp from clinching pennant
Jose Lopez broke an eighth-inning tie with a two-run homer Tuesday to lead the Yokohama BayStars to a 5-3 victory over the Hiroshima Carp, while the Tokyo Yakult Swallows' win delayed the Central League leaders from clinching their third straight pennant. The Carp, who entered ...
