Tetsuto Yamada and Wladimir Balentien each hit a pair of home runs, while Norichika Aoki went 4-for-4, as the Tokyo Yakult Swallows hammered the Yomiuri Giants 11-2 on Thursday. Former major leaguer Albert Suarez got the win in his first start for the Swallows. The ...
Swallows' hot-hitting lineup firing on all cylinders
Anyone who watched the Tokyo Yakult Swallows play this past week probably still has the Tokyo Ondo stuck in their head. When they close their eyes, they might still see a sea of small, mostly green umbrellas bobbing up and down in rhythm to ...
Swallows beat Giants in slugfest
The Yomiuri Giants provided the fireworks in the opener and the Tokyo Yakult Swallows lit up the scoreboard in second game. In the finale of the year's first three-game set between the crosstown rivals, they traded blows until only one was left standing. That turned out ...
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 ...
Clutch performances by Wladimir Balentien and Yasuhiro Ogawa give Tokyo Yakult Swallows a big win
Wladimir Balentien was more than ready to turn the page on one of his worst weeks of the season. Being able to do it in an important game against the rival Yomiuri Giants was just icing on the cake. Balentien drove in a pair of ...
Ryoma Nishikawa's tie-breaking, three-run home run led the Central League-leading Hiroshima Carp to a 7-4 come-from-behind win over the Tokyo Yakult Swallows on Wednesday. One night after a heartbreaking loss in a game the Carp were on the verge of winning, Nishikawa came up in ...
Tokyo Yakult Swallows slugger Wladimir Balentien stays ahead of curve at plate
Every time Wladimir Balentien hits a home run, and he's hit quite a few since joining the Tokyo Yakult Swallows in 2011, he has to go back to the drawing board and recalibrate his approach. Because he knows in the time it took to jog ...
Swallows' Masanori Ishikawa tames Lions en route to 160th career win
Left-hander Masanori Ishikawa pitched six-plus innings Tuesday to help the Tokyo Yakult Swallows defeat the Pacific League-leading Seibu Lions 3-1 and extend their interleague lead. In front of 17,088 at Omiya Park Baseball Stadium, Ishikawa (4-2) gave up a run on three hits and a ...
Swallows stay hot during interleague play with victory over Buffaloes
Left-handed rookie Daiki Tajima gave up eight runs in 3⅓ innings on Sunday as the Tokyo Yakult Swallows beat the Orix Buffaloes in the finale of their three-game interleague series. Tajima (5-3) allowed seven hits and six walks before getting pulled in the fourth, while ...
Slugger Wladimir Balentien alters focus going into new season
Wladimir Balentien switched things up a little this spring. While the Tokyo Yakult Swallows star still got in his swings in the batter's box, he spent more time than usual running around the outfield. Even though the slugger still intends to take plenty of long, ...
Seibu ace Yusei Kikuchi refuses to rest on laurels
Yusei Kikuchi has put last year behind him. All the wins, the career numbers and accolades, firmly in the rearview mirror. His brush with the Sawamura Award, now just a fond memory. "Last year was last year, and this year is this year," Kikuchi told ...
Balentien's power remains constant presence at plate for Swallows
Wladimir Balentien could've been written off as a one-year wonder after hitting 31 home runs in his first season in Japan, way back in 2011. Or as just a flash in the pan after doing it the next season. No one could deny Balentien ...
