Roki Sasaki makes highly anticipated NPB debut with Marines
The "monster" finally made landfall on May 16. Pitcher Roki Sasaki was Japan's most-hyped rookie in some time when the Chiba Lotte Marines won his rights in the 2019 draft. He didn’t pitch on the top team in 2020, but that didn’t slow the swell ...
Yasuhiro Ogawa's no-hitter provides major lift for Swallows pitching staff
The Swallows are in desperate need of good results on the mound.
Swallows' Yasuhiro Ogawa fires Japanese pro ball's 93rd no-hitter
Tokyo Yakult Swallows right-hander Yasuhiro Ogawa threw the first no-hitter of the season on Saturday and the first of his career in a 9-0 Central League win over the Yokohama DeNA BayStars. Ogawa's gem was the 93rd no-hitter in the history of Japanese pro baseball, ...
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 ...
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 ...
Despaigne, Akiyama, Suzuki supply big hits as PL tops CL in All-Star Series finale
For one night, it was just like old times for Alfredo Despaigne in Chiba. A monstrous home run, a celebration with Chiba Lotte Marines catcher Tatsuhiro Tamura, and a celebratory "Despa-iine" call-and-response with the fans in right field after the game. It was almost like ...
Swallows fans getting test in patience in 2017
Tokyo Yakult Swallows fans can be forgiven for being frustrated, even angry, at the way the season has played out thus far. The team is mired in last place and began this week six games out of even fifth place. That's to say nothing of ...
Swallows hurler Ogawa, Eagles reliever Matsui honored as August pitching MVPs
Tokyo Yakult Swallows starter Yasuhiro "Ryan" Ogawa and Tohoku Rakuten Golden Eagles reliever Yuki Matsui were named August pitchers of the month in the Central and Pacific Leagues, respectively, on Thursday. The two league's awards for hitters both went to second basemen, with the Hiroshima ...
Swallows' Yamada pounces on Dragons in series opener
Japanese baseball's interleague interlude gave Central League pitchers a brief respite from having their ERAs ruined by Tetsuto Yamada. But on a somewhat wet Friday night at Jingu Stadium, the Tokyo Yakult Swallows star declared school was back in session. Yamada drove in two runs ...
Swallows blank Giants in Game 2 of CLCS
The Tokyo Yakult Swallows finally landed a knockout blow against Yomiuri Giants pitcher Miles Mikolas. The fact they got some of their own stars going in the process has them sizing up the rest of the Giants for a similar knockdown before everything is ...
Right-hander Yasuhiro Ogawa withstood five scoring opportunities and drew an 11-pitch bases-loaded walk to spark a four-run fourth inning for the Tokyo Yakult Swallows in a 4-0 win over the Yomiuri Giants on Wednesday night. Ogawa (9-6) allowed seven hits, a walk and a hit ...
Yasuhiro "Ryan" Ogawa took a one-hit shutout into the ninth inning to earn the win as the Tokyo Yakult Swallows beat the Yokohama BayStars 3-1 on Friday night. On a rainy night at Jingu Stadium, Ogawa (2-0) didn't allow a base runner until after the ...
