The 2026 Japan Series will pit the Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks, who finished an NPB-best 91-49-3, against the Yokohama DeNA BayStars, who placed third in the Central League at 71-69-3 before upsetting the Hanshin Tigers in the playoffs.
SoftBank had by far the best offense in Japan this year with a .754 OPS (1st) and 162 home runs (2nd). They were also elite at keeping runs off the board with a 2.88 ERA (3rd) and 45 DRS (1st).
DeNA had a slow start to their campaign but picked up steam in the second half, finishing with a respectable .684 OPS (4th) and 3.27 ERA (5th), though they were very poor defensively.
While it may be a mismatch between a dynasty in the making and a major underdog on paper, the BayStars are red-hot and have plenty of confidence after upsetting the Hawks back in 2024.
The rematch of the 2024 Nippon Series begins October 24 at Yokohama Stadium, with DeNA holding home field advantage because NPB alternates every other year between the CL and PL rather than going off regular season performance.
Before the championship gets underway, the NPB Draft will be held on October 22, giving fans plenty more excitement to wrap up October. This year’s top prospect is two-way standout Haruki Komoda from Yamanashi Gakuin High School. Another highly touted prospect, Shoki Oda, has elected to bypass the NPB Draft to play stateside with an MLB organization or NCAA school.
Pacific League: SoftBank sweeps Nipponham
The Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks secured their third consecutive Japan Series appearance by sweeping the Hokkaido Nipponham Fighters in three games. Including their two automatic wins, the Hawks finished the Final Stage with a 5-0 series victory, eliminating Nipponham in the same round for the third straight year.
The Fighters held leads in all three games but couldn’t convert them into wins. In the opener, they chased Livan Moinelo after just 2 ⅔ innings, his shortest outing ever as a starter. However, defensive mistakes helped SoftBank score five runs in the fourth and rally for a 6-4 victory.
Game 2 remained tied 2-2 until the ninth, when Nipponham intentionally walked Kensuke Kondoh to load the bases for NPB home run leader Ryoya Kurihara. Kurihara responded with a walk-off grand slam off Ren Fukushima, becoming only the second player in Climax Series history to do so.
Tomoya Masaki delivered the decisive hit in the finale, flipping a 2-1 deficit into a lead with a two-run homer in the fifth. PL Rookie of the Year frontrunner Yugo Maeda allowed two runs over five innings, and four relievers combined for four scoreless innings to finish the 6-2 win and clinch the series.
Yudai Shoji earned series MVP honors out of the 9-hole in the lineup.
Central League: DeNA stuns Hanshin at Koshien
The Yokohama DeNA BayStars swept all four games against the Hanshin Tigers at Koshien, overcoming the pennant winners’ automatic one-win advantage to return to the Japan Series for the first time since 2024. DeNA remained unbeaten through six postseason games, setting up a rematch with the Hawks.
Pitching defined the first three games, as Hanshin became the first team in NPB postseason history to suffer three consecutive shutout losses. Kentaro Taira threw 5 ⅔ scoreless innings in Game 1, and the BayStars held Teruaki Sato and Shota Morishita to a combined 0 for 7.
Shugo Maki’s clutch eighth-inning homer decided Game 2, a 1-0 victory. Rookie Hiromi Katayama then delivered seven scoreless innings with eight strikeouts in Game 3, supported by Keita Sano’s three-run homer in a 4-0 win. Hanshin’s problems worsened as superstars Sato and Morishita dealt with day-to-day injuries and were out of the starting lineup, while Ukyo Maekawa suffered a fractured hand.
In Game 4, Morishita reignited Hanshin’s offense with two home runs, but DeNA rallied for four runs after being down to its final strike in the ninth, including Masaki Mimori’s go-ahead two-run single that crushed Tigers fans’ souls. Closer Sean Reynolds tightroped another late threat, as he’s done all postseason, striking out Nozomu Takatera and Seiya Kinami to clinch an 8-5 win and a Japan Series berth.
Maki earned series MVP honors after extending his postseason home run tally to four as DeNA completed another postseason upset. For Hanshin, it was an incredibly underwhelming end to the season.
