Hawks Sweep Fighters, BayStars Upset Giants

The DeNA BayStars took down the pennant-winning Yomiuri Giants to continue their Cinderella run.

The 2024 World Series is set between the New York Yankees and the Los Angeles Dodgers, but who will play in the Japan Series? Let’s find out how the Central and Pacific League Championship Series went down!

Central League: DeNA Baystars @ Yomiuri Giants

Yomiuri starts with automatic 1-0 advantage
DeNA wins 4-3

G1: DeNA 2 – 0 Yomiuri
G2: DeNA 2 – 1 Yomiuri
G3: DeNA 2 – 1 Yomiuri
G4: DeNA 1 – 4 Yomiuri
G5: DeNA 0 – 1 Yomiuri
G6: DeNA 3 – 2 Yomiuri

After a hard-fought, low-scoring series, the DeNA BayStars stunned the Yomiuri Giants with a 4-3 victory in the Central League Climax Series Final Stage. Catcher Yasutaka Tobashira was a surprise standout performer and was named MVP. Looking for their first championship since 1998, the BayStars are the first Central League wild card team to advance to the Japan Series since…the 2017 BayStars. They have that Cinderella magic!

In Game 1, Anthony Kay delivered six shutout innings of one-hit ball for the BayStars, supported by a Keita Sano solo homer and a late RBI single from Yoshitomo Tsutsugo. DeNA’s bullpen held off Yomiuri for a 2-0 victory to open the series, effectively eliminating Yomiuri’s ghost win advantage.

In Game 2, superstar Tyler Austin’s solo homer off Tomoyuki Sugano broke a 1-1 tie in the 7th inning, giving DeNA the edge in another tight game. A great start by Shinichi Ohnuki and solid bullpen work sealed a 2-1 victory, putting the BayStars up 2-1 in the series.

Game 3 saw Kazuma Okamoto open the scoring for Yomiuri in the 2nd with a solo shot. But Tyler Austin went deep again in the 4th to tie it, and a wild pitch in the 5th gave DeNA the lead. The bullpen shut the door yet again, preserving a 2-1 win and a commanding 3-1 series lead.

In Game 4, Yomiuri avoided elimination behind Haruto Inoue’s near-perfect six innings of work and a big 7th inning with a squeeze play and a defensive error fueling a 4-1 win, keeping the Giants alive.

Raito Nakayama, who was playing for injured star Naoki Yoshikawa, hit his first career NPB homer in Game 5 to propel Yomiuri to a 1-0 win as Iori Yamasaki kept the BayStars scoreless for six innings. Star closer Taisei was a bit wild in the 9th but secured the save to force a winner-take-all Game 6.

In the series-decider, Keito Mori’s 1st inning error put the Giants in front early. They added another run in the 4th on a beautiful squeeze by pitcher Shosei Togo. But Mori made up for his mistake with an RBI triple in the 5th, and pinch-hitter Mike Ford tied it with a base hit. The score stayed that way until the 9th with veteran Tomoyuki Sugano on the mound for Yomiuri on short rest. But captain Shugo Maki delivered a clutch RBI single in the 9th to put the BayStars in front, and closer Kohei Morihara picked up his third save of the series to seal the deal.

Pacific League: Nippon-Ham Fighters @ SoftBank Hawks

SoftBank starts with automatic 1-0 advantage
SoftBank wins series 4-0

G1: Nippon-Ham 2 – 5 SoftBank
G2: Nippon-Ham 2 – 7 SoftBank
G3: Nippon-Ham 2 – 3 SoftBank

The SoftBank Hawks advanced to the Japan Series after sweeping the Nippon-Ham Fighters in the Pacific League Climax Series Final Stage. Hotaka Yamakawa’s three-homer performance earned him the series MVP honors. With a 4-0 series victory, including an automatic one-game advantage for winning the regular season pennant, the Hawks will compete in the Japan Series for the first time since 2020. They are currently on a 12-game winning streak in the Japan Series, dating back to 2018.

In Game 1, Hawks starter Kohei Arihara pitched seven strong innings, while Hiromi Itoh of the Fighters got hit around for ten hits and four runs despite striking out nine. Franmil Reyes went deep for Nippon-Ham, but SoftBank’s offense was simply stronger, led by homers from Kenta Imamiya, Ryoya Kurihara, and NPB home run king Hotaka Yamakawa. The latter’s eighth-inning blast sealed a 5-2 victory.

Game 2 saw the Hawks continue their offensive explosion with a 7-2 win, as Kensuke Kondoh had an early two-run shot that got the ball rolling, and Hotaka Yamakawa added two more home runs. Nippon-Ham had multiple chances with men in scoring position against Livan Moinelo but couldn’t capitalize, while SoftBank’s bullpen stifled any hopes of a comeback.

In Game 3, the Hawks finished off the sweep with a 3-2 win. Carter Stewart Jr. pitched five solid innings, and SoftBank’s bullpen shut down Nippon-Ham the rest of the way. All five Hawks pitchers this game threw at least one 96+ mph pitch. The game was tied at two until the 4th when Ukyo Shuto drove in the winning run following a costly error by third baseman Kotaro Kiyomiya. Closer Roberto Osuna pitched the 9th in all three games.

Japan Series Matchup
DeNA BayStars (CL 3) vs. SoftBank Hawks (PL 1)