Hawks, Tigers Set for Japan Series Showdown

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The stage is set for the 2025 Japan Series, as the Central League’s Hanshin Tigers and Pacific League’s Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks emerged victorious from their respective Climax Series battles.

Hanshin comfortably swept past the defending champion Yokohama DeNA BayStars, while SoftBank narrowly avoided a historic collapse against the Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters to punch their tickets to NPB’s Fall Classic. The sides last met in the Japan Series in 2014, with the Hawks winning four games to one to kickstart a dynasty run that saw them capture six of the next seven titles.

Both powerhouses posted nearly identical records in the regular season (85-54-4 with a +144 run differential for Hanshin; 87-52-4 with a +162 run differential for SoftBank), setting up an evenly matched showdown. The Tigers have looked stronger so far in the postseason, but the Hawks have home-field advantage and won two of their three head-to-head matchups during interleague play in June.

Game 1 is set for Saturday, October 25, at 6:30 pm local time in Fukuoka.

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(2) Nipponham Fighters vs. (1) SoftBank Hawks

G1: Nipponham 1-2 SoftBank
G2: Nipponham 0-3 SoftBank
G3: Nipponham 6-0 SoftBank
G4: Nipponham 9-3 SoftBank
G5: Nipponham 7-1 SoftBank
G6: Nipponham 1-2 SoftBank

SoftBank wins series, 4-3

SoftBank started the series with a 1-0 advantage as PL pennant winners and home-field advantage throughout. Hiroki Kokubo’s side appeared to have things under control before the Fighters stormed back from 0-3 down to force a decisive Game 6.

In the clincher, the Hawks held on for a 2-1 victory to avoid what would have been regarded a historic choke as no team has blown a 3-0 lead in PL playoff history. NPB ERA king Livan Moinelo delivered a gem, striking out six over seven innings of three-hit, one-run ball on short rest. He was named the Series MVP for his two starts totaling 14 innings and just one run allowed.

Hikaru Kawase provided the go-ahead hit in the fifth inning, lining a two-out single that put the Hawks ahead for good. Kazuki Sugiyama shut the door in the ninth for his second save of the series.

Earlier in the series, SoftBank got clutch moments from Hotaka Yamakawa, who had a walk-off single in Game 1, and Yuki Yanagita, who smashed a go-ahead three-run homer in Game 2. Tsuyoshi Shinjo’s team lived up to their name, fighting back with blowout wins in Games 3, 4, and 5, carried by big performances from Hiromi Itoh, Franmil Reyes, and Kotaro Kiyomiya, to nearly pull off a historic comeback.

But the Hawks ultimately prevailed, securing their second straight Japan Series berth and a shot at redemption after last year’s upset loss to the BayStars.

(2) DeNA BayStars @ (1) Hanshin Tigers

G1: DeNA 0-2 Hanshin
G2: DeNA 3-5 Hanshin
G3: DeNA 0-4 Hanshin

Hanshin wins series, 4-0

Entering with a 1-0 advantage as pennant winners, the Tigers needed only three more wins at Koshien Stadium and got them comfortably. The BayStars were familiar with being the underdogs, having managed a Cinderella run to win the Japan Series as the CL’s three-seed in last year’s postseason, but Hanshin were simply too strong.

In the clincher, home run king Teruaki Sato set the tone early with a three-run shot in the first inning, and Yusuke Oyama followed with an RBI double in the third to make it 4-0. Southpaw Haruto Takahashi flirted with a no-hitter, taking it into the eighth before finishing with 7 ⅔ innings of three-hit, shutout ball with seven strikeouts. Hanshin outscored DeNA 11-3 across the series, showcasing its overwhelming talent on both sides of the ball.

The opening games set the tone: Game 1 was a tight pitchers’ duel between Katsuki Azuma and Shoki Murakami until it was broken open in the sixth by Shota Morishita and Dan Onodera. Game 2 ended in dramatic fashion as Hanshin came from behind in the eighth to tie things up, then Morishita belted a walk-off two-run homer in extra innings. The young outfielder was also crowned Series MVP, going 6 for 9 with a 1.991 OPS in three games.

The sweep sends the Tigers back to the Japan Series for the second time in three years. In 2023, they took down Yoshinobu Yamamoto and the Orix Buffaloes in the full seven games to break the so-called “Curse of the Colonel.” Now, they’ll strive for just their third championship in franchise history in what would be a dream start to Kyuji Fujikawa’s managerial career.

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