The Chunichi Dragons were 11 games under .500 on July 8 but are now only one game out of third place in the Central League after winning seven consecutive games. With the Hanshin Tigers comfortably leading the pennant race, the BayStars, Giants, Dragons, and Carp will be duking it out for the remaining postseason spots.
Meanwhile, the Nippon-Ham Fighters still lead the Pacific League, with the SoftBank Hawks close behind. The Orix Buffaloes have the last playoff position, well ahead of the Seibu Lions in fourth, as we enter the All-Star break.
Also, JapanBall is having its annual local meetup at Raimondi Park on Sunday, August 24, for the Oakland Ballers’ final Pioneer League home game of the regular season. Use promo code: 3ettfmj5 for $11.50 off per ticket and come join the crew.
Monday (July 14)
- Shinnosuke Hada (Lions) threw the fastest pitch ever by a Japanese left-handed pitcher at 160 kmh (~99.4 mph).
Tuesday (July 15)
- Katsuki Azuma (BayStars) out-dueled Hiroki Tokoda (Carp) with eight shutout frames in a 1-0 victory.
- Ryosuke Tatsumi (Eagles) hit a grand slam in a 7-6 win against the Buffaloes.
- Keita Yamamoto (Hawks) hit his first career home run.
- Jeter Downs (Hawks) hit his first homer of 2025.
Wednesday (July 16)
- Hiroto Takahashi (Dragons) tossed a complete game shutout with seven strikeouts against the Tigers. It was Chunichi’s sixth straight win.
- Daiki Tajima (Buffaloes) threw a complete game shutout and Keita Nakagawa hit a walk-off solo shot versus the Eagles.
- Ariel Martinez (Fighters) hit his first jack of the season in a 10-1 blowout over the Lions.
- Tomohisa Ohseki (Hawks) struck out nine in eight scoreless innings against the Marines.
Thursday (July 17)
- Franmil Reyes (Fighters) hit a three-run shot, but the Lions came from behind to win, 4-3.
- The Carp-BayStars and Hawks-Marines games were both called off as ties in the sixth inning due to rain.
Saturday (July 19)
- Teruaki Sato (Tigers) hit his career-high 25th dinger in a 4-0 win over the Giants.
- Framil Reyes (Fighters) hit his 20th homer against the Eagles.
- Chusei Mannami (Fighters) hit two homers.
- Livan Moinelo (Hawks) tossed a two-hit shutout against the Lions.
- Yasunobu Okugawa (Swallows) fired seven shutout innings against the Carp.
Sunday (July 20)
- The BayStars snapped the Dragons’ seven-game win streak.
- J.D. Davis (Lions) got his first NPB hit.
Central League Standings
Pacific League Standings
- NPB Standings
- Central League Hitting Leaders
- Central League Pitching Leaders
- Pacific League Hitting Leaders
- Pacific League Pitching Leaders
- Yakyu Cosmopolitan’s Website
