After a week away helping lead JapanBall’s annual NPB Main Tour and hosting the University of South Carolina Tour across Japan, we’re back with another edition of the Nippon Professional Baseball newsletter.
The past week brought no shortage of notable storylines around the league. Haruto Takahashi (Tigers), Teruaki Sato (Tigers), Kaima Taira (Lions), and Kensuke Kondoh (Hawks) were all recognized as March/April Players of the Month in their respective leagues after standout starts to the 2026 season.
NPB also introduced a new “hazardous swings” rule following last month’s frightening incident involving umpire Takuto Kawakami, who remains unconscious after suffering a head injury when a bat slipped out of Jose Osuna’s hands. Under the new regulations, batters will receive a warning for a first offense involving a slipped bat and face ejection on a second offense, while any bat that flies into the stands, dugout, or photographers’ area will result in immediate ejection regardless of whether it makes contact with someone.
Meanwhile, the Orix Buffaloes suffered another devastating blow as star right-hander Shunpeita Yamashita elected to undergo Tommy John surgery, sidelining one of Japan’s most electric young pitchers for the foreseeable future. The team had already lost ace Hiroya Miyagi to a UCL injury of his own back in April.
And with all of that happening, interleague play is set to begin this week, bringing fresh matchups and an early measuring stick between the Central and Pacific Leagues. Now, let’s take a look at some of the biggest performances from the past week.
Tuesday (5/19)
- Teruaki Sato (Tigers) tied the NPB lead with his 12th home run in a 4-2 win against the Dragons.
- Chusei Mannami (Fighters) smashed his 11th homer in a 6-2 victory over the Eagles.
- Shosei Togo (Giants) threw seven shutout innings against the Swallows for his first win of the season.
Wednesday (5/20)
- Shota Morishita (Tigers) hit a walk-off home run to cap off a dramatic 8-7 comeback over the Dragons.
- Tomoya Noguchi (Buffaloes) delivered a pinch-hit three-run shot to put an exclamation point on an 8-3 win against the Hawks.
Thursday (5/21)
- Taichi Yamano (Swallows) fired seven innings of one-run ball against the Giants to improve to 6-1 on the season.
Friday (5/22)
- Yuudai Yamamoto (Hawks) hit his first home run since being traded from the BayStars in a 10-0 win over the Fighters.
- Masahiro Tateishi (Tigers) went 3 for 5 and hit his first career double in a 7-4 win against the Giants.
- Sean Hjelle (Buffaloes) tossed six scoreless frames in a 5-1 victory versus the Lions.
Saturday (5/23)
- Shoki Murakami (Tigers) delivered a three-hit complete game shutout against the Giants.
- The Marines scored five runs in the ninth to come from behind versus the Eagles, 7-6.
- The Hawks battered the Fighters, 11-1, to improve to 7-0 against them in head-to-head matchups this season.
Sunday (5/24)
- Masahiro Tateishi (Tigers) hit his first career home run to help complete a sweep of the Giants.
- Alexander Canario (Lions) homered twice in a 4-3 win against the Buffaloes as the team moved into first place.
- Yutaro Ishida (BayStars) hurled six shutout innings in a 1-0 win versus the Swallows.
