I don’t believe I’ve ever seen anything like this. Including today’s games (it’s Marine Day in Japan, so NPB teams played today and will rest on Thursday instead), the gap between first and fourth place in the Central League is now a miniscule 0.5 games. The means that if the season were to end today, the Hanshin Tigers would miss the playoffs, but they also have the potential of winning the pennant if the season were to end tomorrow. Details on the top four CL teams, plus the PL, and even more in this week’s newsletter.
But I probably shouldn’t bury the lede. After seven-plus years of delivering you the news here at JapanBall, I (Trevor) will be stepping down to pursue other endeavors. I began this journey back in the spring of 2017, and have written probably over 140,000 words in disseminating the news to you week in and week out, through long cold winters, through the Covid-19 pandemic-induced suspension of baseball, and more. I have written of dynasties (the SoftBank Hawks won the Japan Series in each of the first four years of my duties), two worst-to-first stories in the same year (the Yakult Swallows and Orix Buffaloes played a thriller of a Japan Series in 2021, and followed it up with another great one in 2022), and the end of a drought and curse, as the Hanshin Tigers won it all last November.
What lies in store for me now? Well, I will also be shutting down my website (Hanshin Tigers English News) at month’s end, so my baseball writing is really going to grind to a halt… or is it? I want to spread my wings a little and write about other topics, such as interpreters in baseball, but also generally about life in Japan. For those interested, you can subscribe (free or paid) to my Substack. I am also going to pursue some academic research (interpreting) and finish up some other writing projects that have been put on the back burner for too long. I am also extremely glad to be able to continue to be a part of the JapanBall family, as I help guide the tours that come through the Kansai (Kobe-Osaka-Kyoto) region, plus the spring training one down in Okinawa. I will continue to read the weekly newsletters, too, as…
Yuri “Yakyu Cosmopolitan” Karasawa takes over from next week! Those of you who follow his social media accounts know the quality of work he does, and I am thrilled to pass the torch to someone with as much knowledge and enthusiasm for the game as Yuri. He has also contributed to the JapanBall website on multiple occasions, and has written comprehensive scouting reports on NPB talent that will soon be showcased in MLB. I am 100% confident that you all will be impressed with the augmented quality of the newsletter as he settles in and gives it his own flavor. Counting on you, Yuri!
I need to thank Bob Bavasi for giving me this shot back when I was still a novice when it came to baseball and NPB. When I started writing, my knowledge of the game was quite rudimentary, but he saw enough in me to let me splash digital ink on your screens for a few years. Then Shane Barclay took over and continued believing in me and making me feel like a welcome, valuable part of the family. More than that, though, I would like to thank you, the readers, for your emails, comments, questions, and camaraderie over the years. We will always be family, and I am still hopeful that I will see many of you on a tour in the years to come!
And now, on to the news (which I will keep brief)…
Tuesday: Kotaro Kiyomiya hit a home run in the top of the tenth inning to help his Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters to a 4-1 win over the Saitama Seibu Lions. It was his first of the season and 50th of his career.
Wednesday: The Chiba Lotte Marines pummeled the Rakuten Eagles by an 18-5 score, putting up eight in the first, six in the fourth, and four in the sixth inning. Somehow, despite coming into the game in the seventh with an 18-2 lead and giving up three runs in three innings of work, Marines’ reliever Atsuya Hirohata picked up a save. For the record, no one hit a home run in this game despite the 23-run total.
Thursday: There was just one game, and it saw the Yokohama DeNA Baystars walk off the Chunichi Dragons by a 3-2 score, as they put up a run against closer Raidel Martinez in the ninth and the deciding run against top-notch reliever Koki Saitoh in the tenth.
Friday: Yomiuri Giants outfielder Gakuto Wakabayashi became the first player in NPB history to record a walk-off hit in both leagues in the same season. The 26-year-old accomplished the feat on May 1 when he was still a Lion, and on this night his single to left propelled the Giants to a 3-2 win over the Baystars.
Saturday: Eagles’ veteran pitcher Takayuki Kishi has a lot to be proud of. At 39 years and 7 months, he became the oldest pitcher in PL history to throw a complete-game shutout that did not involve a single walk or hit batter. He also reached 2500 innings pitched, becoming the 48th pitcher in NPB history to reach the mark. His Eagles beat the Lions 5-0. (Including Sunday’s loss, the Lions’ skid reached 8 games.)
Sunday: The Tigers put up five runs in the tenth inning against the Dragons, winning their match by a 6-2 score. It also featured the starting pitchers collecting the game’s long RBIs (Yuki Nishi in the third, Takahiro Matsuba in the fifth) in before extra innings.
Good Week: Eagles (4-1), Fighters (4-1)
Rough Week: Lions (0-5), Swallows (0-4), Hawks (1-4)
- NPB Standings
- Central League Hitting Leaders
- Central League Pitching Leaders
- Pacific League Hitting Leaders
- Pacific League Pitching Leaders
