This shouldn’t have been a “must win” series. By now, Hanshin should have locked up second place. Unfortunately, life as a Tigers fan is never that easy. Two straight shutout losses to these BayStars left the team up just 3.5 games with 7 to go. Fortunately, now with 4 games to go, the gap is…
The Tigers are about as close as you can get to clinching a playoff spot. In fact, just a couple of wins and/or a couple of losses by both the Yokohama BayStars and Yomiuri Giants would lock up second place and the chance to host the First Stage of the Climax Series. Naturally, it would…
This has been an absolutely atrocious year for the Yakult Swallows. The injury bug bit them frequently and didn’t seem to want to leave even after there was no more blood. And the Tigers have enjoyed feasting on the li’l Birds all season, too. In this, their last tilt of the season, we picked their…
The Tigers come into this one having lost four straight games to the Hiroshima Carp. But now that the red helmets have clinched the league pennant and deactivated Brad Eldred among others, and with the Tigers actually having something to play for, perhaps this would be the team’s chance to end the season series on…
Last season it took the Tigers until around this point to finally win a home game against their most bitter rivals. This season went a little better, but the team’s 3-6-2 home record against the Yomiuri Giants still left a bitter taste in the mouths of fans. Could this final game against the Evil Empire,…
Unfortunately, because of the weekend of rainouts, plus a miraculous Swallows win against the Carp earlier on the weekend, the Hiroshima Carp came to town with a magic number of one. And of course, all the talk in the media was that the Tigers had to prevent the pennant from being clinched on our soil….
In case you missed it, there is an amazing baseball tour that can take you all across Japan. You can travel in from anywhere in the world, join the group, and experience Japan and its yakyu from multiple perspectives: different cities, stadiums, seats, subcultures, and more. The tour comes in three options: Main Tour, See…
Veteran relief pitcher Yuya Andoh held a press conference on Friday afternoon to announce his retirement from playing professional baseball. The 39-year old righty said the biggest reason for his decision was because of the wear and tear he felt on his body, and the fact that he was unable to get his game together…
The Yomiuri Giants aren’t a fourth place team on paper. With three of the best starters in the Central, and a lineup of proven veteran hitters and free agents, they should be contending for the pennant. And when they play the Hanshin Tigers, they look like a pennant team. The reality in this series was…
We all want our home team to win. Every game. But they can’t. They don’t. The best of the best teams (in nearly any sport) will only win about 3 out of every 4 games. Fans are often told they make a difference in the team’s success. How many times have you heard players say…