Despite the dramatic win in Game 4, the Tigers still needed to win this one in order to head back to Kyocera Dome with some momentum and the pressure squarely on the Buffaloes. Their two best pitchers await, so forcing them into two must-win games was the only option. In spite of this, the Tigers’…
Before the Japan Series started, pretty much everyone predicted a low-scoring series. However, that surely has not been the case. Starter Hiroto Saiki labored through five innings but held the Buffaloes to a single run despite 8 base runners, and the relievers allowed the tying run to cross home (they were helped by a Tigers…
Coming home to Koshien Stadium after a rough beatdown on Sunday night, the Tigers were looking to take control of the series again. They opened the scoring, but an uncharacteristic outing from Masashi Itoh put them in a hole in the middle innings. However, the team fought back hard in the latter third of the…
Source: Daily Sports Online Former Tigers 5th Rounder Excited about Japan Series Canadian Daily Sports Online columnist Trevor Raichura sat in on a public viewing of Game 1 of the Japan Series, a Tigers 8-0 blowout win, at a yakiniku shop in downtown Kobe. Despite the big win for his favorite team, he says he…
The lesson we need to learn, Hanshin fans, is to not let the wins get us too high (until our fourth win of the series, that is) and to not let the losses get us too low. Yesterday was a dominant Tigers win, and tonight, well, it was the exact opposite. Our pitchers looked shaky,…
It’s always a little alarming when people start talking about a perfect game before it’s half over, but Shoki Murakami was dealing. No one reached base against him through four innings, conjuring up images of his first start in 2023 against the Yomiuri Giants (April 12, 7 perfect innings). The perfect game vanished against the…
Potential Pitching Matchups: Keep in mind that teams do not release this information very far ahead of time, so these are just our speculations, which are partly based on media reports we’ve read. Game 1 – Saturday, October 28, 6:30 pm (Kyocera Dome): Shoki Murakami (10-6, 1.75 ERA, 137 K) vs. Yoshinobu Yamamoto (16-6, 1.21 ERA) Game…
From the Daily Sports Online column / デイリースポーツオンラインの連載コラムから The Hanshin Tigers have been having themselves a dream season, winning their first Central League pennant in 18 years and sweeping their way through the Final Stage of the Climax Series. On the other side of NPB, the Orix Buffaloes won the Pacific League by a long…
Previous post-draft reports (2015-22) here The Hanshin Tigers won the pennant for the first time in 18 years, so this is the first time in ages that the draft takes place while the team is still playing meaningful baseball. Nevertheless, these are the rules, so on Thursday, manager Akinobu Okada made his way to Tokyo…
Hosts T-Ray and Sanjay discuss team news, the three games that made up the Climax Series Final Stage, and then break down the upcoming Japan Series – the Hanshin Tigers’ first trip to the dance since 2014. Who’s going to win? Why? In how many games? Your thoughts/comments/predictions are welcome, too! Recorded on: October 24,…