toritani

@ Swallows – March 29-31 – Split Down the Middle

Game 4, Tuesday 3/29: Riding a two-game winning streak and bringing their best pitcher from last season to the mound, the Tigers hoped to keep the defending Central League champion Yakult Swallows winless on the season on Tuesday. Shintaro Fujinami gave up a hit and walk in the bottom of the first, but held the…

vs. Dragons – March 25-27 – New Season, New Style

The Hanshin Tigers looked to continue their dominance against Chunichi under the dome in Osaka as the 2016 season raised its veil. Could they extend the 11-game win streak at Kyocera against the rebuilding Dragons? Game 1, Friday 3/25: As reported earlier this weekend (click here for recap), the series started on a rough note…

Spring Training Days 1-6 — Fielders

I was in Okinawa for the first week of spring training, but needed a day of recovery on February 4th. The players started on February 1st and are slated to bring things to a close on the 28th before returning to Kansai on February 29th. This session will look at the fielders, the next one at pitchers…

Fan Appreciation Day @ Koshien

Fan Appreciation Day @ Koshien

More fans showed up at Koshien Stadium yesterday than on many days on which the Tigers hosted a baseball game. The reason: the team’s annual Fan Appreciation Day took place from 12pm until around 4pm. The weather was great and the turn out was reported at 43,000. Here is a rundown of the day’s events:…

2015 Season Evaluation

2015 Season Evaluation

The Hanshin Tigers started their 2015 season with one goal: winning the Central League pennant in their memorial 80th year as a franchise. Despite finishing 7 games behind the champion Yomiuri Giants and just a half game ahead of the Hiroshima Carp in 2014, the team made no significant offseason moves. In fact, officials pointed…