Baseball

Los Angeles – Chicago Cubs pitcher Yu Darvish expressed concern Friday about the rising incidence of anti-Asian discrimination in the United States amid the coronavirus crisis. In a YouTube video, the 33-year-old from Osaka Prefecture spoke of the fear felt by many Asians in the United States, where reports of […]

Former NPB Commissioner Ryozo Kato used to joke that Japanese baseball was similar to a large boat in the middle of the ocean. You can make it change directions, sure, but it’s going to be a slow and labored process. Kato has been gone since 2013, but as the ongoing […]

New York – When and if opening day comes around this year, New York Yankees pitching coach Matt Blake anticipates a brimming bullpen. Major League Baseball and the players’ association have talked about a compressed schedule to get in as many games as possible. That will set off a call […]

The fifth World Baseball Classic, scheduled to be held in March of 2021, is now under threat from the coronavirus pandemic, Nippon Professional Baseball’s secretary general Atsushi Ihara said Thursday. The tournament, organized jointly by Major League Baseball and its players union, has been held in March since the first […]

Masataka Nashida, who managed two teams to Pacific League pennants, has tested positive for the new coronavirus, his management company said Wednesday. According to the company, the 66-year-old Nashida felt fatigued on March 25, recorded a fever on Saturday and went to the hospital on Monday after experiencing shortness of […]

The six team presidents of Japanese pro baseball’s Pacific League agreed in an online meeting Tuesday that it will be difficult to open the season on April 24, during the current COVID-19 outbreak, a source within the league said. Both of Nippon Professional Baseball’s six-team, top-flight leagues, the Central and […]

Los Angeles – Los Angeles Angels pitcher Andrew Heaney said Tuesday he’d be willing to open the Major League Baseball season playing in empty ballparks — something the MLB players’ union has discussed. Heaney, who is the Angels’ union representative, said on a conference call with reporters that playing without […]

New York – As Major League Baseball and the players’ union contemplate various ways to create a schedule for whenever the coronavirus pandemic subsides, Cincinnati Reds catcher Tucker Barnhart raised a concern that is surely shared by others around the sport: Could trying to cram in games, and maybe extend […]

HIROSHIMA – Members of the Hiroshima Carp voiced concerns on Saturday about the wisdom of starting the season on April 24 while the coronavirus outbreak remains unchecked. The club resumed practicing at Mazda Stadium two days after it sent players and staff home upon hearing Thursday that Hanshin Tigers pitcher […]

PHILADELPHIA – The Bryce Harper jersey that could have been worn this baseball season by the biggest Philadelphia Phillies fan is now a protective mask in the fight against the coronavirus pandemic. Fanatics, the company that manufactures uniforms for Major League Baseball, has suspended production on jerseys and is instead […]