Baseball

Munetaka Murakami finally got the home run Tokyo Yakult Swallows fans had been waiting all night for in the top of the eighth inning. For once, however, the Swallows’ prolific slugger was late to the party. In a time of both misinformation and too much information, quality journalism is more […]

Jingu Stadium was mostly silent on the eve of the Japan Series — save for the constant drone of bats hitting balls and the other assorted sounds of a Japanese baseball practice. The scene will be different Saturday night when the fans — some draped in blue and gold and […]

Framber Valdez overcame his defensive miscue and twirled seven strong innings, Alex Bregman socked a three-run home run and the Houston Astros fended off the New York Yankees 3-2 on Thursday in Game 2 of the American League Championship Series. The Astros will take a 2-0 lead in the best-of-seven […]

There was a time when Justin Verlander’s departure from a game after six innings would have felt like something of a failure. After all, Verlander, 39, has thrown 200 or more innings in a season 12 times in his career and completed at least seven innings in 251 of his […]

Shohei Ohtani’s ability to both outhit and outpitch most of his MLB peers rests on a daily activity some take for granted: getting quality sleep. While his stellar performances are setting new standards for MLB stars, how he stays ahead of the game is instructive for anyone trying to cope […]

The San Diego Padres erupted for five runs in the fifth inning to erase a two-run deficit on the way to an 8-5 victory over the Philadelphia Phillies that evened the National League Championship Series at 1-1 on Wednesday. The winner of the series will face either the New York […]

The Tokyo Yakult Swallows and Orix Buffaloes, winners of the last two pennants in the Central and Pacific League, respectively, are back in the Japan Series one year after one of the most tightly contested matchups in NPB history. There are familiar faces up and down both teams’ rosters, with […]

San Diego – Yu Darvish gave up two solo home runs and took the loss Tuesday as the San Diego Padres fell 2-0 to the Philadelphia Phillies in Game 1 of the National League Championship Series. Darvish let Bryce Harper go deep in the fourth inning and Kyle Schwarber in […]

Two-way MLB star Shohei Ohtani said Tuesday he hopes to still be playing baseball this time next year after missing MLB’s postseason for five straight years with the Los Angeles Angels. Speaking upon his return to Japan, the American League’s 2021 MVP reflected on being considered for more postseason awards, […]

Munetaka Murakami, Japan’s youngest batting Triple Crown winner at 22, is a player in the same vein as MLB superstar Shohei Ohtani, according to Japan national baseball team manager Hideki Kuriyama. Kuriyama, who was Ohtani’s manager in Japan, also expects Roki Sasaki — the country’s youngest perfect game pitcher — […]