Fukuoka – Hawks center fielder Ukyo Shuto made a huge catch early in the game and blasted a ninth-inning sayonara home run to end it, lifting the Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks to a 5-4 walk-off win over the Orix Buffaloes on Saturday. The Hawks, second in the Pacific League, blew a […]
Padres star Fernando Tatis Jr. suspended 80 games for drug violation
San Diego Padres star shortstop Fernando Tatis Jr. was suspended 80 games without pay after testing positive for the performance-enhancing substance Clostebol, the commissioner’s office announced Friday evening. The league says the substance is in violation of Major League Baseball’s Joint Drug Prevention and Treatment Program. The suspension begins immediately. […]
New-look Padres on mission to slay ‘dragon’ in Los Angeles
Juan Soto had barely landed, Josh Bell had just sat down and Josh Hader was starting to learn his new teammates’ names when Peter Seidler, the Padres’ owner, declared that “the art of the possible is here.” But just as quickly as the Padres had reset all expectations for their […]
Seiya Suzuki drives in run to help Cubs win “Field of Dreams” game
DYERSVILLE, Iowa – Seiya Suzuki went 1-for-3 with an RBI double as the Chicago Cubs downed the Cincinnati Reds 4-2 on Thursday in a game played at the Field of Dreams ballpark, built at the location of the famous 1989 movie of the same name. Batting cleanup, Suzuki shone on […]
Yushi Shimizu connects on game-winner in 10th as Fighters edge Lions
Sapporo – Yushi Shimizu drove in his first run of the season with a 10th-inning single that lifted the Pacific League’s last-place Hokkaido Nippon Ham Fighters to a 3-2 walk-off win over the first-place Seibu Lions on Thursday. The veteran Fighters catcher, playing in just his 18th game of the […]
Shohei Ohtani’s feat brings scope of major league history into focus
The only thing new about Shohei Ohtani winning 10 games and hitting 10-plus home runs this season is that it happened within the confines of one of Major League Baseball’s two leagues for the first time since 1918. Ohtani achieved this “double-double” twice before, in 2014 and 2016, in the […]
Shohei Ohtani matches Babe Ruth with 10-win, 10-homer MLB season
Oakland, Calif. – Shohei Ohtani won his 10th game on Tuesday, making him the first player with double-digit home runs as a batter and wins as a pitcher in a single Major League Baseball season since Hall-of-Famer Babe Ruth in 1918. Ohtani (10-7) struck out five over six innings for […]
Japanese baseball: A 150-year journey of transformation
In the 150 years since American educator Horace Wilson began teaching his students in Tokyo about baseball in 1872, the game’s meaning to Japan and the impact of this nation’s brand of baseball on the world have changed dramatically. During that time, Japan has become a great baseball-playing nation, producing […]
Blue Jays’ Yusei Kikuchi allows three homers in loss against Orioles
Baltimore – Yusei Kikuchi surrendered three home runs and was charged with his sixth loss Monday for the Toronto Blue Jays, who were beaten 7-4 by the Baltimore Orioles. Kikuchi (4-6) lasted five-plus innings at Oriole Park, giving up five runs on six hits and three walks, while striking out […]
Yu Darvish takes loss as Dodgers complete sweep of Padres
Yu Darvish allowed two runs on seven hits and was charged with the loss as the San Diego Padres went down 4-0 to the Los Angeles Dodgers on Sunday. Darvish (10-5) surrendered a solo homer to Cody Bellinger and an RBI single to Freddie Freeman in the bottom of the […]