As the Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB) season progresses, here is a look at the top news and notes from the past week in Japan’s highest level of professional baseball.
Nineteen-Game Hitting Streak for Franmil Reyes
Dominican designated hitter Franmil Reyes is having an exceptional season with the Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters. He’s currently on a 19-game hitting streak after collecting two hits in Tuesday’s 3-3 tie with the Tohoku Rakuten Golden Eagles.
In 75 games this season, Reyes is hitting .268 with 14 home runs and an .833 OPS. Before playing in Japan, the 29-year-old played six seasons in Major League Baseball from 2018-23 with the San Diego Padres, Cleveland Guardians, Chicago Cubs, and Kansas City Royals. Reyes hit a career-high 37 home runs in 2019 with the Padres and Guardians.
Reyes spent some time in the outfield while playing in the MLB but is better suited as a designated hitter. During the 2023 MLB season, he ranked in the 31st percentile for sprint speed and had limited range for someone of his size (six foot five, 265 pounds).
Masahiro Tanaka Nearing Return
Tohoku Rakuten Golden Eagles starting pitcher Masahiro Tanaka is close to returning to the mound in the Pacific League. He has made three starts with the Eagles farm team as he recovers from elbow surgery in October.
In his recent rehab start on the farm on Sunday, Tanaka allowed four runs on six hits in 4.2 innings. He struck out four but hit two batters. Eagles manager Toshiaki Imae told Yahoo! Japan that Tanaka likely needs additional appearances with the farm team before he returns.
Tanaka accumulated a 17.3 WAR in seven seasons from 2014-20 with the New York Yankees after signing a seven-year, $155 million contract with the club in 2013. He won Pacific League Rookie of the Year honors in 2007 and Pacific League MVP in 2013, both with the Golden Eagles.
Seibu Lions Sweep Buffaloes
Despite scoring just four total runs in their three-game sweep of the Orix Buffaloes, the Saitama Seibu Lions secured their first sweep of 2024.
The Lions won the first two games of the series 1-0 and finished the sweep with a 2-1 win last Thursday. The organization is at the bottom of the Pacific League standings, leading NPB with a season-worst 35 wins. There are no hopes of making the postseason this season, but the sweep could help the team feel better about their position.
The Lions received excellent pitching from their starters and bullpen during the three-game series with the Buffaloes, including a 6.1-inning stunner from Yutaro Watanabe on Thursday. The 23-year-old allowed one earned run on three hits and struck out four. Watanabe is 1-4 with a 3.04 ERA in 12 games this season, and figures to be an essential part of the starting rotation the next few years for the Lions.
This Day in Japanese Baseball History
On August 27, 2022, Japanese starting pitcher and designated hitter Shohei Ohtani threw seven shutout innings and struck out nine in a 2-0 win against the Toronto Blue Jays.
In 2022, Ohtani finished in second place in the American League Most Valuable Player voting to New York Yankees outfielder Aaron Judge, who broke the AL record with 62 home runs.
Ohtani struck out 11.4 batters per nine innings in 2023 and is rehabbing his way back to the mound in 2024 after he underwent Tommy John Surgery this past September.
NPB Standings as of Tuesday, August 27
Central League
Pacific League
You can stream all NPB games on DAZN.
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WBN NPB: https://worldbaseball.com/league/japan/
Photo Credit: Masahiro Tanaka #18 of Team Japan pitches in the first inning against Team United States during the knockout stage of men’s baseball on day ten of the Tokyo 2020 Olympic Games at Yokohama Baseball Stadium on August 02, 2021 in Yokohama, Kanagawa, Japan. (Photo by Koji Watanabe/Getty Images)
