The Saitama Seibu Lions clinched the first interleague title in franchise history on Tuesday night with a 1-0 win over the Hanshin Tigers at Koshien Stadium.
Entering the game, the Lions could secure the title with either a win or a tie. A loss, however, would have eliminated the Lions from title contention and put fellow Pacific League clubs Hokkaido Nipponham Fighters and Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks in a position to win the championship.
Masayuki Kuwahara broke a scoreless tie in the top of the fifth inning with a one-out RBI single to center off Hiroto Saiki, and Seibu never relinquished the lead.
Natsuki Takeuchi tossed six shutout innings with 10 strikeouts before Trey Wingenter, Hibiki Shinohara, and Hiroshi Kaino combined for three scoreless frames and four more strikeouts.
It was a historically dominant showing by the Lions, who finished interleague play with a 14-3-1 record and the best winning percentage (.824) in NPB history since the format was introduced in 2005.
With Seibu’s title, every Pacific League team has now won interleague play at least once. The Lions are also the sixth different team to win the mid-season competition in the 2020s.
Entering 2026, the Pacific League had collectively defeated the Central League in 15 of 20 interleague seasons, and that did not change this year, as the PL overwhelmed the CL with a 65-38 record (with one makeup game remaining). The Yomiuri Giants were the only team from the senior circuit to finish with a winning record during the three-week stretch.
Fumiya Nishiguchi’s squad has been the hottest team in Japan since the beginning of May, turning a slow 7-12-1 start into the best record in NPB by going 34-11-1 over its next 46 games. Their rapid ascent has also coincided with the return of second-year import Tyler Nevin from injury. Since rejoining the lineup, the 29-year-old American has slashed .296/.364/.643 with 11 home runs in 32 games this season.
Just two years ago, an interleague title in such a short turnaround seemed implausible for a Lions team coming off the worst season in franchise history. In 2024, they finished last in interleague with a 4-14 record.
Seibu’s pitching staff carried the load throughout interleague play, posting a 1.53 ERA across 18 games, allowing more than four runs only once, and helping the Lions win all six series they played.
The interleague MVP will be announced in the coming days, with the award expected to come down to Kaima Taira, who posted a 0.86 ERA over 21 innings, or Shinya Hasegawa, who recorded a .932 OPS along with two walk-off hits and a go-ahead home run in extra innings.
Seibu now holds a 3.5-game lead over the defending Japan Series champions, SoftBank, in the Pacific League pennant race, while Orix and Nipponham remain within striking distance at 5.5 games back.
The Lions have maintained a winning record against every team in the league this season except the Buffaloes, against whom they are 3-6. With interleague play coming to an end, regular league games will resume on Friday, June 19, when Seibu travels to Osaka for a matchup with those Buffaloes.
