Yesterday was somewhat solemn, in that both teams were playing in memory of their deceased ex-manager (and in the Dragons’ case, pitcher), Senichi Hoshino. Today was also a somber day for Japan: 7 years ago, a terrible disaster (earthquake, tsunami, nuclear meltdown) struck the Pacific coast of northeastern Japan. But at least for Hanshin fans,…
March 9: Let’s just say that Randy Messenger didn’t get off on the right foot. The first inning saw him give up 5 hits and 4 runs. He said after the game that it was his first time facing live hitting this year, and that a lot of his pitches were right over the plate…
< Previous Next > Date: November 2, 1985 The drought had gone on long enough. In fact, there were players on the Tigers roster who were still in diapers the last time the team had won a pennant in 1964. And this team had a lot of the right pieces to take the team…
Let’s remember that it’s not about who wins and who loses. Unless we win. Then we can talk about how we’re going to be the champs this year. Anyhow… March 6: Starting pitcher Shintaro Fujinami looked like a completely different man. He struck out the first and third batters, then the fifth and sixth, then…
It seems like every year in recent years, another player is putting out memoirs or thoughts about baseball and life with the Hanshin Tigers. Nothing wrong with that, if in fact they have something worth saying. But often times, these guys haven’t truly accomplished anything significant in their careers. This one is different, though. For…
Since it’s the preseason and these games mean precious little once the season has begun, we will keep things short and sweet. March 3: Starting pitcher Takumi Akiyama went 4 scoreless innings, scattering 3 hits (no more than one per inning) and striking out 4. Kyuji Fujikawa (37) threw the fifth and allowed 2 runs on…
Host T-Ray recaps the 2017 season, and then sits down with special guest Sanjay to talk about his passion for the Tigers as well as this 2018 Hanshin Tigers team. At the end of the show, T-Ray invites listeners to join the annual Central League prediction contest. Listen for details and send your entries…
< Previous Next > Dates: October 15-18, 2014 To better understand the significance of this moment, you need to know the Central League’s playoff system. Until and including 2006, the team that finished first in the regular season standings automatically advanced to the Nippon Series. However, in 2007, the CL introduced the Climax Series. The…
Here’s a look at my Hanshin calendar, which highlights the birthdays of Hanshin players past and present, as well as the exhibition game schedule (which can also be seen here, with updated results as they come). Hang in there, Tigers fans! Baseball season is almost here!!!
Camp is over! The team packed up late this morning and are on their way back to mainland. Exhibition season up here starts on March 3 (in Fukuoka, where they’re selling “open seating” all-you-can-eat tickets for ¥2500) and runs through the 25th. Looking forward to see how the field and mound start to take shape!…