Baseball [NPB NOTEBOOK] Samurai Japan Assembling A Dream Team for the World Baseball Classic With manager Hideki Kuriyama gearing up for March, the two-time World Baseball Classic champion has an embarrassment of riches as it looks to regain... Jim ArmstrongJanuary 20, 2023
Baseball [NPB NOTEBOOK] 'Murakami-sama' Honored for Creating Buzz in Japanese Baseball NPB Triple Crown winner Munetaka Murakami's nickname ー "Murakami-sama" ー was selected as Japan's top buzzword for 2022. Jim ArmstrongDecember 10, 2022
Baseball [NPB NOTEBOOK] Triple Crown Winner Munetaka Murakami Has MLB Aspirations But the Tokyo Yakult Swallows standout, who is still only 22, may have a long wait ahead before he has an opportunity to test... Jim ArmstrongNovember 26, 2022
Baseball [NPB NOTEBOOK] Satoshi Nakajima Beats Out Munetaka Murakami for Shoriki Award The Orix dugout boss guided the Pacific League team to its first Japan Series title in 26 years, and a manager won the Shoriki... Jim ArmstrongNovember 12, 2022
Baseball [NPB NOTEBOOK] Swallows and Buffaloes Set for Sequel to 2021 Japan Series Tokyo Yakult, led by Triple Crown winner Munetaka Murakami, is favored to repeat as NPB champion but Orix is peaking at the right time. Jim ArmstrongOctober 21, 2022
Baseball [NPB NOTEBOOK] Munetaka Murakami Belts 56th Homer, Wins Triple Crown on The Season's Final Day The Tokyo Yakult Swallows infielder went 13 games without a homer before completing the season in style with a solo blast in the seventh... Jim ArmstrongOctober 4, 2022
Baseball [NPB NOTEBOOK] Munetaka Murakami is Taking His Place as One of the Greatest Hitters in NPB History The Swallows cleanup hitter, at the tender age of 22, matches legendary slugger Sadaharu Oh and sets his sights on the single-season home run... Jim ArmstrongSeptember 16, 2022
Baseball [NPB NOTEBOOK] Slumping Giants in Peril of Not Making Postseason Japan’s most popular professional baseball team is in a malaise that saw it drop as low as fifth in the Central League standings. Jim ArmstrongSeptember 3, 2022
Baseball [NPB NOTEBOOK] Baywatch: Yokohama Extends Home Winning Streak to 15 Games The red-hot BayStars languished in the bottom half of the standings for most of the season before making a big turnaround. Jim ArmstrongAugust 20, 2022
Baseball [NPB NOTEBOOK] Giants Try to Cool Off Red-Hot Swallows, But Have a Huge Mountain to Climb Yomiuri puts an end to 14-series win streak by Yakult, but still finds itself well back of its crosstown rival. Jim ArmstrongJuly 9, 2022
Baseball [NPB NOTEBOOK] Ageless Pitcher Masanori Ishikawa Showing No Signs of Slowing Down The 42-year-old lefty continues to impress for the high-flying Swallows. Jim ArmstrongJune 25, 2022
Baseball #10 Sports Talk ― Baseball Banter with Jim Armstrong as NPB’s Interleague Play Dominates the Headlines Insights on Roki Sasaki’s rising fame, other young stars to keep an eye on, Yoshihisa Hirano’s brilliant career as a closer, and much more. Ed OdevenJune 8, 2022