Oct 29 (Japan Times) - The most unpredictable of pennant races ended with among the most predictable of results: The Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks, once again, on top of the Pacific League and looking toward the Climax Series and possibly a fourth straight Japan Series title.
Japanese baseball’s reigning dynasty wrapped up the 2020 pennant with a 5-1 win over the Chiba Lotte Marines Tuesday night, getting six shutout innings and eight strikeouts from 39-year-old veteran Tsuyoshi Wada and a two-run homer from catcher Takuya Kai. The Hawks win so much it’s easy to forget this is their first PL title since 2017, despite their recent dominance of the Japan Series.
This one was anything but normal, coming in a season that was altered by the coronavirus pandemic. Even the SoftBank celebration was a sign of the times we currently live in. Manager Kimiyasu Kudo and team chairman Sadaharu Oh touched wrists in lieu of a handshake. Instead of players gathering near the mound to fling Kudo into the air during a doage, they formed a giant circle around the infield and watched as golden confetti was fired into the air and led the crowd in a banzai cheer.
An abnormal celebration for an abnormal year.
“Opening day was pushed back from March 20 to June 19 this year due to the coronavirus,†Kudo said during the winning manager interview. “During that time, many people worked to start the season. Thanks to the efforts of NPB, the teams and officials, we were able to start on June 19.
“Moreover, without the dedication of the medical professionals, pro baseball might not have been able to start. We got a lot of courage from the medical community.â€
SoftBank persevered during this weird 2020 season. Through Tuesday, the Hawks had the second-best team batting average in the PL and a 2.94 team ERA that led the league by a wide margin and was also tops in NPB.
“I think we’ve got a lot of amazing pitchers,” outfielder Akira Nakamura said.
