Surprising candidates for next season’s championship that will prevent Yakult from winning the championship in Japan

It’s a great honor. It’s a great honor for me. I’ve been hitting the center of the team, so I was conscious of hitting to bring momentum. It’s been a great season for us, winning first place in Japan.”

Yakult’s main gun, Munetaka Murakami (21), who won the Central League MVP award on December 15, told the press that he was proud of his performance.

This season, Yakult’s hitting has been efficient, with each hitter doing well, including Murakami, who is the home run king (39), Yasutaka Shiomi, Tetsuto Yamada, Norichika Aoki, Osuna and Santana. As for the pitching staff, not only did proven pitchers such as Masanori Ishikawa and Yasuhiro Ogawa perform well, but youngsters such as Yasunobu Okugawa and Keiji Takahashi grew rapidly, and the team’s defensive rating improved dramatically from 4.61 in 2008 to 3.48 this year. They overtook Hanshin to win the Central League, then defeated the defending Pacific League champions Orix 4-2 to win their first Japan championship in 20 years.

The team’s first Japan championship in 20 years. The manager, Shingo Takatsu, did a wonderful job. He had his pitchers throw as hard as they could in the fifth inning, and he gave top priority to resting the pitchers. As a result, no pitcher in Yakult has reached double digits in wins or pitch counts.

Only Yamada (No. 3) and Murakami (No. 4) have been fixed in the batting order. We rearranged the order based on how the players were doing and how well they matched up with the opponents. If there are no injuries to the main players, I think there is a good chance for us to win again.

A cause for concern for the Giants

It may seem early to say, but who will be the rival to Yakult next season?

The first thing that comes to mind is the Giants, who have won the championship five times in the last ten years. The first thing that comes to mind is the Giants, who have won five championships in the last 10 years, but their ace Tomoyuki Sugano is showing signs of decline, and their starting pitching staff is not stable. In the batting lineup, proven hitters Yuto Sakamoto and Kazuma Okamoto are a threat to the opposing team, but their batting line is not very well connected. If Yoshihiro Maru and Sho Nakata, who play behind Sakamoto and Okamoto, don’t come out of their slumps, they won’t be able to function for the rest of the year.

It is customary for the Giants to make major reinforcements when they lose the championship. This off-season, however, they have not made any significant reinforcements. Manager Tatsunori Hara would like to encourage the existing players to step up.

If the Giants don’t improve, which team will be able to stop Yakult’s momentum? Another reporter from a sports paper pointed out an unexpected team.

If the Giants don’t improve, which team can stop Yakult’s momentum? First of all, they succeeded in retaining players who acquired FA rights, such as Toshiro Miyazaki, the top-ranked hitter in 2005, and Yasuaki Yamazaki, the suppressor. They were able to prevent a power outflow. The reinforcement is also efficient. Manager Daisuke Miura took a scalpel to the coaches. He invited former players of Hiroshima and the Giants, such as Takuro Ishii, Takashi Saito, and Hisanori Suzuki, who were well known for their coaching abilities. Since many of the players have high potential, the new coaches are expected to raise the level of the team’s strength significantly.

The biggest acquisition is Taiji Ota, who was released from Nippon Ham on a free agent contract. DeNA’s outfield has been anchored by Austin, Keita Sano, and Masashi Kuwabara, but there has been a gap in ability between them and the reserve players. The addition of Ohta not only adds depth to the lineup, but he also seems to be eager to play against his old team, the Giants, so he should be a killer for the Giants. Just as Yakult went from last place the year before to winning the championship in one fell swoop, we can expect DeNA to strike back next year.

This year’s Yakult Japan Championship proved that the rumors are unreliable. There may be a surprise upset next season as well.