The dual pursuit of the Triple Crown brings back memories of Randy Bass and Hiromitsu Ochiai, who dominated NPB batting in the mid-1980s.
The Hyogo Prefecture native, a 2017 draft pick of the Hanshin Tigers, added some pitches to his repertoire and has become the Central League's top pitcher.
Dependable starters Daichi Ohsera, Hiroki Tokoda, Masato Morishita and Aren Kuri give Hiroshima Carp manager Takahiro Arai plenty of pitching options.
Jones fielded a largely young and inexperienced side and England scored eight tries against the Brave Blossoms for a one-sided win at National Stadium.
The Rakuten Eagles got off to a slow start this season but came together as a team during interleague play under first-year manager Toshiaki Imae.
The former Texas Ranger kicked off his Yomiuri Giants career by hitting safely in eight straight games, including three straight games with three or more hits.
A native of Ishikawa, the 23-year-old Onosato is inspiring fans in his home prefecture and giving sumo a much-needed boost in popularity.
Newly promoted komusubi Onosato, who went 12-3 in the Summer Basho, has contended in every tournament since his January debut in the elite division.
With batters like Kensuke Kondoh, Yuki Yanagita and Hotaka Yamakawa, the PL-leading SoftBank Hawks will be hard to stop this season.
The native of Ishikawa Prefecture is gaining more confidence by the day at the 15-day Summer Basho in Tokyo as he pursues his first championship.
In his komusubi debut, Onosato kicked off his bid for the Emperor's Cup at the Summer Basho with an impressive win over the Mongolian yokozuna.
Rising sumo star Takerufuji was forced to pull out of the 15-day Summer Basho in Tokyo with an ankle injury, and komusubi Asanoyama is also sidelined.