SMBC Japan Series 2025 Game 5: Hanshin Tigers 2-3 Softbank (11 extra inning) (30th, Koshien)

The "SMBC Japan Series 2025" was held in Koshien for the fifth round, and Softbank won the Japan for the 12th time in five years. They came from behind to win 3-2 and won 4 consecutive victories from the loss in the first game. Yuki Yanagita outfielder (37) tied the game with two runs in the eighth inning, and Isami Nomura infielder (28) hit a winning solo shot in the extra inning 11th. Coach Yuki Kokubo (54), who is in his second year in office, succeeded in avenging last year's Japan Series (S) defeat to DeNA. Hanshin Tigers was the first time in 57 games that Daichi Ishii pitcher (28), who was hit by Yanagida, regular season in 57 games since the The Giants match (Tokyo D) runs on April 4th. I missed the first time in two years that I was the best in Japan.

His stern expression finally softened. Softbank manager Kokubo approached the circle of joy with a beaming smile. He had never been able to play at Koshien as pitcher during his time at Seirin (Wakayama). He looked up at the night sky and jumped into the air nine times. "I'm really glad we were able to achieve the Japan Series championship, something we weren't able to do last year. I'm happy to have such strong players." They won three straight games, all by a single point, completely away from home. This highlighted the strength of the Pacific League champions.

Last year's Japan Series saw DeNA, who finished third in the Central League, overtake the league and become the best team in Japan. "The sense of loss remains strong," he said, leaving him with only regret during the off-season. He admitted that his own tactics were also a factor in the loss. He reflected on being too focused on form and being too conscious of data. For the second consecutive year in the championship match, he has set a theme of focusing on "the movements of the players at the time and my own decisions" when making decisions.

The Hawks use high-tech batting machines to quantify players' skills and have excellent analytical capabilities. However, what Kokubo ultimately relied on was his own "intuition." In his second year as manager, the team suffered a series of injuries to key players from the start of the season, but they bounced back from last place and won a fierce match against Nippon-Ham. He gained the experience and confidence as a manager that no longer needed to rely on armchair numbers.

runs The symbolic leadership came in the fourth game, when with a two-run lead and two outs in the sixth inning, Kondo scored the third run of the inning to escape with a one-run lead. The first time I saw the game, I thought it would be a good idea to have a new pitcher on the mound. On this day, he did not get the result he wanted, but with two outs in the seventh and runners at first and second, Kondo made the winning move by substituting for Dai Makihara, the league's leader hitter.

As for the starting pitchers, Arihara, who had been in the first match, was sent in for the fifth match with only four days of rest. Judging that Ozeki, who had won the season with the highest winning percentage title with 13 wins and 5 losses, was not improving towards the end of the season, the umpire made the ruthless decision to remove him from the rotation. He showed no weaknesses and stuck to win first mentality.

On the other hand, he also had the flexibility to listen to the opinions of the players. In the second game, he straddled inning to Haru Matsumoto, who took the mound from the 8th inning with a 9-run lead, and pulled Teru Sato to first base with no outs. In preparation for Moinero's appearance in the third game, there was an offer from Umino to explore the response of Morishita and Teru Sato's left-handed opponents. I narrowed my eyes at the growth of Zheng catcher, who filled the hole left by Kai who transferred to free agency.

His favorite saying is, "No experience in life is wasted." In baseball career, there has always been joy beyond the trials. During his playing days, he overcame several serious injuries, including a torn anterior cruciate ligament in his right knee in March 2003. In 2012, at the age of 40 years and 8 months, he achieved 2,000 career hit, but back pain forced him to remove himself from the roster just before the milestone. The 33 days it took him to achieve the milestone, even though he was close to reaching it, was the longest period in history. The disappointment of being eliminated from the Japan Series last year also fueled his growth as a baseball player.

It's been 20 years since the Softbank team was founded in 2005. During that time, they have won the Japan Series for the eighth time. The general of this undefeated team can only bask in his joy for a short time. He will soon begin walking towards the next mountain. (Shimao Koichiro)

[Japan Series Records Room]

▼12th series victory

This is Softbank 's 12th series victory, including its predecessor, and the first in five years since 2020. The total number of series wins is the third highest after The Giants' 22 wins and Seibu 13 wins.

▼The team's fifth winning manager Manager Kokubo succeeded in avenging last year's loss. This was the team's first victory in the series. Softbank' past winning managers are:

(5) Kimiyasu Kudo = 2015, 2017-2020

(2) Tsuruoka Kazuto = 1959, 1964

(2) Sadaharu Oh = 1999, 2003

(2) Koji Akiyama = 2011, 2014

(1) Hiroki Kokubo = 25 years

This marks the fifth time that the team has had a manager with five Series victories, tying The Giants and Seibu for the most with five, as shown in the separate table.

▼Repeat of 2014 Softbank, who advanced to the final round of the CS (second round) with a 4-3 record, win Hanshin Tigers who had been undefeated. Since the first team to win four rounds was established in 2008, this was the fourth time that a 4-3-3 matchup had taken place against a team with undefeated records, following 2012, 2014, and 2024. This time too, the team with 4 wins and 3 losses won, making it four wins in a row. This was also the fourth time that Softbank vs. Hanshin Tigers series had taken place, following 1964, 2003, and 2014, with Softbank also winning all four rounds. In 2014, Softbank advanced to the final round with a 4-3 record, win Hanshin Tigers who had been undefeated. In addition to the two recurrences, the score was also the same, ●XXXXXX. (Fukuyama Tomoki)

◆Kokubo Hiroki (54 years old) Born October 8, 1971 in Wakayama City. Graduated from Seirin High School to Aoyama Gakuin University before joining Daiei (now Softbank) as the second pick (reverse pick) in the 1993 draft. He was Home Run king in 1995 and RBI king in 1997. He was traded to The Giants in the off-season of 2003. He returned to his former team as a free agent in 2007. He retired from active play in 2012. In a total of 2,057 games, he had 2,041 hit, a batting average of .273, 413 Home Run, and 1,304 RBI. He was the manager of Samurai Japan from 2013 to 2017. He served as the head coach of Softbank 's first team in 2021 and as manager of the second team in 2022 and 2023, before becoming the first team manager in 2024. He is a right-handed batter and pitcher.

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