Nippon Professional Baseball League Predictions

By Chris Horton

09 Aug 2022

Chris Horton 09 Aug 2022

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This week's Nippon Professional Baseball League predictions
Nippon Professional Baseball League stats
Saitama Seibu Lions at Tohoku Rakuten Golden Eagles
Orix Buffaloes at Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks

Inform your Nippon Professional Baseball league predictions ahead of this week's biggest matches with Pinnacle's weekly update, including analysis, team news, and the latest baseball odds.

Saitama Seibu Lions at Tohoku Rakuten Golden Eagles

After a season in which the lead at the top of the Pacific League has changed hands many times, the Saitama Seibu Lions have finally established something of an advantage at the top of the standings. They face one of the chasing pack on Saturday in the shape of the Tohoku Rakuten Golden Eagles.

The Lions have a 55-2-45 record at the time of writing while the Eagles have a record of 49-2-46, having played five games fewer than their opponents.

For Rakuten, Hiroaki Shimauchi and Hiroto Kobukata have been key elements to the success of their batting line-up, hitting .299 and .295 to rank third and fifth in the Pacific League respectively. Shimauchi leads the Pacific in doubles with 25 while Kobukata is fourth in stolen bases with 16.

The Lions' primary success has been their pitching and they are the only team in the Pacific League to concede less than 300 runs at this point in the campaign.

That effort has been led in their starting rotation by Kona Takahashi, whose 2.48 ERA ranks third amongst starters in the Pacific League, and closer Tatsushi Masuda, who has 22 saves and an ERA of 1.06.

In a tightly congested division, the title race looks set to go to the wire and the games between these two contenders could be crucial in determining who eventually ends up as the winners.

Orix Buffaloes at Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks

The Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks and the Orix Buffaloes are the other two teams in the Pacific League with the best chance of securing one of the three postseason spots as the pair face off on Saturday.

The Hawks are currently in second place with a record of 49-2-45 at the time of writing, while the Buffaloes are on the outside of the playoff positions looking in with a record of 53-0-51.

Fukuoka’s standout performer, as it has been for a number of years, has been starter Koudai Senga, who has recorded a 2.05 ERA and 115 strikeouts, second best in the Pacific League on both counts.

Senga has made it clear that he may opt out of his contract at the end of the season and explore a move to Major League Baseball so Hawks fans might have to enjoy him while they can.

For the Buffaloes, they have a starting pitcher of their own who has taken plenty of plaudits – Yoshinobu Yamamoto.

The 23-year-old has a 1.80 ERA from 18 starts and also leads the division with 135 strikeouts, good enough for a 10-5 win-loss record.

In a highly competitive Pacific League, the Buffaloes and the Hawks will be looking to enhance their playoff chances with a victory against a direct rival this weekend.

Hiroshima Toyo Carp at Yomiuri Giants

A good run of four wins in their last five games has seen the Yomiuri Giants move closer to a playoff spot in the Central League, now sporting a 49-1-52 record at the time of writing. They face the Hiroshima Toyo Carp on Saturday looking to pull themselves closer to third place.

The Carp themselves retain faint hopes of reaching the postseason, holding a record of 47-3-53 at the time of writing.

Hiroshima’s efforts have been helped by their closer Ryoji Kuribayashi, who has a 1.69 ERA and 20 saves, coupled with 38 strikeouts in just 32 innings.

The Giants also have a top closer, Taisei Ota, who has 26 saves to rank second in the Central league, and a 1.96 ERA in 36.2 innings this campaign.

In what could be a close game, the efforts of both closers could be key to the outcome and this game looks to be an interesting battle between two teams who are desperate to get back in the playoff picture.

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