NPB: Nippon Professional Baseball League Predictions

The race for the Pacific League remains as tight as ever with less than 20 games remaining in the regular season. The Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks are still just about on top of the standings, with a 65-2-58 record at the time of writing giving them a .528 winning percentage.

On Saturday, they take on one of the teams chasing them, the Orix Buffaloes. The Buffaloes have a 68-1-61 record at the time of writing, giving them a winning percentage of .527.

The duo of Masataka Yoshida and Keita Nakagawa have led the way for Orix this season, with both players hitting above .300. Yoshida also ranks second in the Pacific with 72 walks.

For the Hawks, Kenta Imamiya has been their standout offensive performer. The shortstop has a batting average of .296 for the season and has also racked up 27 doubles, putting him in the top five for two-baggers in the Pacific.

With the division race set to go down to the final game, each clash between these two rivals is set to be key. Orix will be looking to continue their good recent record against the Hawks, having won four of the last six head-to-heads between the pair.

The other two teams with postseason aims in the Pacific League are the Tohoku Rakuten Golden Eagles and the Saitama Seibu Lions, who face off on Saturday.

The Lions are 67-3-60 at the time of writing, with a .527 winning percentage that puts them just behind the Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks. The Eagles are 63-2-61 at the time of writing and unless they can find a late winning run, look likely to miss out on a playoff spot in an ultra-competitive division.

Rakuten’s Hiroaki Shimauchi ranks third in the Pacific for batting average at .309 and has also managed 72 RBIs, also third in the division. For the Lions, pitcher Kona Takahashi has been key to their success this season, his 2.27 ERA is second among qualified starters in the Pacific and he has amassed 106 strikeouts in the process.

The Lions will be looking to extend their strong head-to-head record this season against the Eagles, having won nine of the last 12 meetings between the pair.

Both sides will be looking to take the victory with every win counting at the end of such a competitive season.

All four of the teams below the Tokyo Yakult Swallows and the Yokohama DeNa BayStars are in with a chance of securing the final playoff spot in the Central League. Two of those with among the best chances of landing that spot take on each other on Saturday when the Yomiuri Giants host the Hanshin Tigers.

The Tigers are currently in pole position in third with a record at the time of writing of 63-3-66 while the Giants are just behind with a record of 61-3-67. Pitching has been a real strength for the Tigers this season, their 388 runs allowed is the fewest in the NPB and their two standout players have been Koyo Aoyagi and Yuki Nishi, who have ERAs of 1.86 and 2.09 respectively. Those figures top the Central League rankings.

For the Giants, closer Taisei Ota has been integral, pitching in 50 games and recording a 1.98 ERA with 49 strikeouts.

Although both teams have a record below .500, they could secure the final playoff spot with a productive end to the season. This head-to-head could go a long way to deciding who will be playing in this year’s postseason.