Game RECAP April 5 / 2025 Hanshin vs Giants | TORA-Ho!🐯
RECAP
TORA-NEKO’s First Game at the Ballpark This Season — and a Win with a Rare Power Surge!
It was TORA-NEKO’s first in-person game of the season, and quite an unusual one for Hanshin — a team known more for stringing hits together than for going deep. But tonight, the Tigers claimed victory with not one, not two, but three home runs.
The action started right away in the top of the first. Sato launched a fly ball to the opposite field — just barely clearing the left-field fence for a solo homer and an early lead. It was a historic blast too, marking Hanshin’s 8,500th home run since the team’s founding. A storybook start!
The Giants tied it in the bottom of the first, and in the second, they threatened to take the lead. With one out and a runner on third, Kadowaki (batting eighth for the Giants) hit what looked like a sure sacrifice fly to center. But Chikamoto had other plans — gunning down the runner at home with a perfect throw to keep the score tied.
That defensive spark fired up the Tigers. In the top of the third, Sakamoto led off with a single, but pitcher Tomida failed to get the bunt down and was left on first with one out. That’s when leadoff man Chikamoto stepped up again and smashed his first home run of the season into the right-field stands — putting Hanshin back on top.
The game tightened after that. Hanshin used a steady relay of pitchers, with Tomida, Oyokawa, and Ishii combining to hold the line. As the game entered the late innings and every run counted, it was once again Sato who delivered — blasting a no-doubt opposite-field homer in the top of the 8th to pad the lead. It was his second homer of the game and sealed the win.
Hanshin’s bullpen — Kirishiki and Iwazaki — held off a late Giants push, allowing just two runs and locking down the victory. The Tigers have now secured the series win at Tokyo Dome — their first in the Giants’ home park since 2022.
The clear hero was Sato with his two home runs, but it was a true team win, with the pitching staff issuing no walks (just one hit-by-pitch) and keeping the Giants from building any momentum. It was textbook Hanshin baseball — aggressive, sharp, and focused. Still, Manager Fujikawa remained grounded. When reporters asked if he was looking forward to a sweep, he smiled and replied,
“Day by day. Let’s just get a good night’s sleep first.”
Many analysts are predicting a three-way race for the Central League title this year between Hanshin, the reigning league champs Yomiuri (Giants), and the defending Japan Series winners Yokohama DeNA. But it’s still early in the season, and avoiding big losing streaks and injuries will be key.
As for TORA-NEKO? A win at the ballpark always means one thing — a happy heart, and one very smug TORAMARU sipping his victory beer in celebration.
See you again tomorrow! 🍻🐯💛
Box
| Order | Pos | # | Name | AB | R | H | RBI | SB | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | (CF) | 5 | Chikamoto | 5 | 1 | 1 | 2 | 0 | F7 | – | HR9② | – | G3 | – | G4 | – | F7 |
| 2 | (2B) | 51 | Nakano | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | G4 | – | G6 | – | G3 | – | – | K | – |
| 3 | (3B) | 8 | Sato | 4 | 2 | 2 | 2 | 0 | HR7① | – | G3 | – | – | G3 | – | HR7① | – |
| 4 | (RF) | 1 | Morishita | 4 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | F3 | – | – | 1B4 | – | G5 | – | L5 | – |
| 5 | (1B) | 3 | Ohyama | 4 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | – | 2B9 | – | L5 | – | F9 | – | F9 | – |
| 6 | (LF) | 58 | Maegawa | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | – | G4 | – | 1B7 | – | – | HBP | – | – |
| PR-LF | 52 | Shimada | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | G3 | |
| 7 | (SS) | 51 | Kinami | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | – | G3 | – | F8 | – | – | K | – | HBP |
| 8 | (C) | 12 | Sakamoto | 4 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | – | – | 1B8 | K | – | – | K | – | F8 |
| 9 | (P) | 50 | Tomida | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | – | – | G1 | – | K | – | – | – | – |
| P | 37 | Oyokawa | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | |
| PH | 94 | Haraguchi | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | – | – | – | – | – | – | IBB | – | – | |
| P | 54 | Ishii | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | |
| P | 47 | Kirishiki | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | |
| PH | 33 | Itohara | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | BB | |
| P | 13 | Iwasaki | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | – | |
| TEAM | 33 | 4 | 7 | 4 | 1 | ||||||||||||
| # | Name | NP | BF | IP | H | HR | BB | HBP | K | WP | BK | R | ER | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| WP | 50 | Tomida | 68 | 17 | 5 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| HP | 37 | Oyokawa | 12 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| HP | 54 | Ishii | 13 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| HP | 47 | Kirishiki | 18 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| SV | 13 | Iwasaki | 11 | 5 | 1 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 2 |
| TEAM | 122 | 32 | 9 | 6 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 3 | ||