Hanshin Tigers and Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks to compete for Japan Series title

The Hanshin Tigers will compete in the 2025 Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB) against everybody's favourites, the Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks.
The Hawks won 11 Japan Series (two as the Nankai Hawks and two as the Fukuoka Daiei Hawks, while the Tigers have two. When they won their second title in 2023, the Tigers ended the Course of the Colonel.
The two franchises faced each other only three times in the Japan Series, and the Hawks always won. In 1964, the Nankai Hawks won 4-3. In 2003, the Fukuoka Daiei Hawks won 4-3, and in 2014, the Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks won 4-1

The best-of-seven series will open on Saturday, October 25, at 18:30 (local time) at the Mizuho PayPay Dome in Fukuoka. The Hawks will also host game two (Sunday, October 26 and eventual games six (Saturday, November 1) and seven (Sunday, November 2).

The Tigers will host game three (Tuesday, October 28), four (Wednesday, October 29) and eventually four (Thursday, October 30) at the historic Koshien Stadium.

The Tigers won the Central League regular season and swept the defending Japan Series champions Yokohama DeNa BayStars in the final stage of the Climax Series.

Former All-Star reliever Kyuji Fujikawa is the Tigers' first-year manager. His team relies on an outstanding pitching staff. Shoki Murakami led the league in wins (14) and strikeouts (144). WBSC Premier12 star Hiro Saiki had the best earned run average (ERA), posting 1.55. Left-handers Haruto Takahashi and Masako Oyokawa also impressed during the postseason.
Third baseman Teruaki Sato led the Central League in home runs (40) and runs batted in (RBIs, 102) and provided a three-run homer in the Japan Series clincher. Outfielder Shota Morishita starred for Japan at the WBSC Premier12 2024.

After winning the Pacific League regular season, the Hawks struggled in the final stage of the Climax Series. They won the first two games, then lost three to the Hokkaido Nippon Ham Fighters, then won the sixth game, 2-1, advancing to the Japan Series thanks to the one-game advantage given to the pennant winners.

Former Japan Series MVP and Barcelona 1992 Olympics bronze medalist Hiroki Kokubo has been on the Hawks coaching staff since 2021, taking the helm in 2024. His previous managerial experience was with the Japanese National Team at the 2015 WBSC Premier12 and 2017 World Baseball Classic. Cuban international star Livan Moinelo and former MLB right-hander Korei Arihara are the aces of the pitching staff. Still, the rest of the rotation hasn't performed well in the Climax Series final stage.

Adding to his defensive versatility, 2013 World Baseball Classic winner and WBSC U-21 Baseball World Cup All-World Team infielder Taisei Makihara has led the Hawks' offence. Tokyo 2020 gold medalist Yuki Yanagita has also impressed in the postseason.