The official Pacific League regular season began on Friday, March 28th. Currently, Hokkaido Nippon-Ham is in the lead, but the gap with the second-place team is just two games. Keep an eye on the second half of the season, which will be followed by the All-Star break.
With the season resuming, the official YouTube channel of Pacific League TV will be hosting a special episode titled “2025 First Half: Joyful Walk-off walk-off [Supported by Sanwa Shutter],” which will feature a summary of the 31 walk-off games played by the six Pacific League teams in the first half of the season. We will be looking back on some of the joyous scenes.
Hokkaido Nippon-Ham take sole lead with dramatic walk-off
The biggest point difference in the first half of the season was overturned in Hokkaido Nippon-Ham vs. Hiroshima game on June 15th. At the end of the top of the sixth inning, they were down 0-7, but they overcame the difficulties and the game went into extra inning innings with the score at 7-7. In the bottom of the tenth inning, leadoff hitter Yua Tamiya hit a straight ball that was too soft, sending the ball into the left field stands where many fans were waiting. They were down by as much as seven points, but in the end Tamiya won with one swing and was given a rough congratulations from his teammates.
In addition, Yuya Gunji became the hero of three walk-off win in just the first half of the season. On April 11th, he hit Home Run that led to the team’s first walk-off win of the season, and on May 21st and May 31st, he also hit walk-off-off hits. His self-praise in the hero interview after the game was worthy of praise, and he has become an indispensable member of the team both as a hitter and a mood maker.
Kenya Wakatsuki also became walk-off hero three times
Orix, who finished the first half of the season in third place, had the most walk-off win in the league with seven, three of which were in the finals. Kenya Wakatsuki The game is decided by a hit from a player. One of the most memorable was the game against Tohoku Rakuten on March 28th. The team was leading 2-0, but the score was caught up in the final innings, and the game was tied at 2-2 in the bottom of the ninth inning. With two outs and a runner on second base, he stepped up to bat and hit a low fastball on the second pitch count at 1-0 to left center field, win the opening game with a dramatic walk-off.
A feat not seen in 68 years! Three rookies hit walk-off runs
On April 29th, in the Orix vs. Chiba Lotte game, Yusuke Mugitani The game was decided by the player’s first walk-off-off hit as a pro. Tomoya Noguchi When the team had a chance to walk-off with triple, Mugiya hit a timely hit between first and second base. He was temporarily sidelined due to injury, but returned to action on July 9th with the farm team. We look forward to seeing him do well in the second half of the season.
On May 18th, Chiba Lotte faced Hokkaido Nippon-Ham. In the bottom of the 12th extra inning, with one out and runners on first and second, he came up to bat as a pinch hitter. Misho Nishikawa The player hit the first pitch, breaking ball, to right center field. It was his hit in about two weeks and his first walk-off hit as a pro. Tears of joy flowed as he received congratulations from his seniors.
On May 22nd, in the game between Tohoku Rakuten and Saitama Seibu, walk-off sacrifice fly was: Rui Muneyama Player. The rookie brought win to the team that had been on a three-game losing streak, and refreshing smiles burst out on ground. Despite being a rookie, Soyama participated in the “Mynavi All-Star Game 2025”. In the second game, he started as starting line-up short stop recording two hit and one RBI. He won the Fighting Spirit Player Award.
It was the first time in 68 years since 1957 that three rookies in Pacific League recorded walk-off hit. The first half of the season was not only notable for the performances of veterans and center fielders, but also of rookies.
What was the breakdown of the first-half walk-off win?
The breakdown of the 31 walk-off games in the first half of the 2025 season for the six Pacific League teams was 17 hit, 3 sacrifice fly flies, 6 Home Run runs, 2 Hit by Pitch, and 3 wild pitches. In addition, there were many scenes in which young players decided the game, with nine players becoming heroes of their first walk-off win in the professional league just in the first half of the season. We hope you will watch the second half of the season with a dramatic win until the final inning.
Written by Yokazu Sonoda
AloJapan.com