Jason Coskrey

1 week ago | japantimes.co.jp | Jason Coskrey

Jackie Robinson Day arrived earlier in Japan than in North America, and for DeNA BayStars pitcher Andre Jackson, the stars almost aligned perfectly on Tuesday night. Jackson pitched on the date that annually honors Robinson, who broke the MLB color barrier when he made his historic debut for the Brooklyn Dodgers on April 15, 1947. He also did it while wearing No. 42, Robinson’s iconic number. Jackson pitched well, too, holding the Yomiuri Giants to a single run over six innings.

1 week ago | japantimes.co.jp | Jason Coskrey

When, at the behest of MLB, the Pitching Ninja account and its plethora of gifs of “filthy” and “disgusting” pitches (as Rob Friedman, the man behind the account, famously refers to them) went dark on what was then known as Twitter in April 2018, it caused an uproar. Fans were apoplectic, MLB players, past and present, voiced their support for the account and many people took MLB to task for its part in the Twitter ban.

1 week ago | japantimes.co.jp | Jason Coskrey

Tony Blanco, a gregarious slugger who hit 181 home runs and won a batting title during his eight seasons in Japan, was buried on Thursday in the Dominican Republic following a memorial service as the nation continues to mourn the over 200 people who died when the roof of a popular nightclub collapsed early on Tuesday. Family, friends and fans gathered to say their final goodbyes to the 44-year-old during the service, which took place in a city near the Dominican capital, Santo Domingo.

2 weeks ago | japantimes.co.jp | Jason Coskrey

The 2025 NPB season is a little over a week old, and a pair of rookie players with a lot riding on their shoulders are off to fast starts. Seibu Lions outfielder Seiya Watanabe has hit the ground running with a .407 average that ranks third among all NPB players. Watanabe had multihit performances in four of his first seven games, including going 3-for-3 in a win over the Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks on Friday night. “I’ve got some confidence in this part of my game,” he told Nikkan Sports on Friday.

3 weeks ago | japantimes.co.jp | Jason Coskrey

There were over 65,000 people in the stands and millions more watching from elsewhere when Damar Hamlin nearly died during an NFL game. Hamlin, a safety for the Buffalo Bills, collapsed when he suffered a cardiac arrest after making a tackle during a game against the Cincinnati Bengals on Jan. 2, 2022. According to the American Heart Association (AHA), the survival rate for cardiac arrests that occur outside of a hospital is less than 12%. Luckily everything else went right for Hamlin that night.