JAPAN Forward

1 day ago | japan-forward.com | Ed Odeven

Veteran MLB starter Yusei Kikuchi is enduring a disappointing first season with the Los Angeles Angels. The left-hander made his ninth start of the 2025 MLB season on Monday, May 12. Against the San Diego Padres, Kikuchi allowed seven hits and four runs (two earned) in six innings. He walked two and struck out four in the Angels' 9-5 victory at Petco Park. Kikuchi left the game with the Padres leading 4-3. It was his third straight no-decision. LA scored six runs in the top of the ninth.

6 days ago | japan-forward.com | Ed Odeven

To follow everything that's happening in the world of sports in, say, the course of a year, you need to be available 24/7 to monitor the news. For this column, though, let's focus on a handful of big stories from the past week or so ― soccer, baseball, basketball and tennis. Celtic FC forward Daizen Maeda was named the Scottish Players' Player of the Year award winner on Monday, May 5. It was hardly a surprise that Maeda got the nod for the award.

1 week ago | japan-forward.com | Daniel Robson

As a lifelong Star Wars superfan, I can't tell you how excited I was when, in 2023, Lucasfilm announced that the next edition of its official fan expo Star Wars Celebration would be held in 2025 in Japan, bringing a selection of my favorite movie stars and 100,000 fans together at Makuhari Messe. I immediately collared my colleagues on IGN's US team to suggest we collaborate on coverage when the event came out of hyperspace two years later.

1 week ago | japan-forward.com | Ed Odeven

In 2015, American Pharoah ended a decades-long drought, becoming the first winner of the American Triple Crown since Affirmed in 1978. It all started with his one-length victory in the Kentucky Derby on May 2. Now, 10 years later, American Pharoah-sired Luxor Cafe, who was foaled in Kentucky and developed in Japan, will race in the 151st Kentucky Derby. The first leg of the Triple Crown is on Saturday evening, May 3 (Sunday morning at 7:57 AM JST) at Churchill Downs in Louisville, Kentucky.

1 week ago | japan-forward.com | Ed Odeven

In Las Vegas, undisputed super bantamweight champion Naoya Inoue will appear in his first overseas fight since June 2021 when he steps into the ring against challenger Ramon Cardenas on Sunday, May 4. The title fight is expected to begin around 12 PM JST on Monday. Inoue's boxing career is filled with an encyclopedia-long list of achievements, including a 24-0 record (22 KOs) in world title fights.