The NPB All Star games were this past week. Game One on Tuesday in Tokyo Dome saw the Pacific League defeat the Central League 7-5. Chusei Mannami of the Fighters was the MVP of game, getting four hits and two RBIs and finishing the game a home run short of a cycle (which I think would have only been the second cycle in All Star history after Atsuya Furuta's in 1992). The Pacific League scored seven runs again in Game Two on Wednesday in Toyama, but lost when the Central League scored eight. Seiya Hosokawa of the Dragons took the MVP Award after hitting two home runs in the game, including a two run one that put the CL ahead for good in the sixth inning.
Here are cards of the two MVPs:
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| 2019 BBM Fighters #F68 |
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| 2024 BBM 1st Version #155 |
One other thing happened in Game Two that I wanted to highlight. Orix Buffaloes catcher Kenya Wakatsuki stole home as part of a double steal. He was the fourth player in history to steal home in an All Star game and the first to do it without having attempted one during the regular season. Wakatsuki's been playing in at the top level of NPB for 12 years now and has only 13 steals over that time. Surprisingly for a catcher, he's been success most of the times he's stolen as he's only been caught three times.
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| 2023 Topps NPB #215 |
H/T to NPB Reddit for the details about both Game One and Game Two.
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