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November 22, 2024
 

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Wayne Graczyk
Wayne Graczyk has written the "Baseball Bullet-In" column in The Japan Times since 1976. A native of New Jersey, he came to Japan in 1969 with the U.S. Air Force and is a 1977 graduate of Tokyo's Sophia University. Wayne was the long-time (1977-2004) sports editor of the Tokyo Weekender newspaper, he covers Yomiuri Giants baseball games for Nippon TV and, since 1976, he has compiled the Japan Pro Baseball Fan Handbook & Media Guide. He is a member of the Tokyo Sportswriters Club and the Foreign Sportswriters Association of Japan. Notice Wayne Graczyk, the baseball columnist for The Japan Times for the past 40 years, passed away at the age of 68 on April 19. His final column was posted on April 8. Readers can continue to access his coverage of Japanese baseball through the online archives.
BASEBALL / BASEBALL BULLET-IN
Oct 2, 2005
Sheets a key player for Tigers in pennant-winning season
Congratulations to the Hanshin Tigers on winning their second Central League pennant in three years. The victory was a true team effort highlighted by a potent offensive attack, a balanced pitching staff and clever use of an adequate pool of talent by manager Akinobu Okada.
BASEBALL / BASEBALL BULLET-IN
Sep 25, 2005
Carp may bring in ex-player Brown to try and revive club
Hiroshima Carp manager Koji Yamamoto has announced he will be stepping down at the end of this season, and press reports have indicated the leading candidate to replace him is former Carp infielder-outfielder Marty Brown.
BASEBALL / BASEBALL BULLET-IN
Sep 18, 2005
Valentine, Marines take lead in hurricane, typhoon relief
The Chiba Lotte Marines of Japan's Pacific League have embarked on a campaign to raise funds for hurricane and typhoon relief efforts in the New Orleans and Mississippi Gulf Coast areas in the U.S., and Kagoshima here in Japan.
BASEBALL / BASEBALL BULLET-IN
Sep 11, 2005
CL may hold playoffs sooner than you think
The Central League has decided to consider instituting a playoff system beginning in 2007, but we may be seeing postseason play between two CL teams a lot sooner.
BASEBALL / BASEBALL BULLET-IN
Sep 4, 2005
How to beat the high price of Japanese pro baseball tickets
Have you ever thought about going to a Japanese baseball game but, upon checking prices, thought the tickets are rather expensive?
BASEBALL / BASEBALL BULLET-IN
Aug 28, 2005
Summer scorecard: road trips, managers, scraped bathtubs
Road Trip of Survival: The Hanshin Tigers came through their "Road Trip of Death" in pretty good shape. The team went 10-9 while away from their home Koshien Stadium (being used for the national high school Tournament) for 25 days from Aug. 1 and was still in first place in the Central League, leading...
BASEBALL / BASEBALL BULLET-IN
Aug 21, 2005
Hoshino, the next manager of the Giants? Not so fast!
The Nikkan Sports paper claimed in back-to-back front pages on Aug. 11-12 that former Chunichi Dragons and Hanshin Tigers manager Senichi Hoshino has been offered the job to head the Yomiuri Giants in 2006.
BASEBALL / BASEBALL BULLET-IN
Aug 14, 2005
Sasaki's farewell unique in many ways
Retirement games, or "intai shiai," are common in Japanese baseball, but the one that took place in Sendai on Aug. 9 was a most unusual occurrence.
BASEBALL / BASEBALL BULLET-IN
Aug 7, 2005
Will Giants turn to foreign manager after Horiuchi departs?
The Yomiuri Giants are not going to win the 2005 Central League pennant and most likely will finish in the "B Class" (bottom three) for the first time since 1997.
BASEBALL / BASEBALL BULLET-IN
Jul 31, 2005
Will Hanshin still be in swing after 'road trip of death'?
The Hanshin Tigers are in a position to win their second Central League pennant in three seasons, but they will have to get by a jinx that has plagued Tigers teams in the past: the "shi-no-rodo" or "road trip of death."
BASEBALL / BASEBALL BULLET-IN
Jul 24, 2005
Kroon in tune as surprise closer for BayStars
Yokohama BayStars relief pitcher Marc Kroon made headlines July 19 when he threw a 161-kph (100.6 mph) fastball in a game against the Hanshin Tigers at Koshien Stadium. However, setting a record for the fastest pitch thrown in a Japan pro baseball game was not his goal.
BASEBALL / BASEBALL BULLET-IN
Jul 17, 2005
Did Kapler fall victim to old trick?
Now-former Yomiuri Giants outfielder Gabe Kapler has cleared waivers after being released by the Tokyo team, and he appears headed back from where he came -- Boston -- and a shot at a second consecutive World Series championship ring.
BASEBALL / BASEBALL BULLET-IN
Jul 10, 2005
Tokyo Dome crowd responds to return of legend Nagashima
The atmosphere was electric when Shigeo Nagashima waved to the crowd at Tokyo Dome on July 3 before and during that evening's Yomiuri Giants-Hiroshima Carp game.
BASEBALL / BASEBALL BULLET-IN
Jul 3, 2005
Nothing half-baked about the Fullcast Stadium experience
If your summer vacation takes you to northern Japan this year, be sure to make a stop in Sendai and see a game played by the Tohoku Rakuten Golden Eagles at Fullcast Stadium Miyagi. I had watched on TV games played there earlier in the year and decided to take a day-and-a-half trip to see for myself...
BASEBALL / BASEBALL BULLET-IN
Jun 26, 2005
New book offers interesting retrospective on Japanese game
Remembering Japanese Baseball, an Oral History of the Game is the title of a new book by Robert K. Fitts, the creator of RobsJapanese Cards.com, the world's largest Web site dedicated to Japanese baseball cards and memorabilia.
BASEBALL / BASEBALL BULLET-IN
Jun 19, 2005
Interleague action rates a good grade in first year of play
Japan pro baseball's fist interleague season will wrap up this weekend, as soon as they can make up a few games previously rained out.
BASEBALL / BASEBALL BULLET-IN
Jun 12, 2005
Thanks to the efforts of many, baseball remains intact despite merger
You may be reading this column between 7 a.m and 8 a.m. on Sunday morning.
BASEBALL / BASEBALL BULLET-IN
Jun 5, 2005
MLB Japan tries to reassure NPB on World Baseball Classic
Disturbed by repeated media reports saying Nippon Professional Baseball is dissatisfied with the organization and conditions of next year's proposed World Baseball Classic, Major League Baseball's Managing Director in Japan Jim Small invited the media to a coffee session in his Tokyo office on May 30...
BASEBALL / BASEBALL BULLET-IN
May 29, 2005
Valentine has novel idea for interleague games
Chiba Lotte Marines manager Bobby Valentine says he has enjoyed Japan's first season of interleague play, and he has an idea to make it more exciting: a "reverse" DH rule.
BASEBALL / BASEBALL BULLET-IN
May 22, 2005
Bryant back in key role with Buffaloes
Returning to Japanese baseball this season after a decade-long absence is Ralph Bryant, one of the most prolific sluggers ever to play the game here as a member of the Kintetsu Buffaloes from 1988 to 1995, and currently the first-base coach and a batting instructor with the Orix Buffaloes.
Two of America’s biggest debt holders are dumping Treasurys
The U.S. Treasury building in Washington. Investors in Japan and China sold a pile of U.S. debt in the last quarter, just before the U.S. presidential election.
Russia fired experimental ballistic missile at Ukraine, Putin says
Ukrainian firefighters work on a spot following an airstrike in Dnipro on Thursday.
Ishiba aggravates his own political failures with diplomatic faux pas
Prime Minster Shigeru Ishiba is greeted at the APEC summit in Lima by Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau on Friday. The Japanese leader was criticized for remaining seated while meeting several world leaders at the event.
Japan's 3.31 million visitors in October set monthly record
Kiyomizu Temple in Kyoto in December 2023. Famous autumn leaf colors contributed to increased tourism demand last month from many markets across Asia, Europe and North America, the Japan National Tourism Organization has said.
Japan ranks last in romance satisfaction for second straight year
In a survey of 31 countries, Japan ranked last in terms of those who felt loved, with just 51% of respondents saying so.
The slow-burn success of ‘A Samurai in Time’
A 19th-century warrior gets struck by lightning and wakes to find himself in 21st-century Kyoto in Junichi Yasuda’s surprise hit “A Samurai in Time.”
Around a quarter of Japan married couples in their 20s met through dating apps
A survey released by an organization promoting “Good Couples Day” shows that 24% of couples in their 20s met their marriage partner through a dating app.
'Tokyo Swindlers': Get deep into the minds of real estate con artists
In Ko Shinjo's "Tokyo Swindlers," a group of con artists manipulates real estate giants into falsified deals within the highly competitive, quick market.
Japan, U.K. and Italy discuss inviting more countries to joint fighter project
A new concept model of a next-generation fighter jet to be jointly developed by Japan, Britain and Italy is on display in Farnborough, Hampshire, in July.
Haruki Murakami's 'The City and Its Uncertain Walls' gives deep deja vu
For “The City and Its Uncertain Walls,” translated into English by Philip Gabriel, Haruki Murakami confronts the ghosts who won't leave him alone.

Podcast

One of the many entrances to the Kabukicho neighborhood in Tokyo’s Shinjuku Ward.
Kabukicho: Tokyo’s ‘stadium of desire’

Longform

Construction takes place on the Takanawa Gateway Convention Center in Tokyo, slated to open in 2025.
A boom for business tourism in Japan?
By Kathryn Wortley

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