Jason Coskrey - The Japan Times

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Jason Coskrey

Jason Coskrey is a sports writer for The Japan Times. His primary focus is Japanese baseball, but he has also covered soccer, American football, boxing and basketball. He previously worked for the Marietta Daily Journal in Marietta, Ga. A native of Detroit, he is a graduate of the University of Alabama-Birmingham.

Fencer Misaki Emura (left) and breaker Shigekix, whose real name is Shigeyuki Nakarai, during a send-off ceremony in Tokyo on Friday

OLYMPICS

Jul 5, 2024

Japanese athletes get rousing send-off ahead of Paris Olympics

Three years after hosting the Tokyo Olympics, Japan is preparing to send almost 400 athletes to the Games in the French capital.

Lakers forward Rui Hachimura will be a key part of Japan's Olympic ambitions this summer.

BASKETBALL

Jul 1, 2024

Japan’s basketball stars set sights on glory at Paris Games

Some think Akatsuki Japan is sending the best team it has ever assembled to the Olympics.

NBA legend Ray Allen high-fives children during a basketball clinic in Tokyo's Shibuya Ward on Saturday.

BASKETBALL / NBA

Jun 15, 2024

Former Celtics great Ray Allen says 'distractions' played role in Game 4 blowout

The two-time NBA champion, who ran a basketball clinic for children in Tokyo on Saturday, also stressed that learning defense is key for developing young players.

Australian-born Connor O'Leary will represent Japan in the surfing competition at the 2024 Paris Olympics.

OLYMPICS / Surfing

Jun 11, 2024

At Paris Games, Connor O’Leary aims to win and inspire

The waves in Teahupo'o, Tahiti, may bode well for the goofy-footed surfer.

Kazuto Takesako will open his Prizefighter campaign against British boxer Mark Dickinson in Osaka on July 15.

MORE SPORTS / Boxing

Jun 3, 2024

$1 million purse on offer at revived Prizefighter event in Osaka

Eight fighters will get their first chance to punch their way to a big payday in Osaka on July 15.

Kanoa Igarashi, who earned a silver medal at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, is excited to get another shot at gold at this year’s Summer Games.

MORE SPORTS / Surfing

May 31, 2024

Kanoa Igarashi ready to challenge Teahupo'o in search of gold at Paris Olympics

Igarashi earned the silver medal in the inaugural Olympic surfing competition at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics.

Makoto Hasebe during a news conference following his retirement, in Tokyo on Friday. Hasebe played in 114 games for Japan's national team and played over 500 professional games between Japan and Germany.

SOCCER

May 24, 2024

Makoto Hasebe at peace with retirement, says body still 'wants to kick the ball'

Hasebe will eventually return to Germany and begin to lay the foundation for his coaching career.

Justin Reid has helped the Chiefs win the last two Super Bowl titles.

MORE SPORTS / Football

May 13, 2024

Chiefs safety Justin Reid committed to lifting up Kansas City on and off field

The confetti had hardly finished falling on the Kansas City Chiefs' second consecutive Super Bowl title when safety Justin Reid started looking ahead.

Naoya Inoue celebrates his victory over Luis Nery in their IBF-WBA-WBC-WBO super bantamweight title boxing match at Tokyo Dome on Monday.

MORE SPORTS / Boxing

May 7, 2024

After blockbuster boxing victory, what next for ‘Monster’ Inoue?

Some want the boxer to take on more fights outside of Japan.

Naoya Inoue (second from left) celebrates after defeating Luis Nery to retain his IBF, WBA, WBC, and WBO super bantamweight titles at Tokyo Dome on Monday.

MORE SPORTS / Boxing

May 6, 2024

Naoya Inoue dominates Luis Nery to remain undisputed super bantamweight champ

Inoue sent Nery to the canvas with in the sixth round to seal the victory.

Naoya Inoue (left) and Luis Nery following a pre-fight news conference in Yokohama on Saturday, two days ahead of their super bantamweight title fight.

MORE SPORTS / Boxing

May 5, 2024

'Monster' Inoue ready to tear down Luis Nery in title defense at Tokyo Dome

Ahead of boxing's highly anticipated return to the Big Egg, Naoya “Monster” Inoue said he's ready to knock out his opponent.

The Lions' Yuji Kaneko hit .219 in the team's first 25 games of the season.

BASEBALL / Japanese Baseball / Sac Bunts

Apr 29, 2024

Lions muzzled by poor performance at plate

The record will show the Seibu Lions lost to the Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks on Sunday after a 2-2 slider from Jefry Yan got away from catcher Takeru Furuichi as Riku Ogata raced home to score the walk-off run in the 12th inning of a 3-2 Hawks win.

Shohei Ohtani has been appointed as the new technology ambassador for Rapsodo, the company announced Monday.

BASEBALL / MLB

Apr 22, 2024

Shohei Ohtani signs deal with sports technology company Rapsodo

Los Angeles Dodgers superstar Shohei Ohtani has signed a deal to become the technology ambassador for Rapsodo, the company announced on Monday.

Giants starter Tomoyuki Sugano pitches against the Tigers at Koshien Stadium in Nishinomiya, Hyogo Prefecture, on April 18.

BASEBALL / Sac Bunts

Apr 22, 2024

Resurgent Tomoyuki Sugano off to strong start on mound for Giants

Sugano is off to a 2-0 start in three outings this season.

Josh Rawitch, president of the National Baseball Hall of Fame, holds a baseball thrown by former Dodgers pitcher Hideo Nomo during a no-hitter in 1996 while seated next to a Dodgers uniform used by Shohei Ohtani this season during a news conference at the U.S. ambassador's residence in Tokyo

BASEBALL

Apr 19, 2024

Baseball Hall of Fame to highlight history of Japan-U.S. ties in new exhibition

The exhibition, "Yakyu/Baseball: The Transpacific Exchange of the Game between Japan and the United States," is slated to open in July 2025.

Ippei Mizuhara and Dodgers star Shohei Ohtani attend a news conference ahead of MLB's season-opening series in Seoul on March 16.

BASEBALL / MLB

Apr 12, 2024

Texts between Ippei Mizuhara and bookie show the walls closing in

Federal prosecutors say Ippei Mizuhara stole $16 million from Shohei Ohtani from November 2021 to January 2024.

Buffaloes pitcher Shunpeita Yamashita will be one of the hurlers trying to fill the void left by the departure of ace Yoshinobu Yamamoto.

BASEBALL / Japanese Baseball

Mar 28, 2024

Pacific League pennant set to be tight race as Buffaloes chase dynasty in 2024

The Buffaloes path to a fourth straight title is fraught with peril as the Hawks gather their forces for a renewed push for the PL crown.

The Tigers' Teruaki Sato has hit at least 20 home runs in three straight seasons.

BASEBALL / Japanese Baseball

Mar 28, 2024

Tigers remain the Central League's team to beat as rival Giants loom

While Hanshin may be favored to repeat, the rest of the league will be waiting to pounce should the Kansai club falter.

Dodgers pitcher Yoshinobu Yamamoto looks on after the Padres' Luis Campusano hit an RBI double in the top of the first inning of his MLB debut in Seoul on Thursday.

BASEBALL / MLB

Mar 22, 2024

Yamamoto back to drawing board after disastrous Dodgers debut

Yamamoto’s MLB career got off to a difficult start on Thursday night and the long-time Orix Buffaloes ace only lasted one inning.

Dodgers designated hitter Shohei Ohtani talks with interpreter Ippei Mizuhara during a spring training game in Phoenix on March 12.

BASEBALL / MLB

Mar 21, 2024

For Shohei Ohtani, Ippei Mizuhara was far more than just an interpreter

The 39-year-old has been a ubiquitous presence in Ohtani’s life since his move to the major leagues ahead of the 2018 season.

You can often see generations of families enjoying performances together at Fuji Rock Festival.

Japan’s summer music festivals are feeling the heat in more ways than one

Tour guide and history buff Rory Dent left his job at a U.K.-based tour operator to move to Japan and start his own business.

Guiding Japan through the challenges of overtourism

By Alex K.T. Martin

SUSTAINABLE JAPAN

Honoring local cuisine that draws foreign tourists

Honoring local cuisine that draws foreign tourists

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