Kaz Nagatsuka - The Japan Times

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Kaz Nagatsuka

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Kaz Nagatsuka

Kaz Nagatsuka is a staff writer covering Japanese sports, including Japanese professional baseball, basketball, American football and individual sports. He has covered big sporting events such as the World Baseball Classic, the NFL Super Bowl and soccer's World Cup.

Japan Times

BASEBALL / Japanese Baseball

Oct 28, 2010

American disc jockey Maconachy finds home with Hawks

FUKUOKA — Max Maconachy grew up in Chicago, watching the Cubs and White Sox. But after spending more than a decade in Fukuoka, baseball is the Fukuoka Softbank Hawks for him.

Japan Times

BASEBALL / Japanese Baseball

Oct 21, 2010

Poor decisions cost Hawks as much as Marines' spirit

FUKUOKA — The Chiba Lotte Marines have achieved a feat nobody had ever done before — advanced to the Japan Series as a third-seeded team.

Japan Times

BASEBALL / Japanese Baseball

Oct 20, 2010

'Miracle Marines' eliminate Hawks

FUKUOKA — The Chiba Lotte Marines' miraculous run continues.

Japan Times

BASEBALL / Japanese Baseball

Oct 19, 2010

Marines push Hawks to the limit

FUKUOKA — You just can't leave the stadium or switch the channel when these Marines are playing in this postseason.

Japan Times

BASEBALL / Japanese Baseball

Oct 18, 2010

Imaoka giving Marines big spark against Hawks

FUKUOKA — Makoto Imaoka was embarrassed to be surrounded by so many reporters after the game.

Japan Times

BASEBALL / Japanese Baseball

Oct 18, 2010

Watanabe, Marines force Game 5

FUKUOKA — The submarine was elusive and the Hawks had no idea how to sink it.

Japan Times

BASEBALL / Japanese Baseball

Oct 17, 2010

Hawks edge closer to Japan Series

FUKUOKA — It may not have been the most beautiful way of getting a "W." But winning is all that matters in the postseason, and the Hawks were pleased they did just that.

BASEBALL / Japanese Baseball

Oct 17, 2010

Fireman Settsu pours cold water on Marines

Even for a guy who had pitched in half of the entire season, standing on the mound in a playoff game is something different.

Japan Times

BASEBALL / Japanese Baseball

Oct 16, 2010

Wada finds rhythm, takes down Marines

FUKUOKA — Tsuyoshi Wada gave his teammates and fans plenty to worry about early on in the game. As it turned out, his performance was almost as good as it gets.

Japan Times

BASEBALL / Japanese Baseball

Oct 16, 2010

Sugiuchi reflects on costly mistake

An ace pitcher is expected to lead his team to victory any time.

Japan Times

BASEBALL / Japanese Baseball

Oct 15, 2010

Red-clad fans show faith in Hawks

FUKUOKA — Red isn't a part of the Hawks' team colors. But Yahoo Dome was lit up in red on Thursday for the opener of the Pacific League Climax Series final stage.

Japan Times

BASEBALL / Japanese Baseball

Oct 15, 2010

Marines outplay Hawks in Game 1

FUKUOKA — Conventional wisdom states that the Hawks are thought to have an overwhelming edge over the Marines with their one-win advantage, plus, with two of the best southpaw pitchers in the game in Toshiya Sugiuchi and Tsuyoshi Wada.

Japan Times

BASEBALL / Japanese Baseball

Oct 11, 2010

Satozaki times return to perfection

TOKOROZAWA, Saitama Pref. — Baseball is a sport of repetition. You can easily lose your knack for the game if you don't swing the bat or throw the ball for a while.

Japan Times

BASEBALL / Japanese Baseball

Oct 10, 2010

Lotte's Nishioka proves value to club in playoff opener

Tokorozawa Saitama Pref. Tsuyoshi Nishioka was the stabilizer for the Chiba Lotte Marines during the regular season. That's an indisputable fact.

Japan Times

MORE SPORTS

Sep 16, 2010

Buccaneers cheerleader Kojima revels in captain's role

Numerous Japanese women have crossed the Pacific to the United States to become cheerleaders for NFL teams. But none have reached as high of a level as Tomoko Kojima.

Japan Times

BASEBALL / Japanese Baseball

Aug 26, 2010

Chono making most of starting chance with Giants

Yomiuri Giants rookie Hisayoshi Chono stays low-key no matter how he performs and whether he is in the starting lineup or not. All he cares about is how the team does.

Japan Times

BASEBALL / Japanese Baseball / WORLD UNIVERSITY BASEBALL CHAMPIONSHIP

Aug 8, 2010

Cleanup hitter Ito makes solid impact for Team Japan

While Team Japan's pitchers were getting much of the spotlight, some hitters were worthy of attention, too.

Japan Times

BASEBALL / Japanese Baseball / WORLD UNIVERSITY BASEBALL CHAMPIONSHIP

Aug 4, 2010

Japan preps for quarters

KAWASAKI — Shooting for a first-ever gold medal, Japan isn't about to let its guard down against anyone and is treating every contest with a one-game-at-a-time mentality.

Japan Times

BASEBALL / Japanese Baseball

Jul 17, 2010

Lions' injury crisis allows cubs to bare teeth

TOKOROZAWA, Saitama Pref. — Injuries are an inevitable factor in baseball. It's no different for the Saitama Seibu Lions, who lost some key players last month.

Japan Times

BASEBALL / Japanese Baseball

Jul 10, 2010

Winning, confidence return to Fighters

The Hokkaido Nippon Ham Fighters are showing people that once their cogwheels are engaged, they can once again be as good as any other team.

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

Akiko Trush says her experience with the neurological disorder dystonia left her feeling like she wanted to chop her own hand off.

The neurological disorder that 'kills culture'

By Tomoko Otake

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