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August 11, 2026
 

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BASEBALL

Major League Baseball¡¯s recent ban on AI assistants in dugouts overlooks that the technology is simply the next step in baseball¡¯s long tradition of using better information for competitive advantage.
COMMENTARY / World
Jul 28, 2026
Baseball¡¯s AI crackdown is an overreaction
Baseball has seen versions of this story before. For decades, the game has rewarded teams that use information better than their opponents.
Shinnosuke Abe announces his resignation as the manager of Yomiuri Giants during a news conference in Tokyo on May 26.
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Jun 16, 2026
Ex-Giants manager Abe spared indictment over alleged assault of daughter
¡°We took into account the nature of the alleged assault, the circumstances surrounding the case and other relevant evidence,¡± the prosecutor¡¯s office said.
Yuki Kusumi, president of Panasonic Holdings, in the city of Kadoma, Osaka Prefecture, in April 2025
BUSINESS / Companies / FOCUS
May 13, 2026
After cost cuts and reforms, Panasonic enters decisive stage in turnaround
Fiscal 2026 is shaping up to be a pivotal year for the major manufacturer as it seeks to break free from prolonged stagnation and place its recovery on firmer ground.
Shohei Ohtani warms up during the 2026 World Baseball Classic exhibition game in Osaka on March 2.
JAPAN
Apr 24, 2026
After controversial Netflix deal, Japan urges WBC to ensure more people can watch
¡°It is extremely important for a wide range of people to have the opportunity to experience and watch sports,¡± sports minister Yohei Matsumoto said.
A Uniqlo store in New York. Operator Fast Retailing struck a landmark deal with the Los Angeles Dodgers to raise its brand recognition in the U.S. market.
BUSINESS / Companies
Mar 30, 2026
Uniqlo taps into Ohtani magic at Dodgers Stadium to fuel U.S. push
The alliance is an almost perfect match, leveraging U.S. and Japanese fans¡¯ fascination with the multiple-MVP batter and pitcher.
Fans watching from Tokyo react after Japan beat the U.S. in the World Baseball Classic in March 2023.
JAPAN
Mar 4, 2026
Netflix deal shuts out Â鶹´«Ã½ sports bars from freely showing WBC
For fans, the Netflix deal will mean a completely different experience from the past, when WBC games were aired for free, allowing sports bars to easily air them at their venues.
Los Angeles Dodgers designated hitter Shohei Ohtani during a spring training game in Tempe, Arizona, on Feb 21. For Japan, Netflix's exclusive deal to broadcast the World Baseball Classic may serve as a wake-up call to broadcasters that prices are going up and that they need to change as viewers seek better experiences.
BASEBALL / Japanese Baseball
Mar 4, 2026
Netflix¡¯s WBC deal upends baseball traditions in Ohtani¡¯s homeland
Professional baseball in Japan has largely stayed in the hands of domestic broadcasters and free-to-air networks.
The Metropolitan Police Department headquarters in Tokyo
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Feb 12, 2026
High school baseball players suspected of spreading obscene images
The Metropolitan Police Department is investigating the possibility that an obscene video of a 15-year-old girl might have been disseminated to dozens of people.
Hiroshima Prefectural Police have arrested Ryutaro Hatsuki, a 25-year-old infielder for the Hiroshima Toyo Carp, for allegedly using etomidate, a designated drug also known as the "zombie cigarette."
JAPAN / Crime & Legal
Jan 29, 2026
Hiroshima Carp infielder arrested over ¡®zombie cigarette¡¯
Ryutaro Hatsuki, 25, denies the allegation and claims that he has no memory of using the drug, according to Hiroshima Prefectural Police sources.
Netflix Japan's new series "The Human Vapor" is based on a 1960 cult film of the same title and follows a string of assassinations carried out by a perpetrator who can vanish into thin air.
CULTURE / Entertainment news
Jan 28, 2026
Netflix Japan lays out 2026 slate of anime, adaptations and live baseball
The streaming service revealed release windows for the upcoming ¡°Human Vapor¡± adaptation and more, plus plans to livestream all 47 games of the 2026 World Baseball Classic.
The Dallas Cowboys were valued at $13 billion, a 29% jump compared to last year, Forbes said.
MORE SPORTS
Dec 19, 2025
NFL¡¯s Dallas Cowboys top Forbes¡¯ most valuable teams list
The Cowboys, who unseated Spanish soccer club Real Madrid for top spot on the list in 2016, were valued at $13 billion, a 29% jump compared to last year, Forbes said.
Shohei Ohtani (left), Yoshinobu Yamamoto (center) and Roki Sasaki of the Los Angeles Dodgers celebrate in the locker room after defeating the Toronto Blue Jays 5-4 in Game 7 to win the 2025 World Series at Rogers Center in Toronto, on Nov. 2.
BASEBALL / MLB
Nov 12, 2025
Ohtani, Yamamoto and Sasaki generate ?132.8 billion in economic impact
Merchandise sales, broadcasting rights and the popularity of the players are all thought to have contributed to the high number.
Shohei Ohtani lacks the advantages that made NBA legend Michael Jordan a global icon: a unified mass media landscape, broad commercial appeal and a sport built to show off individuality.
COMMENTARY / Japan
Oct 24, 2025
Why can¡¯t Shohei Ohtani truly be like Michael Jordan?
The challenge begins with baseball itself. The game is played at a high level throughout the Americas and parts of Asia-Pacific, but remains a niche sport elsewhere.
Prime Minister Yoshio Mori declared in September 2000 that Japan must ¡°grab the historic opportunity of the IT revolution."
JAPAN / History / Japan Times Gone By
Sep 6, 2025
Japan Times 2000: Prime minister pitches ¡®e-Japan¡¯ as way of life
Japan must ¡°grab the historic opportunity of the IT revolution,¡± Prime Minister Yoshio Mori declared as the final Diet session of the century opened in September 2000.
The Betsukai Pilot Spirits welcomed new players (left to right) Yuta Yamanaka, Roman Guthrie, Scott Bellina and Leo Jiminian this year, pictured here with Yassir Lachkar of the Ishikari Red Phoenix.
COMMUNITY / Issues / The Foreign Element
Sep 1, 2025
Overseas sluggers step up to bat in small-town Hokkaido
The residents of Betsukai, Hokkaido ¡ª where cows outnumber people 7-to-1 ¡ª have extended a warm welcome to five players from overseas who joined the Pilot Spirits.
The Japan Fair Trade Commission said that moves by Nippon Professional Baseball could violate the antimonopoly law, and urged the organization to prevent any recurrence.
JAPAN
Jun 11, 2025
Japan Fair Trade Commission warns NPB over Fuji TV media pass denial
The antitrust watchdog said that such moves could violate the antimonopoly law, urging NPB to prevent any recurrence.
A special manhole cover featuring Los Angeles Dodgers' Shohei Ohtani
JAPAN
Jun 11, 2025
Japanese MLB stars to be featured on manhole covers
Each manhole cover will have an illustration of a Japanese player and be located at a place associated with his roots in baseball.
Japan's Shohei Ohtani carries the Japanese flag onto the field before the start of the World Baseball Classic final against the United States in Miami on March 21, 2023.
BASEBALL
May 15, 2025
Historian Rob Fitts discovers earliest ever reference to baseball in Japan
The widely held belief is that American Horace Wilson introduced the sport to Japan in 1872. Fitts¡¯ discovery revises the timeline to 1869.
New York Mets pitcher Kodai Senga delivers a pitch against the St. Louis Cardinals during the first inning at Citi Field in New York on Saturday.
BASEBALL / MLB
Apr 20, 2025
Kodai Senga and Pete Alonso lead Mets past Cardinals
Senga (3-1) allowed just three hits, walked two and fanned four in an 89-pitch performance.
Katsuhiko Nakamura, secretary-general of the NPB, speaks at a news conference in Tokyo on Monday.
JAPAN
Mar 25, 2025
NPB teams to fine 16 players for using online casinos
The fines will be donated to organizations working to combat gambling addiction.
America¡¯s cyberforces grapple with cluster of deaths by suicide
The U.S. Cyber Command building (center) stands on the National Security Agency campus at Fort Meade, Maryland.
Many Indonesians named after Japanese anime characters
Some people in Indonesia are named Doraemon, the name of a lead character of the blockbuster anime series with the same title.
Yasukuni Shrine introduces ban on military attire and cosplay
People gather in front of thousands of lanterns on display at Yasukuni Shrine in Tokyo on July 15 during the Mitama Matsuri, one of the capital's largest summer o-Bon festivals.
As countries ban social media for children, Japan mulls a different approach
Data from NTT Docomo¡¯s Mobile Society Research Institute released in June found that 55% of respondents across all age groups said they fiddled with their phones when they had nothing to do, even when another person was in front of them.
¡®Total whiplash¡¯: Foreign residents react to Â鶹´«Ã½ changing permanent residency rules
The entrance to the Tokyo Immigration Bureau in Minato Ward, Tokyo, in March. For some foreign residents of Japan, tightening measures for permanent residency have become one factor in a broader calculation over whether remaining in the country makes financial sense over the long term.
As Â鶹´«Ã½ concrete jungles sizzle, urban forestry offers an all-natural fix
People and birds find relief from the sun in Tokyo's Nakano Ward earlier this month. While experts agree that urban greening is crucial to mitigating the impact of climate change, trees are becoming even more scarce in Japanese cities.
Â鶹´«Ã½ brewers experiment with a secret ingredient: music
At Smoke Craft, a craft beer brewery in Tokorozawa, Saitama Prefecture, music isn't just a background to the brewing process ¡ª it's an ingredient.
As countries ban social media for children, Japan mulls a different approach
Data from NTT Docomo¡¯s Mobile Society Research Institute released in June found that 55% of respondents across all age groups said they fiddled with their phones when they had nothing to do, even when another person was in front of them.
J. League enters new era as league kicks off first fall-spring campaign
Players from each J. League club pose during a kickoff event on Monday ahead of the start of the 2026-27 campaign.

Podcast

One of the many entrances to the Kabukicho neighborhood in Tokyo¡¯s Shinjuku Ward.
Kabukicho: Tokyo¡¯s ¡®stadium of desire¡¯

Longform

Disaster relief workers Taichi Kato (left) and Seiji Yoshimura enter the collapsed living quarters at Kyuganji temple in Yatsushiro, Kumamoto Prefecture.
What Kumamoto revealed about Â鶹´«Ã½ earthquake readiness
By Alex K.T. Martin

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