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A sweep that never felt comfortable
Further record: NPB — 2026 Japan Series results, Pacific League Insight — SoftBank wins a second straight Japan Series
On October 28, SoftBank beat DeNA 4–2 in Fukuoka to complete a Japan Series sweep, its second straight championship and 13th overall. The celebration becomes more meaningful when the narrow margins are considered.
The four scores were 3–1, 4–3, 2–1 and 4–2; the first three games all required extra innings. The series tally is clean, but the route involved repeatedly escaping danger and finding one more scoring opportunity.
An early deficit, then the fourth-inning answer
Further record: NPB — Japan Series Game 4: official score and box score, TBS NEWS DIG — SoftBank comes from behind to complete the sweep
Game 4 began with a two-run homer by Keita Sano off SoftBank’s starter, leaving SoftBank chasing immediately. In the fourth, Yudai Yamamoto tied the game with a two-run triple and Yuki Yanagita followed with the go-ahead hit.
SoftBank added a run in the sixth and finished with four runs on only five hits, against DeNA’s two runs on four hits. The difference was not a flood of hits; it was making a small number of opportunities with runners count.
The bullpen carried the lead home
Further record: NPB — Japan Series Game 4: official score and box score, NPB — 2026 Japan Series results
DeNA did not score again after the first. The starter began the assignment, several relievers continued it, and Kazuki Sugiyama finished the ninth. Once the offense caught up, the pitching staff ensured it did not have to start the chase again.
Sugiyama finished the series with a win and three saves, leaving his mark on the closing stages of all four victories. Concentrated in such tight games, that work explains the execution hidden by the word “sweep”: a lead can be small, but every remaining out still matters.
A repeat title belongs to the whole team
Further record: Pacific League Insight — SoftBank wins a second straight Japan Series, NPB — 2025 Japan Series results
Tomoya Masaki was named series MVP, with Yamamoto and Sugiyama among the outstanding-player honorees. Different roles came forward in different games: timely hitting, comeback offense and relief pitching combined to complete the championship.
SoftBank beat Hanshin four games to one in the previous Japan Series, then swept DeNA this time. The quality to carry forward is not an expectation of another sweep; it is the depth to find another contributor when a game stays close. Enjoy the repeat title, then look for that resilience next season.
