Yusuke Ohyama Achieves 150 Career Home Runs in Official Games

On September 27, 2025, during a game against the Chunichi Dragons at Hanshin Koshien Stadium, Hanshin Tigers' player Yusuke Ohyama achieved his 150th career home run in official games. This remarkable feat marks a significant milestone, making him the 182nd player in professional baseball history to reach this mark, and was met with thunderous cheers from the packed stadium.

Ohyama stepped up to the plate in the bottom of the 7th inning with two outs and runners on first and second, trailing by four runs. He launched an opposing pitcher's 140 km/h fastball down the right-field foul pole. This dramatic 13th home run of the season, a three-run blast, brought the team within one run, sending the Koshien crowd into a frenzy. Social media was also flooded with celebratory messages such as, "So glad Ohyama stayed with Hanshin. We couldn't have won the championship without him. Thank you and congratulations on 150 career home runs ㊗️🎉" and "Our Yusuke Ohyama just hit his 150th career homer! Congratulations, congratulations, congratulations!!!"

However, the team unfortunately lost the game to Chunichi 3-5. Ohyama's memorial arch became an "empty cannon," and pitcher Kotaro Otake missed out on his third consecutive season with double-digit wins. Fans expressed mixed feelings of joy and disappointment, with comments like, "It's frustrating to lose, but I'm genuinely happy for Yusuke Ohyama's 150 home runs 😂."

Since securing the league championship, Ohyama has maintained excellent form at the plate, batting .295 with a .436 on-base percentage, a 1.073 OPS, and 4 home runs in 14 games (a pace equivalent to 40 home runs over 143 games). On this day, he recorded 3 hits and 1 walk in 4 at-bats across 5 plate appearances, even taking the lead in the on-base percentage race, demonstrating his significant presence. Fans are eagerly anticipating him carrying this momentum into the Climax Series (CS) to achieve the long-desired "Japan Series championship."

The context

This article reports on a specific event in Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB), Japan's top professional baseball league. Here's some background for non-Japanese readers:

• Hanshin Tigers: One of Japan's most popular and historically significant baseball teams, based in Nishinomiya, Hyogo Prefecture. They have a massive and passionate fanbase.
• Chunichi Dragons: Another team in the NPB's Central League, based in Nagoya.
• Hanshin Koshien Stadium: An iconic and historic baseball stadium, home to the Hanshin Tigers and also famous for hosting the annual National High School Baseball Championship (Summer Koshien).
• Yusuke Ohyama: A prominent third baseman for the Hanshin Tigers, known for his power hitting. Reaching 150 career home runs is a significant individual achievement in professional baseball.
• Professional Baseball History (プロ野球史上): Refers to the history of NPB since its establishment. Being the 182nd player to reach 150 homers indicates a substantial career milestone.
• Climax Series (CS): Japan's playoff system, where the top teams from each league (Central and Pacific) compete to determine which team will represent their league in the Japan Series.
• Japan Series (日本一): The championship series of NPB, equivalent to baseball's World Series. The "long-desired Japan Series championship" indicates that the Tigers' fans have been yearning for this title.
• Batting Stats (OBP, OPS):
  • OBP (On-Base Percentage): Measures how often a batter reaches base.
  • OPS (On-Base Plus Slugging): A popular sabermetric statistic that combines on-base percentage and slugging percentage to evaluate a player's overall offensive production.
• Kotaro Otake: A pitcher for the Hanshin Tigers. Missing out on "double-digit wins" means he did not reach 10 wins for the season.