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Baseball: Hawks overpower Giants to take control of Japan Series

Nov 23, 2020 (Kyodo) - The SoftBank Hawks built up a big early lead before easing their way to a second straight win in the Japan Series on Sunday, trouncing the Yomiuri Giants 13-2 with three home runs including a seventh-inning grand slam from Alfredo Despaigne.

The heart of the Hawks' batting order -- Yuki Yanagita, Yurisbel Gracial and Game 1 hero Ryoya Kurihara, who went 4-for-5 -- all had multiple hits at Osaka's Kyocera Dome. Despaigne, batting sixth, drove in six runs.

Having gone 11-3 during the Pacific League season, Shuta Ishikawa picked up where he left off on the mound. He held the Giants to one hit and a walk over the first four innings, by which time the game had swung heavily in favor of the three-time reigning Japan Series champions.

Yomiuri starter Nobutaka Imamura had a night to forget. The Hawks pounded the lefty for four runs, three earned, in 1-2/3 innings on four hits and a walk.

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Large hailstones falling at speeds exceeding 100 kilometers per hour highlighted the dangers of severe weather after unstable conditions brought heavy rain and hail to parts of eastern and northern Japan on June 12th, with experts warning that hailstorms can now occur at any time of year and are becoming increasingly difficult to predict.

Japan's national soccer team arrived in Dallas, Texas, on June 12th after completing final preparations near Nashville, Tennessee, ahead of its opening Group F match against the Netherlands at the FIFA World Cup in North America.

The Japanese government on June 12th released new guidelines calling for women’s toilets to have at least as many fixtures as men’s toilets in public facilities, seeking to address the persistent problem of long queues at women’s restrooms in places such as train stations and event venues.

Japan captain Wataru Endo has withdrawn from the national team's World Cup squad due to injury and announced his retirement from international soccer, dealing a major blow ahead of Japan's Group F opener against the Netherlands on June 14th (June 15th Japan time), as the team continued preparations near Nashville, Tennessee, on June 11th.

As bear sightings continue at an unusually high pace across Akita Prefecture, a veteran wildlife photographer who has spent nearly 30 years observing and photographing Asian black bears says the animals are appearing more frequently, moving closer to human settlements, and increasingly adapting their behavior to survive.

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A 62-year-old man riding a LUUP electric scooter died following a collision with a pedestrian at an intersection in Tokyo's Koto Ward on June 2nd, marking what is believed to be the first confirmed fatal accident involving a LUUP user on a Tokyo roadway.

Police have arrested a 19-year-old man on suspicion of murder after a 17-year-old high school student was found unconscious on a riverbank in Sagamihara, Kanagawa Prefecture, and later pronounced dead.

A fire that broke out in a densely populated residential area of Fukui City early on June 10 left one person dead, destroyed multiple homes, and triggered panic among local residents as flames spread rapidly through the neighborhood.

Four men have been arrested in connection with a mass assault that erupted during a traditional festival in Saijo, Ehime Prefecture, leaving seven people injured after more than 30 participants became involved in the violence.

A gigantic Chinese-made hose measuring about 150 meters in length, up to 2 meters in diameter, and weighing an estimated 300 tons has washed ashore on the Noto Peninsula in Ishikawa Prefecture, prompting local authorities to launch a large-scale removal operation.

A fire broke out at Arima Inari Shrine near the Arima Onsen hot spring resort area in Kobe on the night of June 9th, destroying multiple buildings and leaving an elderly Shinto priest and his wife with minor injuries.

Two men, including the head of the Japan Cycling Association, have been arrested by the Metropolitan Police Department on suspicion of defrauding two men in Kagoshima Prefecture out of 30 million yen by falsely promising a massive return on a purported patent-related investment.

A bear that had been repeatedly spotted in commercial and residential areas of Utsunomiya, Tochigi Prefecture, was captured in a residential neighborhood at around 3:30 p.m. on June 9th after authorities used a tranquilizer gun, but the city remains on alert because police say they cannot rule out the possibility that another bear may still be roaming the area.