Hanshin's Teruaki Sato wins Central League triple crown, first since Murakami in 2022
In short
Hanshin infielder Teruaki Sato won the Central League triple crown on October 8, finishing the regular season with a .306 batting average, 39 home runs and 106 runs batted in. He is the ninth player in Japanese professional baseball to win it and the first since Munetaka Murakami in 2022.
Read the full story 2 min read
Hanshin infielder Teruaki Sato (佐藤輝明), 27, won the triple crown in Japanese professional baseball's Central League on October 8, finishing the regular season with a .306 batting average, 39 home runs and 106 runs batted in, Sankei Shimbun and Nippon TV News reported. NHK reported that he took the league titles in batting average, home runs and runs batted in. It is the first triple crown of his career, according to Sankei. [ 3 , 4 , 5 ]
The Central League regular season ended on October 8 with Hanshin playing Yakult at Koshien Stadium, Sankei reported. Nippon TV News reported that Sato batted second in Hanshin's final game of the season and was substituted after his at-bat in the eighth inning without reaching 40 home runs. Before the game, Nippon TV listed him at .308 with 39 home runs and 106 runs batted in. [ 1 , 2 , 3 , 5 ]
Sato is the ninth player to win the triple crown and the first since Munetaka Murakami did so with Yakult in 2022, four years ago, NHK reported. Sankei said it is the 13th triple crown in all and the first by a Hanshin player since Randy Bass in 1985 and 1986. Murakami, now with the White Sox, hit .318 with 56 home runs and 134 runs batted in in 2022 and was the youngest triple crown winner at the time, Nippon TV News reported. [ 1 , 4 , 5 ]
Before the final game, his nearest rivals in home runs and runs batted in were Hanshin teammates Shota Morishita (森下翔太), with 35 home runs, and Yusuke Oyama (大山悠輔), with 85 runs batted in, while Yakult's Shu Masuda (増田珠) was second in batting average at .293, according to Nippon TV News. [ 1 ]
Sankei reported that Sato kept a high average from the start of the season and was the only player in the league to bat .300. He finished one home run short of a second straight 40-home-run season, but his 106 runs batted in were a career high, and Sankei called him the driving force behind Hanshin's second consecutive league title. [ 2 , 5 ]
Sato is from Hyogo Prefecture and came to prominence as a slugger at Kindai University before joining Hanshin as a first-round draft pick in 2021, Sankei reported. He won the home run and runs batted in titles in 2025 and played in the World Baseball Classic in March. [ 5 ]
Why it matters
Sato is the first Hanshin player to win the triple crown since Randy Bass in 1985 and 1986, Sankei Shimbun reported, and the first player to do so in four years, according to NHK. Sankei described him as the driving force behind Hanshin's second consecutive league title.
Key facts
- Teruaki Sato finished the regular season with a .306 batting average, 39 home runs and 106 runs batted in. [ 3 , 5 ]
- Sato took the Central League titles in batting average, home runs and runs batted in, winning the triple crown. [ 3 , 4 , 5 ]
- He is the ninth player in Japanese professional baseball to win the triple crown. [ 3 , 4 , 5 ]
- He is the first triple crown winner since Munetaka Murakami, then with Yakult, in 2022. [ 4 , 5 ]
- He is the first Hanshin player to win the triple crown since Randy Bass in 1985 and 1986, according to Sankei Shimbun. [ 5 ]
- Sato was the only player in the league to bat .300, Sankei Shimbun reported. [ 5 ]
- He finished one home run short of a second straight 40-home-run season. [ 2 , 5 ]
- The Central League regular season ended on October 8 with Hanshin playing Yakult at Koshien Stadium. [ 5 ]
Confirmed by several sources
Still unclear
- The result of the final game between Hanshin and Yakult. None of the documents report the score.
- Whether this is the 13th triple crown in all and Hanshin's second consecutive league title. Only Sankei Shimbun reports these points.
What local media are saying
Timeline, local time
- Nippon TV News reports Sato leading the league in all three categories with .308, 39 home runs and 106 RBIs, with one game left. [ 1 ]
- Nippon TV News reports Sato batting second in Hanshin's final game of the season. [ 2 ]
- Nippon TV News reports Sato substituted after his eighth-inning at-bat, finishing at .306, 39 home runs and 106 RBIs. [ 3 ]
- NHK reports that Sato has won the triple crown. [ 4 ]
- Sankei Shimbun reports Sato's first career triple crown as the Central League regular season ends. [ 5 ]