Nippon Professional Baseball League Predictions for Saturday, August 20

By Ben Darvill

19 Aug 2022

Ben Darvill 19 Aug 2022

Share this article

This week's Nippon Professional Baseball League predictions
Nippon Professional Baseball League stats
Orix Buffaloes at Saitama Seibu Lions
Hiroshima Toyo Carp at Yokohama DeNA BayStars

Inform your Nippon Professional Baseball league predictions ahead of this week's biggest matches with Pinnacle's weekly update, including analysis, team news, and the latest baseball odds.

Orix Buffaloes at Saitama Seibu Lions

The Pacific League remains ultra-competitive as the Nippon Professional Baseball league nears the culmination of its season, with the Saitama Seibu Lions currently topping the section with a record of 58-3-48, at the time of writing.

On Saturday, they face the Orix Buffaloes, who currently occupy third spot with a record of 57-54. For the Buffaloes, Masataka Yoshida has been their key hitter, racking up the second-best batting average in the Pacific with a record of .320, to go with 14 home runs and 60 run batted in (RBI).

Yoshida has a slugging percentage of .522, the only player with a higher percentage is the Lions’ own Hotaka Yamakawa, who is way out in front with a .641 percentage after smashing 35 home runs, also a Pacific League-best tally.

Keeping the two big hitters quiet will be key for both teams in what may be a tight game between two teams vying for the playoff places in an ultra-competitive division.

This matchup will be key for the Buffaloes, who have lost six of the last seven head-to-heads between these two and they will need to improve that if they are to close the gap to their rivals.

Bet on Orix Buffaloes at Saitama Seibu Lions

Hiroshima Toyo Carp at Yokohama DeNA BayStars

The Yokohama DeNA BayStars have been arguably the hottest team in the league recently, winning nine of their last 11 games, at the time of writing, to move up to second spot in the Central League.

Their 51-2-47 record has them catching up the Tokyo Yakult Swallows, who looked to have an insurmountable lead for most of the season but have wobbled recently.

On Saturday, the BayStars host the Hiroshima Toyo Carp who, with a record of 52-3-55 at the time of writing, have postseason ambitions of their own.

The Carp are in fourth place but are not far behind the Yomiuri Giants, helped by their closer Ryoji Kuribayashi, who has a 1.54 earned run average, 44 strikeouts, and 25 saves from 35 innings of work.

For the BayStars, Keita Sano and Toshiro Miyazaki have been integral, they are two of the four men hitting above .300 in the Central and Sano leads the league with a .322 figure.

Those two maintaining their levels will be key to Yokohama maintaining their momentum and stamping their authority on a playoff place, while the Carp will be hoping they can close the gap to the Giants and pick up a postseason berth.

Bet on Hiroshima Toyo Carp at Yokohama DeNA BayStars

Chiba Lotte Marines at Tohoku Rakuten Golden Eagles

Given the competitive nature of the Pacific League, even the Chiba Lotte Marines could consider themselves still in the race for a postseason place, they currently sit fifth with a record of 50-1-55 at the time of writing.

The Marines take on the team one spot above them on Saturday in the shape of the Tohoku Rakuten Golden Eagles, who sport a 52-2-50 record at the time of writing.

Hiroaki Shimauchi has been a key component in their line-up this season, hitting at .297, good enough for fourth-best in the Pacific.

For the Marines, young starting pitcher Roki Sasaki has been a standout, amassing an ERA of just 1.70 despite struggling for injuries throughout the campaign.

The Marines will have to hope they have their youngster back to his best as they need to win this clash if they are to keep alive their hopes of making the postseason.

Bet on Chiba Lotte Marines at Tohoku Rakuten Golden Eagles

Sign up with Pinnacle to get great baseball odds across a range of markets.