OSAKA -- The Hanshin Tigers clinched the Central League title of Japan's Nippon Professional Baseball on Thursday for the first time in 18 years, arousing expectations that the victory will spark economic activity bringing in more than $650 million across the country. Osaka, the Kansai region city that serves as the Tigers' base of support, is ecstatic over the victory by the local heroes.
The Tigers, one of the oldest professional baseball clubs in Japan, beat the Yomiuri Giants at Hanshin Koshien Stadium to win the pennant race, with 15 games remaining in the 143-game season. The team, which last clinched the title in 2005, will advance to the league's postseason Climax Series, due to start in mid-October, whose winner will go the Japan Series against the top team from the rival Pacific League.
