Release on Thursday, April 23: Sports Graphic Number Issue 1142/1143 <The Era of Hiromitsu Ochiai and Great Managers. 2006-2008 vs. Okada's Hanshin & Hara's Giants> by Bungeishunju!
Bungeishunju will release the combined 1142/1143 issue of the comprehensive sports magazine 'Sports Graphic Number' on April 23. It features the intense battles of the Japanese professional baseball Central League from 2006 to 2008, focusing on managers Hiromitsu Ochiai, Akinobu Okada, and Tatsunori Hara.
📋 Article Processing Timeline
- 📰 Published: April 23, 2026 at 15:00
- 🔍 Collected: April 23, 2026 at 06:31
- 🤖 AI Analyzed: April 24, 2026 at 05:03 (22h 31m after Collected)
Bungeishunju Ltd. (Headquarters: Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo; President: Shigeyuki Iikubo) will release the combined 1142/1143 issue of the comprehensive sports magazine 'Sports Graphic Number', titled , on April 23.
■ Comment from Shinnosuke Tsuboi, Desk Editor for Number 1142/1143
Managers Hiromitsu Ochiai, Akinobu Okada, and Tatsunori Hara. The period from 2006 to 2008, when these three simultaneously commanded teams in the Central League, is still passed down among many professional baseball fans as the 'legendary three years.' The 'Big Three'—Chunichi, Hanshin, and Giants—battled for the championship until the very end of the season almost every year, an era filled with such tension that every game's outcome hinged on a single tactical move or player deployment. Since the starting pitcher announcement system did not yet exist, the battle began before the game with an information war of anticipating and hiding starting pitchers.
We wanted to know the behind-the-scenes of those thrilling, high-stakes matches. With that desire, we had Mr. Hiromitsu Ochiai appear in this issue. In the opening long interview, we asked him about the untold backstage stories of those days, from the memories of the three-way rivalry to his 'Ore-ryu' (My Style) managerial philosophy. What was the game against Okada's Hanshin that Mr. Ochiai says he still hasn't forgotten? What was the story behind 'Starting Pitcher: Takashi Ogasawara' against the Giants in the 2nd stage of the 2007 Climax Series? Fifteen years after stepping down as manager, we present this wholehearted special interview.
This issue is also packed with valuable episodes from players and coaches of that time, such as Mr. Masahiro Yamamoto, Mr. Takashi Toritani, and Mr. Michihiro Ogasawara. What is the truth behind the tears Mr. Tatsunori Hara shed in front of his players in 2007? How did his former players send off Mr. Akinobu Okada when he decided to step down as manager in 2008? We hope you will enjoy the passionate stories behind those spark-flying battles of that era in our magazine.
'Sports Graphic Number' Issue 1142/1143
The Era of Hiromitsu Ochiai and Great Managers.
2006-2008 vs. Okada's Hanshin & Hara's Giants
【CONTENTS】
SPECIAL FEATURES
[Special Interview] Text by Shunsaku Sakai
Hiromitsu Ochiai 'The battle begins before the game starts'
【2006】
[Tactics at the Summit] Text by Takashi Kumazaki
Masahiro Yamamoto 'Fox and badger outwit each other; the southpaw dominated the tigers'
[Memoirs of Suspicion] Text by Yosuke Sai
Takashi Toritani 'Behind the scenes at the jinxed Nagoya Dome'
【2007】
[Foundation for a Three-Peat] Text by Yasushi Washida
Tatsunori Hara 'The gambler who broke the rules'
[The View in the First Year of Transfer] Text by Hiroshi Kato
Michihiro Ogasawara 'Constantly questioned on true strength'
[Behind the CS Giant-Killing] Text by Chuhei Suzuki
Chunichi vs. Giants 'Spark-flying information war'
【2008】
[The Last Game of the First Administration] Text by Yosuke Sai
Akinobu Okada 'The night he shared tears with his pupils'
[Perspective of the Second-String Catchers] Text by Satoshi Ashibe
Kohei Oda / Toshihiro Noguchi 'The "invisible force" that supported the dead heat'
[The Three-Way Rivalry Seen Through Data]
The Turning Point of the Fierce Battle
[Sorrow of Lower-Ranked Teams] Text by Hidenobu Murase
Marty Brown / Akihiko Ohya 'Hiroshima & Yokohama "The art of war of the weak two"'
[To a New Horizon] Text by Hiromi Ishii
Natsumi Tsunoda 'The Paris gold medal opens the door to the next chapter'
[Retirement Interview] Text by Mie Noguchi
Wakaba Higuchi 'Even if the pain doesn't go away'
[Tenno Sho Spring Preview] Text by Naoki Ota
An idiosyncratic fierce warrior, or an omnipotent king?
[Short-Term Intensive Serialization] Text by Hiromi Ishii
I want to see the best view of JO1! Sho Yonashiro / Junki Kono / Takeru Goto / Yudai Sano #2 Let's learn the secrets of cheering!
Text by Keigo Amemiya
Conditions for a 'player worthy of a champion' questioned by the Japan PGA Championship
REGULARS
[New Dialogue Series]
Masatoshi Hamada: How should NextStep athletes live? 'I want you to be a manager one more time' 1st Guest Atsuya Furuta
[Thorough Explanation] Text by Jun Ikushima
Stablemaster Nishonoseki 'Sumo, this technique, this wrestler' 39th Sadanoumi
FACE
Tatsuya Murasa (Swimming)
BEYOND THE GAME
Yasushi Washida 'Reasons for Ikeyama Yakult's rapid advance'
SCORE CARD INTERVIEW
[SOCCER] Text by Satoshi Hojo
Hidetoshi Takeda (Vegalta Sendai) The symbol of Vegalta's rapid advance is the lefty transformed into 'aggressive'
[VOLLEYBALL] Text by Yuko Tanaka
Yukiko Wada The perfectionist's thought from a year ago: 'I will definitely go overseas'
[GOLF] Text by Keigo Amemiya
Akari Sakuma Brain and nerves, the bond with Jumbo Ozaki. The queen's strength is 'the power to connect'
[KAKUTOGI] Text by Koji Fuse
Takeru Heading to his final floral path with the resolve that 'it's okay to break a bone'
From Overseas Sites
MLB Text by Mamoru Shikama
FOOTBALL Text by Shin Toyofuku
TENNIS Text by Hidehiro Akiyama
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