Baseball: New-wave manager Nakajima leads Orix to 3rd straight title

From rags to riches, to more riches, the Orix Buffaloes clinched their third straight Pacific League pennant Wednesday under manager Satoshi Nakajima.

Nakajima, promoted from minor league manager to first-team interim skipper partway through the 2020 season, spent time coaching in the United States after hanging up his catching gear.

Between his player-first approach that is becoming increasingly popular in Japan, a wave of young talent developed by an organization with a renewed focus and the good fortune of inheriting a generational talent in ace pitcher Yoshinobu Yamamoto, Nakajima has been...