With his second appearance in the duel that defined the champion of the Pacific division, in the Japanese Professional Baseball League (NPB)Cuban Liván Moinelo became the hero of the SoftBank Falcons, scoring this Monday’s 2-1 success over the Nippon Ham Luchadores, at the Mizuno Pay Pay Dome in Fukuoka.
The left-hander from Pinar del Río assumed the responsibility with only four days of rest, after his rivals managed to equalize the fight with a spectacular reaction, and completed seven high-level innings, review the specialized website Japanese Baseball.
ATTENTION!
Liván Moinelo reaped his first victory in the playoffs today (10/20/2025). #npb to send the SoftBank Falcons to the Japan Series, which will begin this Saturday, October 25 in Fukuoka.https://t.co/k13kEuSwgM pic.twitter.com/A4lYk2W8MZ— Japanese Baseball.com (@beisboljapones) October 20, 2025
Something similar had happened last Wednesday during the start of hostilities, when Moinelo starred in another relevant incursion, with seven innings without allowing runs, but he could not achieve success for his team.
This time, in the same number of episodes, he allowed a score due to an RBI hit by Yuya Gunji that tied the score, but his teammates were in charge of defining it in the fifth episode, thanks to the unstoppable performance of Akira Kawase, who drove in all of his team’s goals.
Before leaving the mound, in the seventh inning, Moinelo faced Ariel Martínez from Matanzas in a tense duel that ended up favoring the Yumurino, who negotiated a walk as a pinch-hitter.
Although the fighters began the division series with an automatic defeat marked by the Falcons’ lead in the regular stage, they staged a spectacular comeback to erase a 0-3 deficit.
The titanic effort was undone after the most recent presentation, and starting next Saturday the Falcons will begin the fight for the throne on their premises facing the Hanshing Tigers, who advanced from the Central League.
Moinelo MVP
Moinelo’s two performances earned him the title of Most Valuable Player (MVP) of this segment of the tournament, and confirmed that he remains among the most reliable starters on the Japanese professional circuit.
MOST VALUABLE!
Liván Moinelo was named Most Valuable Player of the Pacific League playoff #npb. He allowed just one run in 14 complete innings. https://t.co/6behL28tnW— Japanese Baseball.com (@beisboljapones) October 20, 2025
In just his second season as a starter for the Fukuoka franchise, the shortstop led the ERA with a solid earned runs per game average of 1.46.
A year ago he had closed with another impressive 1.86, in addition to 155 rivals retired via strikes, a figure he now surpassed by taking it to 172, while reducing his number of walks from 42 to 47 between both campaigns, according to official statistics.
Moinelo arrived in Japan in 2017 with the Falcons, who initially saw his abilities to assume middle relief duties, a role he performed successfully for seven seasons.
Baseball: Liván Moinelo wins his first Gold Glove in the Japan Professional League
Between 2019 and 2020 he participated in 110 matches for his team (60 and 50), and scored 72 holds (34-38). In 2022, 24 rescues were recorded, another of the most relevant figures in his file.
His conversion to starter from 2024, with one of the best salaries in the circuit, has been one of the most successful moves by the Falcons management, as demonstrated by the fact that in the last two years he has recorded balances of 11-5 and 12-3.
His foray into the imminent Japan Series will be a new opportunity to justify this bet.
