NPB Games-over-.500 Charts 2026

Central League

Best W−L balance (current) Hanshin +17

Pacific League

Best W−L balance (current) SoftBank +42

end of Oct 8, 2026 / npbc.media

As of the end of Oct 8, 2026, the best win-loss balance belongs to Hanshin (+17) in the Central League and SoftBank (+42) in the Pacific League. Balance is wins minus losses; zero marks a .500 record.

The balance of wins minus losses - 'games over .500' - is the classic at-a-glance measure of momentum in Japanese baseball.

Focus on your team

Pick a club to highlight its line and dim the others. Press it again to reset.

Games over .500

Balance = wins minus losses. The horizontal zero line is the .500 mark. The ▼ marks along the top of the plot show the days the lead changed hands, colored for the new leader.

Central League Games over .500 end of Oct 8, 2026 npbc.media Interleague −20 −10 ±0 +10 +20 Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct T +17 G +12 DB +2 C −17 S −19 D −21 T season high +19 T clinched T S T S S T S T S T G T G T G T

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Central League Games over .500 end of Oct 8, 2026 npbc.media Interleague −20 −10 ±0 +10 +20 Apr Jun Aug Oct T +17 G +12 DB +2 C −17 S −19 D −21 T season high +19 T clinched T S T T T T S G T G T G T
Pacific League Games over .500 end of Oct 8, 2026 npbc.media Interleague −20 ±0 +20 +40 Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct H +42 L +19 F +16 B −11 M −14 E −26 H season high +44 H clinched B L B L H

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Pacific League Games over .500 end of Oct 8, 2026 npbc.media Interleague −20 ±0 +20 +40 Apr Jun Aug Oct H +42 L +19 F +16 B −11 M −14 E −26 H season high +44 H clinched B L B H
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Standings over time

Daily standings ordered by winning percentage (wins over decisions) at the end of each day. Teams tied on percentage share the same rank, so lines can overlap. Official tiebreakers such as head-to-head records are not applied to the daily series.

Central League Standings over time end of Oct 8, 2026 npbc.media 1 2 3 4 5 6 Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct T #1 G #2 DB #3 C #4 S #5 D #6

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Central League Standings over time end of Oct 8, 2026 npbc.media 1 2 3 4 5 6 Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct T #1 G #2 DB #3 C #4 S #5 D #6
Pacific League Standings over time end of Oct 8, 2026 npbc.media 1 2 3 4 5 6 Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct H #1 L #2 F #3 B #4 M #5 E #6

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Pacific League Standings over time end of Oct 8, 2026 npbc.media 1 2 3 4 5 6 Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct H #1 L #2 F #3 B #4 M #5 E #6
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Win-loss calendar

A tall dark cell is a win, a short light cell a loss, and a thin line a tie - the heights keep the chart readable even without color. Doubleheaders split the day's cell vertically.

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Central League Win-loss calendar end of Oct 8, 2026 npbc.media Win Loss Tie Hanshin 79 - 62 (2) Yomiuri 76 - 64 (3) DeNA 71 - 69 (3) Hiroshima 61 - 78 (4) Yakult 61 - 80 (2) Chunichi 60 - 81 (2) Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct

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Pacific League Win-loss calendar end of Oct 8, 2026 npbc.media Win Loss Tie SoftBank 91 - 49 (3) Seibu 79 - 60 (4) Nippon-Ham 78 - 62 (3) ORIX 65 - 76 (2) Lotte 63 - 77 (3) Rakuten 58 - 84 (1) Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct
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Games over .500, past 20 seasons (2006-2025)

Each club's end-of-season balance (wins minus losses). The bold dashed zero line is the .500 mark: above it means more wins than losses, below it more losses. ▲ marks the club's best balance in the window and ▼ its worst, each labeled in the form value (year); ties go to the more recent year. All panels share the same vertical scale, with faint guide lines every 20. Season lengths vary by year.

Games over .500, past 20 seasons (2006-2025) end of Oct 8, 2026 npbc.media Central League Hanshin 0 +32 (2023) −20 (2012) 2006 2015 2025 Yomiuri +43 (2012) −14 (2006) 2006 2015 2025 DeNA +8 (2023) −47 (2010) 2006 2015 2025 Hiroshima 0 +37 (2017) −26 (2010) 2006 2015 2025 Yakult +21 (2022) −51 (2017) 2006 2015 2025 Chunichi +33 (2006) −26 (2023) 2006 2015 2025 Pacific League SoftBank 0 +45 (2017) −13 (2008) 2006 2015 2025 Seibu +35 (2018) −42 (2024) 2006 2015 2025 Nippon-Ham +34 (2016) −23 (2017) 2006 2015 2025 ORIX 0 +33 (2023) −30 (2009) 2006 2015 2025 Lotte +15 (2007) −33 (2017) 2006 2015 2025 Rakuten +23 (2013) −38 (2006) 2006 2015 2025

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Games over .500, past 20 seasons (2006-2025) end of Oct 8, 2026 npbc.media Central League Hanshin 0 +32 (2023) −20 (2012) 2006 2015 2025 Yomiuri +43 (2012) −14 (2006) 2006 2015 2025 DeNA 0 +8 (2023) −47 (2010) 2006 2015 2025 Hiroshima +37 (2017) −26 (2010) 2006 2015 2025 Yakult 0 +21 (2022) −51 (2017) 2006 2015 2025 Chunichi +33 (2006) −26 (2023) 2006 2015 2025 Pacific League SoftBank 0 +45 (2017) −13 (2008) 2006 2015 2025 Seibu +35 (2018) −42 (2024) 2006 2015 2025 Nippon-Ham 0 +34 (2016) −23 (2017) 2006 2015 2025 ORIX +33 (2023) −30 (2009) 2006 2015 2025 Lotte 0 +15 (2007) −33 (2017) 2006 2015 2025 Rakuten +23 (2013) −38 (2006) 2006 2015 2025
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Data table

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Year T G DB C S D
2025 +31 +1 +5 −20 −22 −15
2024 +11 +18 +2 −2 −15 −15
2023 +32 +1 +8 +9 −26 −26
2022 −3 −4 +5 −8 +21 −9
2021 +21 −1 −19 −5 +21 −16
2020 +7 +22 −2 −4 −28 +5
2019 +1 +13 +2 ±0 −23 −5
2018 −17 −4 −7 +23 +9 −15
2017 +17 +4 +8 +37 −51 −20
2016 −12 +2 −2 +37 −14 −24
2015 −1 +8 −18 −2 +11 −15
2014 +7 +21 −8 +6 −21 −6
2013 +6 +31 −15 −3 −26 −13
2012 −20 +43 −39 −10 +3 +22
2011 −2 +9 −39 −16 +11 +16
2010 +15 +15 −47 −26 +4 +17
2009 −6 +43 −42 −10 −1 +19
2008 +23 +27 −46 −1 −8 +3
2007 +8 +17 −1 −22 −24 +14
2006 +26 −14 −26 −17 −3 +33

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Year H L F B M E
2025 +35 −14 +26 +8 −28 −7
2024 +42 −42 +15 −14 +5 −5
2023 +2 −12 −22 +33 +2 −1
2022 +11 +4 −22 +11 −4 −2
2021 −2 −15 −13 +15 +10 +4
2020 +31 ±0 −9 −23 +3 −2
2019 +14 +18 −8 −14 −1 +3
2018 +22 +35 +8 −8 −22 −24
2017 +45 +18 −23 −16 −33 +14
2016 +29 −12 +34 −26 +4 −16
2015 +41 ±0 +17 −19 +4 −26
2014 +18 −14 +5 +18 −10 −16
2013 +4 +8 −14 −7 +6 +23
2012 +2 +9 +15 −20 −5 ±0
2011 +42 +1 +7 +1 −25 −5
2010 +13 +13 +7 −2 +8 −17
2009 +9 ±0 +22 −30 −15 +11
2008 −13 +12 +4 +7 +3 −11
2007 +7 −10 +19 −15 +15 −8
2006 +19 +26 +28 −29 −5 −38
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Pennant race archive (last 50 seasons)

Season highlights

Central League Longest win streak: DeNA, 8 in a row Best games over .500 (in-season peak): Hanshin at +19 Days in first place: Hanshin (116 days)
Pacific League Longest win streak: SoftBank, 9 in a row Best games over .500 (in-season peak): SoftBank at +44 Days in first place: SoftBank (112 days)

Days in first place are counted per day with games played.

The estimated figures are worked out by this site and are not official announcements.

What 'games over .500' means

The balance is wins minus losses: a club '10 games over' has ten more wins than losses, while a negative balance is nicknamed 'debt' (shakkin) in Japanese baseball. Each win adds one and each loss subtracts one, which makes momentum swings easier to follow than winning percentage.

Ties count as neither result and leave the balance untouched. But NPB standings are decided by winning percentage with ties excluded from the denominator, so the number of ties still affects the order - which is why the balance order and the standings order can differ.

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How to read the charts

Each league chart draws six lines in club colors, with the abbreviation and current balance attached directly to the end of each line. The horizontal zero line marks .500, and the lightly shaded span is the interleague period. Badges on the chart mark the season-high balance and a recent lead change. The small ▼ marks along the top edge record every day the lead changed hands, in the color of the new leader.

More balance but lower in the table

Because NPB standings run on winning percentage, a club can hold a bigger balance yet sit lower in the table: a team with more ties has fewer decisions in the denominator, so the same balance yields a higher percentage. Down the stretch, the tie count can matter as much as the balance itself.

Frequently asked questions

What do 'savings' and 'debt' mean in Japanese baseball?

They are Japanese baseball idioms for the win-loss balance: 'savings' (chokin) is a positive balance and 'debt' (shakkin) a negative one. Ten games of savings means ten more wins than losses.

How do ties affect the balance?

They do not move it - a tie counts as neither a win nor a loss. But in the winning percentage that decides the standings, ties drop out of the denominator, so a club with more ties posts a higher percentage at the same balance.

Why can the balance order differ from the standings?

Because standings use winning percentage (wins over decisions). A club with more ties has a smaller denominator and posts a higher percentage at the same balance, so a club with a smaller balance can still rank higher.

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