The Yomiuri Giants slump continues. Despite the fact that they are having a good season so far and are top of the Central League, the audience rating for their televised night games in April was the worst ever. At 10.8% in the Kanto region, it was well below last year’s record low of 12.6%. Ironically, the bad news came on the same day that the Kyojin, as they are known in Japanese, won their milestone 5,000th game. The 5-3, 11-inning win over the Chunichi Dragons at Nagoya Dome also saw the first ever save as a pro for ace pitcher Uehara Koji. The Giants’ first ever win came on July 3, 1936.
• Singer Aikawa Nanase (32) is pregnant again. She revealed yesterday on her official website that she is currently 6 months pregnant with her second child. She is currently in recording and says she will go ahead with her annual July 7 concert. With her name including the kanji for the number seven (nana), she chose that date for a show to commemorate her 10th year in showbiz in 2005. The band put together for that event included former X Japan guitarist Pata, former Luna Sea drummer Shinya, and former Megadeth guitarist Marty Friedman. Aikawa married in February 2001 and had a baby boy the following September.