Seiya Suzuki finished the season with four consecutive home runs, hitting 32 in a single season and surpassing Godzilla Matsui Hideki.

The Japanese hitters who homered in the final game of the 2025 regular season were not just Shohei Ohtani; Chicago Cubs slugger Seiya Suzuki also hit his 32nd home run (with 103 RBIs), helping his team shut out the St. Louis Cardinals 2-0. Suzuki officially broke the single-season home run record of 31 set by "Godzilla" Hideki Matsui with the Yankees in 2004, ranking second among all Asian players behind Ohtani.

Suzuki’s performance declined in the second half of the season, hitting a severe slump in August. However, he exploded in September’s final stretch, hitting five home runs in the last four games, successfully raising his OPS back to a high level of 0.804, surpassing 0.800 for the third consecutive year. Matsui averaged an OPS of 0.852 over seven seasons with the Yankees, while Ohtani has averaged 0.922 over six seasons with the Angels.

Both Matsui and Ohtani are left-handed hitters, which is generally advantageous given the predominance of right-handed pitchers in the major leagues. Suzuki is the first Japanese right-handed batter to reach the milestone of 30 home runs and 100 RBIs in a season.

The Cubs returned to the playoffs after a four-season absence. Manager Craig Counsell said, "Winning 92 games is a big number and shows everyone’s dedication. This has been a great season." This will be the first playoff appearance for Suzuki and Japanese lefty Shota Imanaga. The fourth-seeded Cubs will face the fifth-seeded Padres in the first round, with the winner advancing to challenge the top-seeded Brewers in the National League.

Matsui was a clutch postseason hitter, with a career playoff batting average of .312 and an OPS of .933, earning the 2009 World Series MVP. Ohtani helped the Dodgers win the championship last year but saw his postseason batting average drop to .230 with an OPS of .767. Now, with both Ohtani and Suzuki homering on the final day, it shows they have tuned their form to peak before October.