I mean, of course they could. Yellowstone could go off and cripple the Americans in 1942, for example. But, what I'm saying is, could the Japanese have been more successful than they were without stretching believability to the requirement of Alien Space Bats?
One stroke of good luck would have been if the Enterprise, one of the United States' aircraft carriers, had been at Pearl Harbor when the Japanese attacked on December 7, and had been irreparably damaged. How would Midway have gone without it? What if the Americans hadn't attacked at just the right time at the Battle of Midway, and the Japanese were victorious? Could they have taken Midway island?
Also, what would have happened if the Japanese had been victorious at the battle for Kokoda Trail in New Guinea? Could they have taken Port Moresby and launched an invasion of the sparsely settled northern coastline of Australia?
With a strong hold on northern Australia, control of Midway, and a weaker American Pacific Fleet, could the Japanese have afforded some kind of invasion of Hawaii in 1942? Is there any possibility that they could be successful in such an operation?