Major League Baseball (MLB) has always been incredibly popular in Japan, but in recent years audiences have trended toward their own domestic product. This says less about the allure of the MLB and more about the rising standards of Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB), the standard of which would take many American baseball fans by surprise.
In this article we will explore in more depth the roots of baseball in Japan whilst also profiling some of the country’s biggest teams. Teams which American outfits should really consider playing and beating before they go around declaring themselves as World Series winners…
The Rise of Baseball in Japan
Prior to the end of the Second World War, Japan was a country that was always fiercely resistant to western influence. Culturally and technologically, Japan always made great efforts to eschew the vices of the West and remain true to its own national identity.
It’s somewhat shocking then that baseball is so popular in Japan and has been since well before the beginning of the 20th century. The sport can trace its roots in Japan back to 1872 when American, English teacher Horace Wilson introduced baseball to his pupils at the Kaisei Academy in Tokyo.
(One man with a passion for baseball helped make baseball the national sport of Japan back in the 1800s.)
It quickly became integrated into the education curriculum as a means of keeping Japan’s children healthy and soon became a key part of Japan’s national identity. Following the end of the Second World War, the domestic professional league began to really establish itself.
Since then, baseball in Japan has been going from strength to strength, with the league now a hotbed of talent and a great place for entertainment. Not only is the NPB attracting new viewers from around the globe, but it’s also featuring on more and more sports betting markets.
Japanese Baseball Structure
The NPB is made up of two leagues, the Central League and the Pacific League. The teams that make up each are as follows:
Central League
- Chuinchi Dragons
- Hanshin Tigers
- Hiroshima Toyo Carp
- Tokyo Yakult Swallows
- Yokohoma DeNA BayStars
- Yomiuri Giants
Pacific League
- Chiba Lotte Marines
- Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks
- Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters
- Orix Buffaloes
- Saitama Seibu Lions
- Tohoku Rakuten Golden Eagles
The Country’s Most Successful/Popular Teams
Whilst giving you a detailed breakdown of every team in the Central League and Pacific League would absolutely indulge our inner baseball geek, I can’t imagine it would be too popular with readers.
In lieu of that, below we’ve picked out three of perhaps the biggest teams in the country and profiled them in more depth. Starting with…
Hanshin Tigers
If we were to be strict and do this list purely by success then unfortunately the Hanshin Tigers wouldn’t feature at all. In terms of Japan Series (the equivalent of the World Series), the Tigers have only won 2 out of 7.
That puts them behind a lot of teams in terms of success, but they absolutely have to be included due to the impact that they have had on the sport in Japan. With the most vociferous and passionate fan base in the NPB, the Hanshin Tigers make every game a spectacle, including the ferocious ties against rivals the Yomiuri Giants.
The real reason we have included the Tigers in this list though is because of the so-called “Curse of the Colonel”, which is one of the best sporting curses of all-time and it dates back to 1985 when the Tigers had just won the Central League pennant.
To celebrate fans headed down to the local canal and had people who looked like the team’s most famous players jump into the water. Unfortunately no-one in the assembled crowd resembled first baseman and former Oklahoma Senator Randy Bass, so fans had to think outside of the box.
They did so by taking a statute of Colonel Sanders from a nearby KFC and threw him in the river. Despite winning the upcoming Japan Series, the Tigers were beset with bad luck from then on with many claiming it is the curse of the submerged Colonel.
(The Curse of the Colonel!)
Saitama Seibu Lions
Chicken related myths out of the way we move on to a real powerhouse of the sport. The Lions might not have won a Japan Series since 2008 but they are still the second most successful team in the NPB.
With 13 Championships and 23 Pacific League pennants to their name the Lions are a byword for success in Japan. Although if you’re thinking of getting into Japanese baseball this season maybe think of them as a team going through a transition period…
Yomiuri Giants
The undisputed giants of the NPB (no pun intended…) Based in Bunkyo, Tokyo the Giants have won a record 22 Japan Series and have 39 Central League pennants to their name. This success and their public image has led to them earning the nickname of “Japan’s New York Yankees”.
What certainly helps the Giants is their enormous financial backing that helps them attract some of the very best domestic talent as well as players from abroad.
Sadaharu Oh who leads the records with 868 homeruns is a cult hero amongst Giants fans as is the recently retired Shinnosuke Abe who hit a more than impressive 406 of his own in 18 years with the team.
Currently the Giants sit atop of the Central League and look good value for another pennant, so if you’re looking for someone to support you could do little wrong with the Yomiuri Giants.
