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Pacific League
The or is one of the two professional baseball leagues constituting Nippon Professional Baseball in Japan. The winner of the league championship competes against the winner in the Central League for the annual Japan Series. It currently consists of six teams from around Japan. History The circuit was founded as the Taiheiyo Baseball Union (太平洋野球連盟, ''Taiheiyo Yakyu Renmei'') in 1949 (the name changing to its current form in 1980). Daiei Stars owner Masaichi Nagata was the first president of the Pacific League. The league began with seven teams: four holdovers from the previous iteration, the Japanese Baseball League — the Hankyu Braves, the Nankai Hawks, the Daiei Stars, and the Tokyu Flyers — and three new teams — the Kintetsu Pearls, the Mainichi Orions, and the Nishitetsu Clippers. In 1954, an eighth Pacific League team was founded, the Takahashi Unions, to increase the number of teams to eight. Although the team was stocked with players from the othe ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Baseball
Baseball is a bat-and-ball sport played between two teams of nine players each, taking turns batting and fielding. The game occurs over the course of several plays, with each play generally beginning when a player on the fielding team, called the pitcher, throws a ball that a player on the batting team, called the batter, tries to hit with a bat. The objective of the offensive team (batting team) is to hit the ball into the field of play, away from the other team's players, allowing its players to run the bases, having them advance counter-clockwise around four bases to score what are called " runs". The objective of the defensive team (referred to as the fielding team) is to prevent batters from becoming runners, and to prevent runners' advance around the bases. A run is scored when a runner legally advances around the bases in order and touches home plate (the place where the player started as a batter). The principal objective of the batting team is to have a ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Daiei Unions
The were a Japanese professional baseball team that was founded in 1946, and played in various incarnations until 1957, when it merged with another team. Overall, the franchise only had three winning seasons, never rising higher than third place. The team was in the second division, or B-class, for seven seasons, including its last four years of existence. The Stars played in Korakuen Stadium in Bunkyo, Tokyo. Franchise history Japanese Baseball League The franchise was founded in 1946 as Gold Star, a new post-war team in the Japanese Baseball League. They were owned by textile manufacturer and Lucky Gold Star Telephones owner Komajiro Tamura, who also owned the Pacific Baseball Club"Goldstar," Baseball-Reference.com. Accessed March 8, 2015. (formerly known as the Asahi Baseball Club). Gold Star consisted mostly of form ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Sendai
is the capital Cities of Japan, city of Miyagi Prefecture, the largest city in the Tōhoku region. , the city had a population of 1,091,407 in 525,828 households, and is one of Japan's 20 Cities designated by government ordinance of Japan, designated cities. The city was founded in 1600 by the ''daimyō'' Date Masamune. It is nicknamed the ; there are Japanese zelkova trees lining many of the main thoroughfares such as and . In the summer, the Sendai Tanabata Festival, the largest Tanabata festival in Japan, is held. In winter, the trees are decorated with thousands of lights for the , lasting through most of December. On 11 March 2011, coastal areas of the city suffered catastrophic damage from a 2011 Tōhoku earthquake and tsunami, magnitude 9.0 offshore earthquake,UK Foreign Office 9.0 assessment [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Rakuten
() is a Japanese technology conglomerate based in Tokyo, founded by Hiroshi Mikitani in 1997. Centered around Rakuten Ichiba, its businesses include financial services utilizing financial technology, as well as digital content and communications services such as the messaging app Viber, e-book distributor Kobo, and Japan's fourth mobile carrier Rakuten Mobile. Rakuten has more than 28,000 employees worldwide, operating in 29 countries and regions, and its revenues totaled US $7.2 billion with operating profits of about US$347.9 million as of 2016. Rakuten was the official sponsor of the Spanish football club FC Barcelona from 2017 until 2021,"Gross Merchandise Sales & Number of Employees" Rakuten and the |
2004 Nippon Professional Baseball Realignment
The 2004 Nippon Professional Baseball realignment was a series of events that occurred during the 2004 Nippon Professional Baseball season that changed the landscape of Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB). In June of that season, the Osaka Kintetsu Buffaloes and the Orix BlueWave announced that, due to financial difficulties, the two teams planned to merge into one for the start of the 2005 Nippon Professional Baseball season, 2005 season. Both teams were in the Pacific League (PL), and a merger between the two would result in a team imbalance with the PL's opposing league, the Central League (CL). Soon, it was announced that a second merger was being explored between two of the remaining four PL teams. With the possibility of the PL losing a second team, discussion about possibly restructuring NPB's two-league system into one ten-team league began. PL and CL executives continued to discuss the merits of both systems until it was finally decided that the two-league system would remain ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Osaka Kintetsu Buffaloes
The were a Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB) team based in Osaka, Japan, which was in the Pacific League. In 2005 the team was merged with the Orix BlueWave to become the team now known as the Orix Buffaloes. The team played in Fujiidera Stadium, and later in Osaka Dome. Although the team won four Pacific League championships, they lost all four Japan Series in which they played. The team's batting lineup was known as ''Itemae Dasen'' ( いてまえ打線). Logo design A stylized buffalo's head with angry-looking red eyes (designed by Okamoto Taro), or "Buffaloes" in red script, outlined with white. Another logo featured the "Buffaloes" in red script, while also featuring Buffie, the Buffaloes mascot. Franchise history The team was founded in 1949 and began play in 1950 in the newly organized NPB. Owned by Kinki Nippon Railway Co. (later known as Kintetsu Railway), the franchise was known as the Kintetsu Pearls from 1950-1958, Kintetsu Buffalo from 1959-1961, the Kintet ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Orix BlueWave
, styled as ORIX, is a Japanese diversified financial services group headquartered in Minato, Tokyo, and Osaka, Japan. ORIX offers leasing, lending, rentals, life insurance, real estate financing and development, venture capital, investment and retail banking, commodities funds and securities brokering. In addition to expanding its offerings, ORIX has also expanded globally, offering financial services in North America, Asia, the Middle East and Northern Africa. Divisions include Japan-based ORIX Auto Leasing Corporation, which operates in other countries through subsidiaries such as ORIX Auto Leasing (Thailand) Co., Ltd. It is also known for being the majority owner of the ORIX Buffaloes baseball team in Nippon Professional Baseball. History ORIX was established 17 April 1964 as ''Orient Leasing Co., Ltd.'' The company's name was changed to ORIX Corporation in 1989. ORIX was originally a subsidiary of the trading house Nichimen (now Sojitz). Yoshihiko Miyauchi transferred to ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
2004 Nippon Professional Baseball Season
The Nippon Professional Baseball season ended with the Seibu Lions defeating the Chunichi Dragons in the 2004 Japan Series. This season also saw the first and only players strike in Japanese professional baseball history. Players went on strike for two days in September because of the potential mergers and realignment. Format Central League * Season Format ** Regular Season * Regular Season 1st place is the champion Pacific League * Season Format ** Regular Season ** Playoff 1st Stage: Regular Season 2nd place vs. Regular Season 3rd place – Best of 3 ** Playoff 2nd Stage: Regular Season 1st place vs. Playoff 1st Stage winner – Best of 5 * Playoff 2nd Stage winner is the champion Japan Series * Central League champion vs. Pacific League champion – Best of 7 Standings ''Note:Two games for each team are cancelled due to players' strike'' Central League Regular season Pacific League Regular season Playoff 1st Stage Seibu Lions (2) vs. Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters ( ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Interleague Play (NPB)
, officially titled Nippon Life Interleague Play for event sponsor Nippon Life, is an event consisting of 108 regular-season baseball games played between Central League (CL) and Pacific League (PL) teams in Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB). Prior to 2005, matchups between CL and PL teams occurred only during spring training, the All-Star Series, a short-lived exhibition tournament called the Suntory Cup, and the Japan Series. Central League teams were reluctant to implement regular-season interleague play as it would reduce the money generated from games played against the Yomiuri Giants, the hugely popular CL team that generates the most money in Japanese baseball. However, during the 2004 NPB realignment, the merger of two PL teams that were struggling financially, the rumor of a second PL team merger, and talks of contracting and restructuring the two-league system into one ten-team league prompted the suggestion of interleague play as a possible solution. Team repre ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Major League Baseball
Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball organization and the oldest major professional sports league in the world. MLB is composed of 30 total teams, divided equally between the National League (NL) and the American League (AL), with 29 in the United States and 1 in Canada. The NL and AL were formed in 1876 and 1901, respectively. Beginning in 1903, the two leagues signed the National Agreement and cooperated but remained legally separate entities until 2000, when they merged into a single organization led by the Commissioner of Baseball. MLB is headquartered in Midtown Manhattan. It is also included as one of the major professional sports leagues in the United States and Canada. Baseball's first all-professional team, the Cincinnati Red Stockings, was founded in 1869. Before that, some teams had secretly paid certain players. The first few decades of professional baseball were characterized by rivalries between leagues and by players who often jumped from one te ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
American League
The American League of Professional Baseball Clubs, known simply as the American League (AL), is one of two leagues that make up Major League Baseball (MLB) in the United States and Canada. It developed from the Western League, a minor league based in the Great Lakes states, which eventually aspired to major league status. It is sometimes called the Junior Circuit because it claimed Major League status for the 1901 season, 25 years after the formation of the National League (the "Senior Circuit"). At the end of every season, the American League champion plays in the World Series against the National League champion; two seasons did not end in playing a World Series (1904, when the National League champion New York Giants refused to play their AL counterpart, and 1994, when a players' strike prevented the Series). Through 2021, American League teams have won 66 of the 117 World Series played since 1903, with 27 of those coming from the New York Yankees alone. The New York ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
Designated Hitter
The designated hitter (DH) is a baseball player who bats in place of another position player, most commonly the pitcher. The position is authorized by Major League Baseball Rule 5.11. It was adopted by the American League in 1973 and later by the National League in 2022, making it universal in MLB. Within that time frame, nearly all amateur, collegiate, and professional leagues worldwide have adopted the designated hitter or some variant, with the notable exception of Nippon Professional Baseball's Central League. Major League Baseball rule In Major League Baseball, the designated hitter is a player who does not play a position in the field, but instead replaces the pitcher in the batting order. The DH may only be used for the pitcher (and not any other position player), as stated in Rule 5.11. Use of the DH is optional, but must be determined before the start of the game. Prior to 2022, if a team did not begin a game with a DH, the pitcher (or a pinch hitter) had to bat for t ... [...More Info...] [...Related Items...] OR: [Wikipedia] [Google] [Baidu] |
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