The 2015 Japan Series was the 66th edition of

Nippon Professional Baseball or NPB is the highest level of baseball in Japan. Locally, it is often called , meaning ''Professional Baseball''. Outside Japan, it is often just referred to as "Japanese baseball". The roots of the league can be traced back to the formation ...

's postseason championship series. The

Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks The are a Japanese professional baseball team based in Fukuoka, Fukuoka Prefecture. They compete in Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB) as a member of the Pacific League. The team was formerly known as the Nankai Hawks and was based in Osaka. ...

, champions of the

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 consis ...

, played the

Tokyo Yakult Swallows The Tokyo Yakult Swallows () are a Japanese professional baseball team competing in Nippon Professional Baseball's Central League. Based in Shinjuku, Tokyo, they are one of two professional baseball teams based in Tokyo, the other being the Yom ...

, champions of the

Central League The or is one of the two professional baseball leagues that constitute Nippon Professional Baseball in Japan. The winner of the league championship plays against the winner of the Pacific League in the annual Japan Series. It currently consist ...

. The Hawks were the defending Japan Series champions, having beaten the

Hanshin Tigers The Hanshin Tigers (Japanese: 阪神タイガース ''Hanshin Taigāsu'') are a Nippon Professional Baseball team playing in the Central League. The team is based in Nishinomiya, Hyōgo Prefecture, Japan, and is owned by Hanshin Electric Railwa ...

2014 File:2014 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Stocking up supplies and personal protective equipment (PPE) for the Western African Ebola virus epidemic; Citizens examining the ruins after the Chibok schoolgirls kidnapping; Bundles of wat ...

. The series was sponsored by the

Sumitomo Mitsui Banking Corporation is a Japanese multinational banking and financial services institution headquartered in Yurakucho, Chiyoda, Tokyo, Japan. The group operates in retail, corporate, and investment banking segment worldwide. It provides financial products and ser ...

(SMBC) and was officially known as the SMBC Nippon Series 2015. The Hawks defeated the Swallows in five games. Lee Dae-ho won the

Japan Series Most Valuable Player Award The is given to the player deemed to have the most impact on his team's performance in the Japan Series, which is the final round of the Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB) postseason. The award was first presented in 1950. The series follows a b ...

Kenji Akashi is a former Japanese Nippon Professional Baseball infielder, and current second squad hitting coach for the Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks of Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB). He was an active player for the Fukuoka Daiei/SoftBank Hawks until 2022 se ...

Shota Takeda is a Japanese professional baseball pitcher for the Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks in Japan's Nippon Professional Baseball. Professional career On October 27, 2011, Takeda was drafted by the Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks as their first overall pick in the 201 ...

, and

Rick van den Hurk Henricus "Rick" Nicolas van den Hurk (Eindhoven, May 22, 1985) is a Dutch professional baseball pitcher who is currently a free agent. He has also pitched in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Florida Marlins, Baltimore Orioles, and Pittsburgh ...

(all of the Hawks) won outstanding player awards, while

Tetsuto Yamada is a Japanese professional baseball infielder for the Tokyo Yakult Swallows of Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB). Yamada made his NPB debut in 2012 with Yakult. He has won the Central League MVP award, has received the Best Nine Award six times, ...

of the Swallows won the Fighting Spirit Award.

Climax Series

Summary

Series notes

This was the fourth time in Japan Series history that two rookie managers met, with

Mitsuru Manaka Mitsuru Manaka (真中満, born January 6, 1971, in Tochigi, Tochigi, Japan) is a former Nippon Professional Baseball outfielder. On October 8, 2014, he was named manager of the Tokyo Yakult Swallows, replacing Junji Ogawa was a Japanese N ...

managing Yakult and Kimiyasu Kudoh managing SoftBank. The other occurrences were in 1986 (

Masaaki Mori is a former Japanese football player. He played for Japan national team. Club career Mori was born in Nagasaki Prefecture on July 12, 1961. After graduating from Fukuoka University, he joined Japan Soccer League , or JSL, was the top flig ...

for the

Seibu Lions The are a professional baseball team in Japan's Pacific League based north of Tokyo in Tokorozawa, Saitama Prefecture. Before 1979, they were based in Fukuoka, Fukuoka Prefecture in Kyushu. The team is owned by a subsidiary of Seibu Railway, w ...

and

Junro Anan (born September 2, 1937 ) is a Japanese former professional baseball player. He played for the Hiroshima Carp from 1956 to 1967. From 1968 to 1970 he played for Kintetsu Buffaloes. He later served as a manager for Hiroshima.He played in the J ...

for the

Hiroshima Carp The is a professional baseball team based in Hiroshima, Japan. They compete in the Central League of Nippon Professional Baseball. The team is primarily owned by the Matsuda family, led by , who is a descendant of Mazda founder Jujiro Mats ...

), 2002 (

Tatsunori Hara is a Japanese former professional baseball player, and the current manager of the Yomiuri Giants baseball team in Nippon Professional Baseball. Career Hara played for the Giants during his professional baseball career from to . He won the Cen ...

for the

Yomiuri Giants The are a Japanese professional baseball team competing in Nippon Professional Baseball's Central League. Based in Bunkyo, Tokyo, they are one of two professional baseball teams based in Tokyo, the other being the Tokyo Yakult Swallows. They ...

and

Haruki Ihara was a Japanese Nippon Professional Baseball or NPB is the highest level of baseball in Japan. Locally, it is often called , meaning ''Professional Baseball''. Outside Japan, it is often just referred to as "Japanese baseball". The roots of ...

for Seibu) and 2004 (

Tsutomu Ito Tsutomu is a masculine Japanese given name. Possible writings ''Tsutomu can be written using different kanji characters. Here are some examples: *勉, "make effort" *務, "affairs" *務武, "affairs, warrior" *勤, "diligence" *努, "strive" The ...

for Seibu and

Hiromitsu Ochiai Hiromitsu Ochiai (落合博満 ''Ochiai Hiromitsu'', born December 9, 1953) is a Japanese professional baseball manager and former player. He is former manager of the Chunichi Dragons in Japan's Nippon Professional Baseball. He is considered to ...

for the

Chunichi Dragons The are a professional baseball team based in Nagoya, the chief city in the Chūbu region of Japan. The team plays in the Central League of Nippon Professional Baseball. They have won the Central League pennant nine times (most recently in 2011) ...

). In addition, Manaka is the first rookie manager of a Central League team to qualify for the Japan Series through the Climax Series playoff system.SoftBank's Kudoh is the 5th rookie manager to win the Pacific League Climax Series.

(2004) and

Hisanobu Watanabe Hisanobu Watanabe (渡辺久信 born August 2, 1965) nicknamed "Nabe-Q", is the former baseball player who played in the Japanese professional leagues from 1984 to 1998. He also was manager of the Saitama Seibu Lions The are a professional ...

(2008) of the

Norifumi Nishimura is a former Nippon Professional Baseball player and current manager. Nishimura spent the entirety of his 16-year playing career with the Chiba Lotte Marines. After retiring, he coached for the team until being named the successor to former Marine ...

of the

Chiba Lotte Marines The are a professional baseball team in Japan's Pacific League based in Chiba City, Chiba Prefecture, in the Kantō region, and owned by Lotte Holdings Co., Ltd. History The Marines franchise began in 1950 as the Mainichi Orions, an inaugural ...

(2010) and Hideki Kuriyama of the

Hokkaido Nippon Ham Fighters The are a Japanese professional baseball team based in Kitahiroshima, Hokkaidō. They compete in the Pacific League of Nippon Professional Baseball, playing the majority of their home games at ES CON Field Hokkaido. The Fighters also host a s ...

(2012) have all been successful rookie managers since the Pacific League introduced a post-season playoff series in 2004. The Central League introduced a playoff series in 2007, which is when the name "Climax Series" was adopted. Yakult won the Central League pennant and defeated the

in the Central League Climax Series, making this their first Japan Series appearance since 2001, when they defeated the

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 Stadiu ...

four games to one. The defending champion Hawks won the Pacific League pennant and defeated the

in the Pacific League Climax Series.

Game summaries

Game 1

Before the start of the game,

Seiichi Uchikawa is a Japanese professional baseball player for the Tokyo Yakult Swallows of Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB). He has played in Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB) for the Yokohama BayStars and Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks. Career Yokohama BayStars ...

, the Hawks'

cleanup hitter In baseball, a cleanup hitter is the fourth hitter in the batting order. The cleanup hitter is traditionally the team's most powerful hitter. His job is to "clean up the bases", i.e., drive in base runners. Theory The thinking behind the us ...

, was ruled out for the Japan Series due to broken ribs suffered during the

Climax Series The is the current annual playoff system implemented by Japan's Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB). It determines which team from the Central League (CL) and from the Pacific League (PL) will advance to compete for the championship in the Japan ...

victory.

, the starting pitcher for the Hawks, pitched a

complete game In baseball, a complete game (CG) is the act of a pitcher pitching an entire game without the benefit of a relief pitcher. A pitcher who meets this criterion will be credited with a complete game regardless of the number of innings played—pitche ...

victory against the Swallows.

Nobuhiro Matsuda is a Japanese professional baseball player for the Yomiuri Giants of the Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB). He previously played for the Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks. Professional career Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks On November 18, 2005, Matsuda was draf ...

, the Hawks'

captain Captain is a title, an appellative for the commanding officer of a military unit; the supreme leader of a navy ship, merchant ship, aeroplane, spacecraft, or other vessel; or the commander of a port, fire or police department, election precinct, e ...

, scored the game's first run with a

home run In baseball, a home run (abbreviated HR) is scored when the ball is hit in such a way that the batter is able to circle the bases and reach home plate safely in one play without any errors being committed by the defensive team. A home run i ...

in the fourth inning. Swallows' starting pitcher Masanori Ishikawa allowed three

earned run In baseball, an earned run is any run that was fully enabled by the offensive team's production in the face of competent play from the defensive team. Conversely, an unearned run is a run that would not have been scored without the aid of an err ...

Game 2

The Hawks

shut out Shut Out may refer to: * Shutout, a game in which one team prevents the opposing team from scoring * ''Shut Out'' (album), a 1977 album by Paul Jabara * "Shut Out" (song), a 1977 song by Paul Jabara and Donna Summer * "Shutout", a song by The Walk ...

the Swallows, with Hawks starting pitcher

pitching eight innings, allowing only three hits while

striking out ''Striking Out'' is an Irish television legal drama series, broadcast on RTÉ, that first aired on 1 January 2017. Produced by Bl!nder F!lms for RTÉ Television, ''Striking Out'' stars Amy Huberman as Dublin-based solicitor Tara Rafferty, who is ...

seven and issuing no walks. Closer

Dennis Sarfate Dennis Scott Sarfate (born April 9, 1981) is an American former professional baseball pitcher. He played for the Milwaukee Brewers, Houston Astros, and Baltimore Orioles of Major League Baseball (MLB) and the Hiroshima Toyo Carp, Saitama Seibu L ...

pitched the ninth inning for the Hawks. On offense, Lee Dae-ho and Akira Nakamura hit home runs for the Hawks.

Game 3

hit three home runs in three consecutive

plate appearance In baseball statistics, a player is credited with a plate appearance (denoted by PA) each time he completes a turn batting. Under Rule 5.04(c) of the Official Baseball Rules, a player completes a turn batting when he is put out or becomes a runner ...

s during Game 3 for the Swallows, becoming the first player to hit three home runs in a Japan Series game.

Shigeo Nagashima is a Japanese former professional baseball player and manager. Biography Nagashima played baseball at his local high school, and on the Rikkyo University baseball team from 1954–1957. He joined the Yomiuri Giants in 1958. His jersey number ( ...

hit home runs in three consecutive plate appearances spread across two games during the

1970 Japan Series The 1970 Japan Series was the 21st edition of Nippon Professional Baseball's postseason championship series. It matched the Central League champion Yomiuri Giants against the Pacific League champion Lotte Orions. The Giants defeated the Orions i ...

. Kazuhiro Hatakeyama also hit a home run for Yakult, while

and

Kenta Imamiya is a Japanese professional baseball shortstop for the Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks of Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB). He is the Pacific League record holder for Sacrifice bunt, sacrifice bunts. Early baseball career Imamiya attended Meiho High S ...

hit home runs for the Hawks.

Game 4

Dae-ho, who assumed the cleanup hitter role from Uchikawa, batted 3-for-4 and recorded four

runs batted in A run batted in (RBI; plural RBIs ) is a statistic in baseball and softball that credits a batter for making a play that allows a run to be scored (except in certain situations such as when an error is made on the play). For example, if the bat ...

during Game 4. He had an RBI single in the first inning, and hit a

double A double is a look-alike or doppelgänger; one person or being that resembles another. Double, The Double or Dubble may also refer to: Film and television * Double (filmmaking), someone who substitutes for the credited actor of a character * Th ...

that scored three runs in the third inning. Toru Hosokawa recorded an RBI double in the third inning and hit a home run in the sixth inning.

Wladimir Balentien Wladimir Ramon Balentien (; born July 2, 1984), nicknamed "Coco", is a Curaçaoan-Dutch professional baseball outfielder who is currently a free agent. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Seattle Mariners and Cincinnati Reds, and in ...

scored the Swallows' first run on a

fielder's choice In baseball, fielder's choice (abbreviated FC) refers to a variety of plays involving an offensive player reaching a base due to the defense's attempt to put out another baserunner, or the defensive team's indifference to his advance. Fielder's cho ...

in the fourth inning, and the Swallows scored three more runs in the sixth inning. Though he allowed four runs in five innings and left the game with the

bases loaded B backdoor breaking ball :A breaking pitch, usually a slider, curveball, or cut fastball that, due to its lateral motion, passes through a small part of the strike zone on the outside edge of the plate after seeming as if it would miss the p ...

and no outs in the sixth inning,

Tadashi Settsu is a Japanese baseball player. He has been with the Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks since 2009, and plays as pitcher, wearing number 50. In 2009, he was voted Most Valuable Rookie. The next year, he became the first pitcher ever to make 70 or more appea ...

was the winning pitcher.

Shohei Tateyama is a former Japanese professional baseball pitcher and currently pitting coach for the Tohoku Rakuten Golden Eagles of the Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB). He played for the Tokyo Yakult Swallows of the NPB. Background Tateyama began his pro ...

took the loss in the game for the Swallows, as he walked too many Hawks' batters. Sarfate ended a potential ninth inning rally by Yakult to record the save.

Game 5

Dae-ho hit a two-run home run in the fourth inning for the Hawks' first runs of the game. They scored two more runs in the fourth inning and one run in the ninth inning. Meanwhile, the Hawks pitchers, led by starting pitcher

Jason Standridge Jason Wayne Standridge (born November 9, 1978) is an American former professional baseball pitcher. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) and in Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB). Career Standridge made his major league debut with the Tampa B ...

, who pitched six innings, recorded another shutout of the Swallows to win the series in five games. Dae-ho, who batted 8-for-16 (.500) with two home runs and eight RBIs in the five game series was named the

Japan Series Most Valuable Player The is given to the player deemed to have the most impact on his team's performance in the Japan Series, which is the final round of the Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB) postseason. The award was first presented in 1950. The series follows a b ...

(MVP). He became the first Korean player to win the Japan Series MVP Award, and the first foreign player since

Troy Neel Troy Lee Neel (born September 14, 1965) is an American former professional baseball player. After a solid start in Major League Baseball (MLB), Neel moved to Japan and compiled strong numbers in six seasons playing in Nippon Professional Baseball ...

in the 1996 Japan Series.

, and

of the Hawks won outstanding player awards. The Fighting Spirit Award, given to the best player on the losing team of the series, went to

of the Swallows.

Masayoshi Son Masayoshi Son ( ja, 孫正義, translit=Son Masayoshi, ko, 손정의, translit=Son Jeong-ui) (born 11 August 1957) is a Korean-Japanese billionaire technology entrepreneur, investor, financier and philanthropist. A 3rd generation "Zainichi Kore ...

, the owner of the Hawks who also owns the

Sprint Corporation Sprint Corporation was an American telecommunications company. Before it Merger of Sprint Corporation and T-Mobile US, merged with T-Mobile US on April 1, 2020, it was the fourth-largest mobile network operator in the United States, serving 54.3 ...

, based in

Kansas City, Missouri Kansas City (abbreviated KC or KCMO) is the largest city in Missouri by population and area. As of the 2020 census, the city had a population of 508,090 in 2020, making it the 36th most-populous city in the United States. It is the central ...

, joked that he would like the Hawks to play against the

Kansas City Royals The Kansas City Royals are an American professional baseball team based in Kansas City, Missouri. The Royals compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Central division. The team was founded as an expans ...

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), ...

, if they won the

2015 World Series The 2015 World Series was the championship series of Major League Baseball's (MLB) 2015 season. The 111th edition of the World Series, it was a best-of-seven playoff between the National League (NL) champion New York Mets and the American Leag ...

, to determine a true champion of baseball. Interestingly, the Royals did win the World Series by the same count of four games to one over the

New York Mets The New York Mets are an American professional baseball team based in the New York City borough of Queens. The Mets compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member of the National League (NL) East division. They are one of two major league ...

. However, no series happened between SoftBank and the Royals.

Notes

References

{{Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks Japan Series 2015 Nippon Professional Baseball season Tokyo Yakult Swallows Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks Sumitomo Mitsui Financial Group

Climax Series

Summary

Series notes

Game summaries

Game 1

Game 2

Game 3

Game 4

Game 5

Notes

See also

References