The 2011 Japan Series (known as the ''

Konami , is a Japanese multinational video game and entertainment company headquartered in Chūō, Tokyo, it also produces and distributes trading cards, anime, tokusatsu, pachinko machines, slot machines, and arcade cabinets. Konami has casino ...

Nippon Series 2011'' for sponsorship reasons) was the 62nd 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 championship series. The

best-of-seven playoff There are a number of formats used in various levels of competition in sports and games to determine an overall champion. Some of the most common are the ''single elimination'', the ''best-of-'' series, the ''total points series'' more commonly ...

matched 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) ...

and

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. ...

, the respective 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 consi ...

's and 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 cons ...

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 ...

(postseason). The Series began on Saturday, November 12, 2011 and was a rematch of the

1999 Japan Series The 1999 Japan Series was the 50th edition of Nippon Professional Baseball's postseason championship series. It matched the champion teams of the Pacific and Central Leagues. The Fukuoka Daiei Hawks represented the Pacific League, while the Chun ...

, which the Hawks won, four games to one. The Hawks won the series in seven games, claiming their fifth Japan Series crown. Due to the 2011 Tohoku Earthquake delaying the season opener to April 12, the Japan Series was delayed to mid-November.

Climax Series

Summary

Road to the Series

Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks

After not having won a playoff series since 2003 when they won the Japan Series that year, the Hawks finally broke through against the

Saitama 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 ...

. Earning a first-round bye and a one-game advantage in the Pacific League Climax Series Final Stage, the Hawks completed the sweep of the Lions to earn their spot in the Japan Series. During the regular season, the Hawks were the best team in the league record-wise at 88-46-10. They scored the second-most runs in the league (550) and allowed the fewest (351), while also stealing the most bases and leading the league in team batting average (.267). Leading the team offensively was new acquisition

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 ...

, who led the entire league in batting average at .338. He was helped by two longtime Hawks mainstays at the top of the lineup, Munenori Kawasaki and Yuichi Honda, who stole 91 bases between them. Providing the power was Nobuhiro Matsuda, who finally had a breakout season with 25 home runs and 83 runs batted in, both team highs. In a pitching-heavy year for NPB, the Hawks had a three-headed monster that finished 3-4-5 in ERA.

Tsuyoshi Wada is a Japanese professional baseball pitcher for the Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks of the Nippon Professional Baseball League (NPB). He previously played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Chicago Cubs. Wada pitched in the 2004 Athens and 2008 Bei ...

(16-5, 1.51),

Toshiya Sugiuchi is a Japanese baseball player. He is a left-handed starting pitcher for the Yomiuri Giants. Sugiuchi was the Eiji Sawamura Award winner in . He has had some of the most international experience of any active Japanese baseball player, pitching ...

(8-7, 1.91) and D. J. Houlton (19-6, 2.19) anchored the Hawks rotation, and Houlton had the most wins by a foreigner since

Gene Bacque Gene Bacque (August 12, 1937 – September 14, 2019) was an American professional baseball pitcher who played in Nippon Professional Baseball for the Hanshin Tigers and Kintetsu Buffaloes. Biography Career Bacque graduated from the Universi ...

. The bullpen featured another breakout star in Masahiko Morifuku, who led the team in holds with 34 and had a 1.13 ERA to go along with it. Closing duties were split between regular closer Takahiro Mahara and another stellar foreigner, Brian Falkenborg, who each had 19 saves.

Chunichi Dragons

Chunichi also won the Central League with the best record at 75-59-10, defeating 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 ...

4-2 in the Central League Climax Series. The Dragons had been to the Japan Series the previous season but fell to 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 ...

in seven games. This was Chunichi's third Japan Series appearance in the last five years, winning in 2007 against the

Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters The are a Japanese professional Baseball in Japan, 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 Figh ...

. Returning largely the same team as the previous season, the Dragons showcased an excellent pitching staff that covered up for a league-worst offense that only batted .228 as a team. The offensive leaders were Tony Blanco, who hit 16 home runs during the season while batting .248.

Masahiro Araki is a retired Japanese professional baseball player. He played predominantly at second base for the Chunichi Dragons. He was noted for his speed and defense. Early career Araki was a first-round draft pick by Chunichi in 1995, out of high schoo ...

led the team in batting average at .263 and also stolen bases with 18. The pitching staff was led by a stellar foreigner of their own in Maximo Nelson, who may have had a losing record at 10-14 with a 2.52 ERA, but was the only pitcher on the staff who threw 200 innings. Veteran Kazuki Yoshimi offset this with an 18-3 record and a 1.63 ERA, and Taiwanese lefty Chen Wei-Yin added eight wins of his own. The bullpen was the real star, though, as it had four relievers who posted ERA's under 2.00.

Takuya Asao is a retired Nippon Professional Baseball pitcher. He spent his entire career at the Chunichi Dragons in Japan's Central League The or is one of the two professional baseball leagues that constitute Nippon Professional Baseball in Japan. ...

led the pack with a nigh-unhittable 0.41 ERA and a 7-2 record while also leading the league in holds with 45 and also getting 10 saves. Masato Kobayashi also was dominant with a 0.87 ERA and 18 holds in 58 innings, and

Yoshihiro Suzuki Yoshihiro Suzuki (鈴木義広, born January 5, 1983 in Mannō, Kagawa Prefecture) is a retired Japanese professional baseball pitcher. He played for the Chunichi Dragons in Japan's Nippon Professional Baseball or NPB is the highest leve ...

added 12 holds of his own while also posting a 1.08 ERA. The anchor in the bullpen was longtime closer

Hitoki Iwase Hitoki Iwase (岩瀬仁紀, born November 10, 1974) is a retired Japanese professional baseball player from Nishio, Aichi, Japan. He holds the NPB record for career saves and mound appearances. In 2005, he marked 46 saves with a 1.88 ERA, ...

, who saved 37 games during the season.

Game summaries

Game 1

Game 2

Game 3

Game 4

Game 5

Game 6

Game 7

References

{{Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks Japan Series Chunichi Dragons Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks

Japan Series The Japan Series ( , officially the Japan Championship Series, ), also the Nippon Series, :File:2014_JS_logo.png is the annual championship series in Nippon Professional Baseball, the top baseball league in Japan. It is a best-of-seven series ...