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Swinging for the Fences: The Passion and Tradition of Japanese Baseball
Nearly half of the people in Japan prefer baseball to any other sport, making it the most popular sport in the country. They love to play it, watch it, and talk about it. In fact, baseball in Japan generates enough buzz to rival the Major Leagues in the U.S. Let’s unravel the passion and tradition of the sport and how it got into the country.
Introduction to Baseball in Japan
Although baseball was relatively unknown to the Japanese people until 1872, it’s currently the most popular sport in the country.
Baseball in Japanese is called yakyū. The sport has competitive leagues at every level you can think of, including elementary and high school. However, the highest level of professional baseball in the country is Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB). In terms of popularity and quality of gameplay, NPB is second only to the Major Leagues in the U.S.
Baseball teams from Japan often excel at international competitions. In fact, the Japan National Baseball Team has won the most titles in the World Baseball Classic (WBC), the biggest international baseball competition in the world. They’re also the current champions of the competition, winning the title in 2023.
Many Japanese baseball players have had successful careers in domestic and foreign leagues. The best of them are considered big-time celebrities in Japan and other countries where baseball is popular. In this post, we’ll explore the history, league structure, best teams, popular players, and societal impact of baseball in Japan. Enjoy!
History of Baseball in Japan
Horace Wilson, an American professor of English at Kaisei Academy, Tokyo, was the first person to introduce baseball to Japan. Despite his best efforts, the students struggled to fully grasp the rules of the game due to the language barrier. Baron Hiroshi Hiraoka, a railway engineer who traveled to the U.S. in 1871, returned in 1877 with a Japanese-translated guidebook and baseball equipment.
Hiroshi Hiraoka worked with Horace Wilson to teach baseball to the Japanese people. Hiroshi also founded the Shimbashi Athletic Club, the first Japanese adult baseball team, in 1878. Today, he holds the reputation of being the father of Japanese baseball.
People continued to enjoy baseball at the amateur and school levels for decades. Professional baseball only started in Japan in the 1920s. On February 5, 1936, the first ever pro-league competition was founded. At the time, it was named the Japanese Baseball League. However, after it was reorganized into two league competitions on November 26, 1949, it became Nippon Professional Baseball.
Structure of Japanese Baseball Leagues
Nippon Professional Baseball is the highest level of professional Japanese baseball. It’s made up of two separate leagues of equal merit: the Central League (CL) and the Pacific League (PL). Both the CL and PL consist of six teams each. The leagues operate independently of each other but remain within the umbrella of the NPB. A good example of their independence is the “designated hitter” rule, which is applied in the PL but not in the CL.
Teams in both major leagues compete for multiple titles during the regular season and postseason. The following is a brief rundown of the competitions under the NPB:
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Intraleague play (Regular Season pennant): The highest number of games played during the regular season are between teams in the same major league. Each team plays the other five teams in their league 25 times. This brings the total to 125 intraleague games (62-63 home and away). The teams with the most wins at the end become the Central League or Pacific League pennant winners, depending on where they play. The top 3 teams from the two leagues qualify for the league playoffs (Climax Series), with their relative positions determining how they play.
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Interleague play (Nippon Life Interleague Play): During the regular season, every PL and CL team plays against the six teams from the opposite league 3 times each. This makes a total of 18 games per team. The sole winner of the Nippon Life Interleague Play competition is whichever team has the best win percentage, irrespective of their leagues. Pacific League teams currently dominate this competition.
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Climax Series: This operates on a two-stage system and marks the start of the postseason. The First Stage is placed between the second and third-ranked teams from each league in a best-of-three series. The winners qualify for the Second Stage, where they play the pennant winners of their respective leagues in a best-of-six series. The two league champions of the Climax Series qualify for the Japan Series.
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Japan Championship Series (Nippon Serie): This is the most prestigious NPB competition. The winners from the PL and CL versions of the Climax Series face off in a best-of-seven series to determine the ultimate champion of the Japan Series.
The teams in the two major leagues (Cl and PL) operate on a farm system, which means that each team is affiliated with at least one team in the minor leagues. This helps them to develop players. There are two minor leagues in Japan: the Eastern League (EL) and the Western League (WL). The Central League owns and manages the EL, which consists of 8 teams. The Pacific League owns and manages the WL, which consists of 6 teams.
Comparing Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB) and Major League Baseball (MLB)
NPB follows the same rules as MLB in the U.S. except for slight variations in the ball, field, and match rules. While NPB teams play 143 regular-season games, MLB teams play 162 games. The Japan Series is the MLB equivalent of the World Series, and both competitions follow the best-of-7 format. However, the Japan Series may extend past 7 games because Japan baseball rules allow for a tie if there is no winner after the 12th inning, unlike U.S. rules. Also, while MLB teams are named after the geographical location of their home stadiums, NPB teams are typically named after the corporations that own them.
Notable Japanese Baseball Teams
We can’t paint you a full picture of baseball in Japan without discussing the most famous teams to ever exist. The following teams have had the most impact on the sport’s popularity:
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Yomiuri Giants: Tokyo’s Yomiuri Giants are often referred to as the New York Yankees of Japanese baseball, and for good reasons. They are undisputedly the most popular baseball team playing in Japan. With 22 Japan Series titles, the Giants are also Japan’s most successful baseball team.
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Hanshin Tigers: Owned by an electric company, the Hanshin Tigers are among the older teams in the Central League. They have an enormous fanbase, despite the fact that they’ve only won 2 Japan Series championships. The team gained global fame by winning the 2023 iteration of the competition against all odds.
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Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks: They are one of the most consistent teams in the Pacific League, and they have 11 Japan Series titles to show for it.
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Saitama Seibu Lions: With 13 titles, Saitama Seibu Lions are the second-most successful baseball team in Japan. They are a Pacific League team.
The Japanese Baseball Season
Nippon Professional Baseball consists of a 7- to 8-month-long season that kicks off with Spring Training, a series of practice and exhibition games from February to March. The official regular season begins in late March and ends in October. During the regular season, each NPB team plays 143 games in total (intraleague and interleague). There are games every day of the week, except Monday.
The post-season starts in late October with the Climax Series. Next comes the Japan Championship Series, which marks the end of the official Japanese baseball season.
Stars of Japanese Baseball
We’ve curated a list of legendary players and current stars from Japan who have contributed immensely to both domestic and international baseball. Check them out below:
Yu Darvish: Regarded as one of the NPB’s greatest pitchers of all time, during his time with the Nippon Ham Fighters, Yu Darvish has played for four different MLB teams. He’s currently a pitcher for the San Diego Padres. He broke the MLB record for the most strikeouts by a Japanese-born pitcher with his 1,919th in 2023.
Shohei Ohtani: After lighting up the NPB as a hitter for the Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters, he arrived at the MLB in 2018 with plenty of hype. During his first MLB season, he won the American League Rookie of the Year Award. He was voted AL MVP twice while playing for the Los Angeles Angels. In 2024, he signed a 10-year contract worth $700 million with the Los Angeles Dodgers.
Ichiro Suzuki: The first position player to move from NPB to MLB, Suzuki is a baseball icon in Japan. He found instant success with the Mariners in 2001, becoming the second MLB player in history to win the awards for AL Rookie of the Year and the AL MVP in the same season. For 10 seasons straight, he earned 10 All-Star selections and 10 Gold Glove Awards. Many consider Ichiro Suzuk to be the best Japanese baseball player of all time.
Baseball Stadiums in Japan
Japan is home to several iconic baseball stadiums. If you’re in the country, the following stadiums are some of the best places to see a baseball game:
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Hanshin Tigers’s Koshien Stadium: Located in Nishinomiya, Hyōgo Prefecture, this stadium has the largest seating capacity in Japan (47,508). Its all-dirt infield is the last one you’ll find in the world. The stadium also hosts the Summer Koshien national tournament for high school baseball teams every August.
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Hiroshima Toyo Carp’s Mazda Zoom-Zoom Stadium Hiroshima: This 33,000-seater offers one of the best fan atmospheres and scenic views in the country.
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Tohoku Rakuten Golden Eagles’s Rakuten Seimei Park Miyagi: The stadium is famous for modern facilities and cashless payment options.
Fan Culture in Japanese Baseball
In comparison to other countries, Japan’s baseball games have a much livelier and happier atmosphere created by the fans. Spectators often sing special songs about their favorite players together in harmony. The collective cheering usually involves the use of drums and trumpets. Like fans in other countries, Japanese fans love to join fan clubs and participate in baseball-themed events. TV viewership of both pro-level and high school baseball games is quite high, and a lot of fans engage in Japanese baseball betting.
Impact of Japanese Players in Major League Baseball
Of the 71 Japanese players who have played in the MLB, more than 43 were pitchers. This is a sign that Japan has a reputation for producing great pitchers. Stars like Ichiro Suzuki and Shohei Ohtani have given the world a taste of the potential of the NPB, helping to propel the league to rank as the second-best in the world. People in North America also watch NPB games more.
Baseball's Role in Japanese Society
Yakyu or baseball, is the national pastime in Japan. Since its introduction in 1872, it has been closely linked with the country’s education sector. People of all ages and social classes gather at stadiums to cheer on their favorite teams nearly every day of the week. The baseball industry generates millions per year, and its players are some of the highest-paid sportspeople in the country.
Conclusion:
We can only expect baseball in Japan to flourish in the coming years. Players will earn more and the leagues will continue to produce more superstars in the MLB.
Share your passion for Japanese culture by shopping at Bokksu Boutique. We have premium and exclusive gift items that your loved ones can enjoy while watching a baseball game.
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