Saitama Seibu Lions

Saitama Seibu Lions
Established 1950
Team logo Cap Insignia
League affiliations
Nippon Professional Baseball (1950–present) Pacific League (1950–present)
Current uniform
Colors	Blue, White, Red
Name
Nishitetsu Clippers (1950) Nishitetsu Lions (1951–1972) Taiheiyo Club Lions (1973–1976) Crown Lighter Lions (1977–1978) Seibu Lions (1979–2007) Saitama Seibu Lions (2008–present)
Other nicknames
Shishi (獅子?, lion)
Ballpark
Heiwadai Stadium (1950–1978) Seibu Dome (1979–present)
League titles
Japan Series titles (13)	1956, 1957, 1958, 1982, 1983, 1986, 1987, 1988, 1990, 1991, 1992, 2004, 2008
PL Pennants (21)	1954, 1956, 1957, 1958, 1963, 1982, 1983, 1985, 1986, 1987, 1988, 1990, 1991, 1992, 1993, 1994, 1997, 1998, 2002, 2004, 2008
Owner(s): Seibu Railway
Manager: Haruki Ihara
General Manager:
2011 Saitama Seibu Lions season

The Saitama Seibu Lions (埼玉西武ライオンズ, Saitama Seibu Raionzu) are a professional baseball team in Japan's Pacific League based north of Tokyo in Tokorozawa, Saitama. Before 1979, they were based in Fukuoka in Kyushu. The team is owned by a subsidiary of Prince Hotels, which in turn is owned by the Seibu Group. The team experienced a recent period of financial difficulty, but the situation brightened when the team received a record ¥6 billion (about $51.11 million) posting fee from the Boston Red Sox for the right to negotiate a contract with Daisuke Matsuzaka. Between 1978 and 2008, the team logo and mascot were based on the adult version of Kimba the White Lion, a classic Japanese anime series by Osamu Tezuka.^[1][2] In 2004, former Seibu Lions player Kazuo Matsui became the first Japanese infielder to play in Major League Baseball.^[3]

Franchise history

Nishitetsu Clippers (1950)

In 1950, the team became a founding member of the Pacific League. It was then owned by Nishi-Nippon Railroad, which was based in Fukuoka. The team finished sixth that year, and at the end of the season was merged with the Nishi-Nippon Pirates to form the Nishitetsu Lions.

Nishitetsu Lions (1951–1972)

The Nishitetsu Lions were one of a dominant team in the Pacific League during the 1950s, winning four pennants three straight Japan Series against the Yomiuri Giants behind famed manager Osamu Mihara. The team struggled through the following decade and did witness much success on the field. In November 1972 was sold to the Fukuoka Baseball Corporation, also a part of Nishi-Nippon Railroad. Following the sale, the team was renamed the Taiheiyo Club Lions. The Nishitetsu Lions called Heiwadai Stadium home for their entire existence.

Taiheiyo Club Lions (1973–1976)

Nishi-Nippon Railroad, founded by Nagayoshi Nakamura, owner of Lotte and the Orions, sold the team's sponsorship rights to Taiheiyo Club, a golf course and resort developer. Through the 1970s, the Lions finished no higher than third.

Crown Lighter Lions (1977–1978)

At the end of the 1976 season, the Fukuoka Baseball Corporation announced that the team's new sponsor was Crown Gas Lighter. With this, the team's name for the upcoming season was changed to the Crown Lighter Lions. At the end of the 1978 season, the team was sold to Kokudo Keikaku (later Kokudo), and then merged into Prince Hotels.

Seibu Lions (1979–2007)

Following the sale of the Crown Lighter Lions and their merging into Price Hotels, the team was renamed the Seibu Lions and relocated to a new ballpark in Tokorozawa, Saitama.

The Golden Age (1982–1994)

The Lions finished in last place following the 1979 season. However, the following seasons would mark the beginning of a period of sustained success for the team under new manager Tatsuro Hirooka and with star players such as Osamu Higashio and Koichi Tabuchi. Tatsuro Hirooka told the players that meat and other animal foods increase athletes' susceptibility to injury, and decrease their ability to perform. He required all players to take up a strictly vegetarian diet. The club won two-year straight Japan Series in 1982 and 1983, and won the championship again in 1985.

Following the 1986 season, the club replaced Hirooka with Masaaki Mori, who was able to sustain the team's prolonged success. Mori won 8 league championship, between 1986 and 1988 and 1990–1994, and six Japan Series championships in his nine-year managing career, winning the Japan Series in 1986, 1987, 1988, 1990, 1991, and 1992.

The team gained the moniker "Invincible Seibu" during the 1980s and 1990s due to their sustained domination of the league. The Lions had a powerful lineup in this period, loaded with sluggers such as Kouji Akiyama, Kazuhiro Kiyohara and Orestes Destrade. Their defense also benefited from the services of skilled players such as Hiromichi Ishige, Hatsuhiko Tsuji and catcher Tsutomu Ito. Among the pitchers employed by the Lions in this period was "The Oriental Express" Taigen Kaku, Kimiyasu Kudoh, Hisanobu Watanabe, and relievers Yoshitaka Katori and Testuya Shiozaki.

Prominent Golden Age Players

Saitama Seibu Lions (2008–)

In order to reinforce the affiliation between the team and their home region, the Lions added the prefecture name "Saitama" to their team name in 2008. They were Pacific League Champions that year and went on to win the Japan Series. The team logo and uniforms were further modified for the 2009 season, with the team trading in their traditional light-blue colour scheme for a dark blue design similar to that employed during the Nishitetsu Lions' era in the 1950s and 1960s.

Season-by-season records

Current roster (2013-2014)

Pitchers

• 11 Takayuki Kishi (岸 孝之)
• 12 Toshihiro Iwao (岩尾 利弘)
• 13 Fumiya Nishiguchi (西口 文也)
• 14 Tatsushi Masuda (増田 達至)
• 15 Tatsuya Ohishi (大石 達也)
• 16 Yusei Kikuchi (菊池 雄星)
• 19 Takuya Toyoda (豊田 拓矢)
• 20 Ryoma Nogami (野上 亮磨)
• 21 Ken Togame (十亀 剣)
• 22 Atsushi Okamoto (岡本 篤志)
• 23 Masamitsu Hirano (平野 将光)
• 26 Michael Bowden (マイケル·ボウデン)
• 28 Ryohei Fujiwara (藤原 良平)
• 29 Hirotaka Koishi (小石 博孝)
• 30 Yosuke Okamoto (岡本 洋介)
• 34 Yusuke Kawasaki (川崎 雄介)
• 35 Kazuhisa Makita (牧田 和久)
• 38 Hironori Matsushita (松永 浩典)
• 39 Daiki Nakagoh (中郷 大樹)
• 40 Takayuki Yamaguchi (山口 嵩之)
• 42 Greg Reynolds (グレッグ·レイノルズ)
• 43 Tomomi Takahashi (高橋 朋己)
• 46 Yuta Nakazki (中崎 雄太)
• 48 Shota Takekuma (武隈 祥太)
• 50 Fukukura Kentaro (福倉 健太郎)
• 54 Randy Williams (ランディ·ウィリアムズ)
• 57 Kenta Matsushita (松下 健太)
• 63 Isamu Sato (佐藤 勇)
• 66 Yasuhiro Tanaka (田中 靖洋)
• 68 Kazuki Miyata (宮田 和希)
• 69 Kojiro Uehara (上原 厚治郎)
• 71 Makoto Aiuchi (相内 誠)

Catchers

• 10 Tomoya Mori (森 友哉)
• 25 Takanori Hoshi (星 孝典)
• 27 Ginjiro Sumitani (炭谷 銀仁朗)
• 37 Masatoshi Okada (岡田 雅利)
• 49 Tatsuyuki Uemoto (上本 達之)
• 52 Shingo Takeyama (武山 真吾)
• 64 Shota Nakata (中田 祥多)
• 78 Komei Fujisawa (藤澤 亨明)

Infielders

•  2 Yuji Kaneko (金子 侑司)
•  4 Yuji Onizaki (鬼崎 裕司)
•  5 Koji Yamasaki (山崎 浩司)
•  6 Cody Ransom (コーディ·ランサム)
•  7 Ryota Wakiya (脇谷 亮太)
•  8 Naoto Watanabe (渡辺 直人)
• 32 Hideto Asamura (浅村 栄斗)
• 33 Hotaka Yamakawa (山川 穂高)
• 45 Ryo Hayashizaki (林崎 遼)
• 56 Kazuki Kaneko (金子 一輝)
• 59 Kyohei Nagae (永江 恭平)
• 60 Takeya Nakamura (中村 剛也)
• 67 Naomichi Umeda (梅田 尚通)

Outfielders

•  0 Hichori Morimoto (森本 稀哲)
•  1 Takumi Kuriyama (栗山 巧)
•  9 Yutaro Ohsaki (大崎 雄太朗)
• 31 Ryo Sakata (坂田 遼)
• 36 Tomohiro Yoneno (米野 智人)
• 51 Fumikazu Kimura (木村 文紀)
• 53 Mitsugu Ishikawa (石川 貢)
• 55 Shogo Akiyama (秋山 翔悟)
• 58 Masato Kumashiro (熊代 聖人)
• 61 Shotaro Tashiro (田代 将太郎)
• 62 Hitoto Komazuki (駒月 仁人)
• 65 Shogo Saitoh (斉藤 彰吾)

Coaches/Other

Manager

• 73 Haruki Ihara (伊原 春樹)

Coaches

• 81 Hidetoshi Hakamada (袴田 英利) – Chief and Battery
• 91 Eiji Kiyokawa (清川 栄治) – Pitching
• 77 Takehiro Ishii (石井丈裕) – Pitching
• 82 Norio Tanabe (田辺 徳雄) – Hitting
• 85 Katsuhiko Miyaji (宮地 克彦) – Hitting
• 70 Yusuke Kawada (河田 雄祐) – Defending and Base-running(third base)
• 74 Hiroshi Narahara (奈良原 浩) – Defending and Base-running(first base)
• 92 Shinobu Sakamoto (坂本 忍)
• 95 Haruki Kurokawa (黒川 春樹)

• 86 Tetsuya Shiozaki (潮崎 哲也) – Farm Manager
• 75 Hiroyuki Takagi (高木 浩之) – Farm Hitting
• 84 Kosaku Akimoto (秋元 宏作) – Farm Battery
• 88 Tadashi Sugimoto (杉本 正) – Farm Pitting
• 83 Hisanori Yokota (横田 久則) – Farm pitting
• 87 Tetsushi Kuroda (黒田 哲史) – Farm Defending and Base-running
• 80 Shigenobu Shima (嶋 重宣) – Farm Defending and Base-running
• 98 Takafumi Sato (里 隆文) – Farm Training
• 96 Tatsuya Nakano (中野 達也) – Farm Training

Others

• 123 Daichi Mizuguchi (水口 大地) - Infielder
• 125 Abner Abreu (アブナー・アブレイユ) - Outfielder

Managers

• Kaname Miyazaki (宮崎 要) 1950
• Osamu Mihara (三原 脩) 1951–1959
• Tokuji Kawasaki (川崎 徳次) 1960–1961
• Futoshi Nakanishi (中西 太) 1962–1969
• Kazuhisa Inao (稲尾 和久) 1970–1974
• Shinichi Eto (江藤 愼一) 1975
• Leo Durocher (レオ・ドローチャー) 1976
• Masaichi Kito (鬼頭 政一) 1976–1977
• Rikuo Nemoto (根本 陸夫) 1978–1981
• Tatsuro Hirooka (広岡 達朗) 1982–1985
• Masaaki Mori (森 祇晶) 1986–1994
• Osamu Higashio (東尾 修) 1995–2001
• Haruki Ihara (伊原 春樹) 2002–2003,2014-
• Tsutomu Ito (伊東 勤) 2004–2007
• Hisanobu Watanabe (渡辺 久信) 2008–2013

Former players of note

• Hiroshi Ohshita (大下　弘) 1952–1959
• Phil Paine 1953
• Mateo Alou 1974-1976
• Terry Whitfield (テリー・ウィットフィールド) 1981–1983
• Koichi Tabuchi (田淵 幸一) 1979–1984
• Steve Ontiveros (スティーブ・オンティベロス) 1980–1985
• George Vukovich (ジョージ・ブコビッチ) 1986–1987
• Osamu Higashio (東尾 修) 1969–1988
• Ty Van Burkleo (タイラー・バン・バークレオ) 1987–1990
• Yoshiie Tachibana (立花 義家) 1977–1991
• Kouji Akiyama (秋山 幸二) 1981–1993
• Hiromichi Ishige (石毛 宏典) 1981–1994
• Orestes Destrade (オレステス・デストラーデ) 1989–1995
• Kazuhiro Kiyohara (清原 和博)1986–1996
• Darrin Jackson (ダリン・ジャクソン)1995–1996
• Taigen Kaku (郭 泰源) 1985–1997
• James L. Byers (ジェームズ・バイアーズ)1998–2000
• Tony Fernández (トニー・フェルナンデス) 2000
• Corey Paul (コーリー・ポール) 1999–2001
• Kazuo Matsui (松井 稼頭央) 1994–2003
• Tetsuya Shiozaki (潮崎 哲也) 1990–2004
• Shinji Mori (森 慎二) 1997–2005
• Daisuke Matsuzaka (松坂 大輔) 1999–2006
• Chang Chih-Chia (張 誌家) 2002–2006
• Alex Cabrera (A・カブレラ) 2001–2007
• Hiroyuki Nakajima (中島 裕之) 2001–2012
• Kazuhisa Ishii (石井 一久) 2008-2013

Retired numbers

• 24 Kazuhisa Inao

MLB players

Active:

• Daisuke Matsuzaka (2007–)
• Hiroyuki Nakajima (2013-)

Retired:

• Kazuo Matsui (2004–2010)
• Shinji Mori (2006–2007)
• Kazuhisa Ishii (2002–2006)

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Seibu Lions.

• (Japanese) Saitama Seibu Lions official web site
• High resolution photos and discussion of the Lions in English

Notes and references