Japan’s forgotten league has made very large strides of late. Pacific League teams have captured the last three Japan Series titles (Japan’s version of the World Series), and they look poised to take it again this year.

The one thing that has held them back over the years has not been a lack of good baseball teams or a dearth of talent. They suffered in the shadows for decades because they were in the other league–the one without the Yomiuri Giants.

That appears not to make much of a difference anymore. Sure Yomiuri is still the only team that you can watch play on non-cable TV, but the perennial strength of the ballclubs fielded in the Pacific League has nearly made up for any discrepancy in exposure. The Pacific League consistently produces good baseball, and this season is a case in point.

The two teams that are currently battling it out in the cellar are actually only 6.5 and 7.5 games behind the third playoff spot with more than a month and a half of baseball left to play. The same cannot be said for the two weakest teams in the Central League. One could possibly argue that the three best teams in the Central are responsible for the large gap between first and last, but I would bet on any of the top three teams in the Pacific over either of the top two teams in the Central every day of the week.

Aside from the fact that I think the Pacific League is better than the Central from top to bottom, their mascots are rougher and tougher. The Central has the Carp (from Hiroshima), the Swallows (from Tokyo), and the Baystars (from Yokohama). Yeah, I know, what the hell is a Baystar? Meanwhile, the Pacific boasts the Fighters, Marines, Hawks, Lions, Buffaloes, and Eagles. There isn’t a single mascot there who isn’t un-badass. OK, true, buffaloes aren’t the most fear-inducing beast on the planet; they’d probably get ripped apart by a lion, a tiger, or a dragon. However, buffaloes can be pretty dangerous when they’re pissed off. But maybe that’s a story for another time.

Anyway, this post will be a slightly more in-depth look at the six teams of the Pacific League than was offered in my first “Spotlight” on this subject. After reading this, you will hopefully have a clearer understanding of who each team is, and why they would be worth supporting.

Pacific League

All right, we’re going to do this in alphabetical order so as not to show any favoritism.

Chiba Lotte Marines

As implied by their name, this team’s home field is in Chiba not too far from downtown Tokyo (perhaps 30 minutes by train from Tokyo station via the Keiyo line).

The Marines have had a resurgence under import manager Bobby Valentine. Valentine is in the middle of his second stint in Japan, and he has been very vocal in his support of Japanese baseball and what he thinks should be done to improve the quality and longevity of the sport in this country. He has said a couple of things that were deemed “unsayable” by the front office, but he is usually proven correct in the end (after the poop has hit the fan).

Most importantly, however, is the success of the Chiba Lotte Marines. In only his second year back he piloted a crew of young unknowns to the Japan Series title (2005). The pitching and power suffered a little bit during the 2006 campaign, but they are again back in the hunt this season and look like a sure bet for one of the three playoff spots in the Pacific League.

Chiba fans are a very loyal and vocal bunch. They do a lot of bouncing up and down in the outfield bleachers, and their endless energy is often rewarded. I wonder how many drunks sprain their ankles during every home game out in those rather cramped bleachers in Chiba’s right field…

The Marines bullpen is quite strong, and they are able to boast the arms of guys like Yoshihisa Naruse, Hiroyuki Kobayashi, Shunsuke Watanabe (submarine pitcher whose release is only 2 or 3 inches off the ground), and relievers Yasuhiko Yabuta and Masahide Kobayashi.

The position players are no less impressive out in Chiba. Infielders Tsuyoshi (the player formerly known as Tsuyoshi Nishioka), Kazuya Fukuura, and Toshiaki Imae are all solid contributors. Catcher Tomoya Satozaki is also one of the team’s most productive hitters. Additionally, Benny Agbayani and Saburo Omura stabilize the top half of the batting order as outfielders.

The Chiba Lotte Marines are currently in second place in the Pacific League, so it should be interesting to see what happens over the next month or so.

Fukuoka Softbank Hawks

Sadaharu Oh, the owner of the world record for home runs in a career (868!) manages this team. He also steered the Japanese national team to the WBC championship where they outlasted Cuba for the gold in 2006. Mr. Oh is back for his first full season at the helm following an operation last year to remove almost his entire stomach.

The Hawks, as evidenced by their name, play down in Fukuoka (Kyushu region) and are a perennial powerhouse. They never seem to be short on solid pitchers. Kazumi Saito, Tsuyoshi Wada, and Toshiya Sugiuchi are three of the best starters in Japan right now, and Takahiro Mahara is leading the Pacific in saves.

Before I continue, I feel it is important to point out that the Softbank caps are way too big for most of the players’ noggins.

On to the offense! Softbank, the same company that bought Vodaphone and now employs Cameron Diaz on a nearly full-time basis, has several big bats. Nobuhiko Matsunaka is a very scary man to pitch to. His career batting average is well above .300, and he usually hits between 30 and 40 home runs per season (although his numbers are down a little bit this season). He’s also the highest paid man in Japanese baseball. Other big names in the lineup include 2007 acquisitions Hitoshi Tamura (from Yokohama) and Hiroki Kokubo (from Yomiuri). Munenori Kawasaki does a solid job both at the plate and at short for the Hawks.

Much like Chiba, Fukuoka has a deep bench filled with utility players that can fill in at any moment. They are almost always contenders at the end of the season, but they haven’t been able to make it to the big show recently. Keep an eye on the boys with the abnormally large caps to see if they can make it through this year.

Hokkaido Nippon Ham Fighters

The Fighters (not the Ham Fighters) are the defending Japan Series champions. Trey Hillman guided them through a convincing 2006 campaign, and even without two of their biggest stars (including last year’s Pacific League MVP, Ogasawara) they have put themselves into position to have a crack at it again in 2007.

Much like Valentine did the year before, Hillman took a group of mostly unknown players, inserted one ego-maniac (Shinjo) and one bonafide MVP (Ogasawara), and sprinkled the mixture with love and solid pitching. The chemistry of the team was by all acounts outstanding, and the winners of the Japan Series (over a very strong Chunichi Dragons team) were a crew of affable guys who learned to believe in themselves.

Starting pitcher Yu Darvish has become the posterboy of Japanese baseball (he’s landing lots of magazine covers these days), and he leads the league in innings pitched, strikeouts, and opposing team’s batting average. A very hearty TPR congrats goes out to Darvish and his upcoming shotgun wedding!Relievers Hisashi Ikeda and Micheal Nakamura help create a very scary 1-2-3 punch. Starting pitcher Ryan Glynn (second season) has also been pitching very well this year.

The offense is led by outfielders Hichori Morimoto and Atsunori Inaba (formerly of the Tokyo Swallows). Additional punch is provided by Fernando Seguignol (designated hitter / first base) and Kensuke Tanaka (second base).

The Fighters play in a hyper-modern dome up in Hokkaido. The arena can accomodate both baseball and soccer games. The soccer pitch spends most of the baseball season parked outside the dome, but when it’s needed they float it through a gap that opens in the stadium seats. It’s very impressive when seen on film.

Orix Buffaloes

This is one of the two newest teams in the league. This team is the result of a merger between the Orix Blue Wave (Ichiro Suzuki’s old team) and Kintetsu Buffaloes back in 2004 (their first season in the NPB was 2005).

The Buffaloes are playing quite well this year under first-year manager Terry Collins (formerly the manager of the Houston Astros and the Anaheim Angels). They have decent pitching and decent hitting, so they can’t be counted out of any games.

Their most reliable starters are Hidetaka Kawagoe, Tom Davey (formerly with Hiroshima), and youngster Yoshihisa Hirano. The majority of the Buffaloes saves are brought in by Katou Daisuke. Unfortunately, at this point the only two categories that the Buffaloes’ pitchers lead the league in are losses and home runs given up.

The most exciting guys to watch at the plate are veteran first baseman Hirotoshi Kitagawa, third baseman Greg LaRocca (formerly of Hiroshima and Tokyo), and outfielder / designated hitter Tuffy Rhodes. Rhodes is in second place in the Pacific in both home runs and rbi’s.

The Buffaloes won’t be vying for a playoff spot this year, but look for them to improve in the future as some of their young talent matures.

Seibu Lions

These guys won the Japan Series back in 2004 against the Dragons (yeah, the Dragons don’t win when they make it to the big dance–at least not since 1954), and they are the second winningest team in Japan (in terms of championships won). This team has easily been Japan’s best team since the 80’s. Since 1982 the Seibu Lions have advanced to the Japan Series 15 times, and they have taken the crown nine times! No other team in either league, not even the mighty Yomiuri Giants, comes close to that.

The Lions are managed by Tsutomu Ito. Despite the scandals, the everchanging name of their home stadium, and the inhuman effort it takes just to get out there for a game, he has done very good things to continue fan support and maintain the depth that has brought them so much glory in the past.

A gaping hole was left with the departure of Daisuke Matsuzaka (Boston Red Sox), but third year pitcher Hideaki Wakui, rookie Takayuki Kishi, and veteran Fumiya Nishiguchi have proven themselves more than up for the challenge. In fact, Wakui sports the best record in the Pacific League right now.

The punch in the Lions offense is coming from the same guys who usually deliver it: shortstoph Hiroyuki Nakajima, first base / designated hitter Alex Cabrera, left fielder Kazuhiro Wada, and G. G. Satou (who was formerly with the Phillies). Even though they are at the top of the league this season in terms of team batting average, they seem to be missing that little extra something that would keep them up in the playoff hunt.

The Lions play at the Goodwill Dome (the name could easily change again next year…it was the Seibu Dome a few years ago, then it became the Invoice Dome, and now Goodwill) out near Tokorozawa in Saitama prefecture. It isn’t particularly easy to get to the stadium, so I recommend buying a six-pack and watching them on cable.

Tohoku Rakuten Golden Eagles

The other new team in the NPB is the Eagles who make their home in Sendai. They also stepped on the field as a team for the first time back in 2005, and they were the team that filled the void left by the Orix-Kintetsu merger.

These guys had it rough when they first started out. They constructed a team out of the leftovers from the merger (players that the Orix Buffaloes thought were crap), and a few free agents here and there.

The Eagles finished their inaugural season 51.5 games behind the first place team, and then did better last year (under skipper Katsuya Nomura) by finishing only 33 games behind the league champions.

Nomura is still at the helm, and he is having a lot of success with a couple of rookie starters. Media darling Masahiro Tanaka is having a great rookie season and has already notched his 10th win. Satoshi Nagai is also proving himself to be a worthy investment. Hideki Asai (at 23, he’s already in his sixth professional season) has also been a pleasant surprise for this young team.

One of the stories of the year has been 39-year-old Takeshi Yamasaki. Several other teams gave up on him, but Nomura still saw plenty of spark left in his swing and gave him another shot. Yamasaki leads the Pacific in home runs and RBIs. He also sports a very respectable .620 slugging. Other big bats in the lineup include first baseman Jose Fernandez, second baseman Yousuke Takasu, infielder Rick Short, and outfielders Teppei Tsuchiya and Koichi Isobe.

The Eagles have a great set of fans, and the management seems to genuinely care about making sure that people have a good time when they come out for a game. They are still in a position where they can make a run at the playoffs, but even if they don’t, they have already managed to pass last year’s wins tally (a very humble 47), and we still have about a month of baseball left to play!

Conclusion

So that’s it, ladies and gentlemen. That was the Pacific League of the Nippon Professional Baseball League. The penant race is very tight in the Pacific this season, and it should be interesting to see who ends up as regular season champions. Keep in mind that the team who wins the penant doesn’t automatically advance to the Japan Series. The will have to wait to play the winner of the playoff between the second and third place teams before attempting to punch their tickets to the big dance.

Who will it be this season? Will the Fighters repeat? Will Lotte continue to improve and overwhelm everyone like they did two years ago? Is it Softbank’s turn to humiliate their Central League opponents? Your guess is as good as mine!

Please stay tuned for our next installment: NPB’s Central League.

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