1997 in Japanese Baseball
(Redirected from 1997 Central League)
| 1997 in baseball |
|---|
| Cuban National League |
| Japanese baseball |
| American League |
| National League |
| << 1996 1998 >> |
Nippon Professional Baseball[edit]
Standings[edit]
- Bold indicates league champion; Italics indicate Nippon Series winner.
Central League[edit]
| Team | G | W | L | T | WPCT | GB | RS | RA | AVG | ERA | Manager(s) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Yakult Swallows | 137 | 83 | 52 | 2 | 0.613 | 0.0 | 672 | 503 | 0.276 | 3.26 | Katsuya Nomura |
| Yokohama BayStars | 135 | 72 | 63 | 0 | 0.533 | 11.0 | 572 | 548 | 0.273 | 3.70 | Akihiko Oya |
| Hiroshima Toyo Carp | 135 | 66 | 69 | 0 | 0.489 | 17.0 | 651 | 653 | 0.259 | 4.44 | Toshiyuki Mimura |
| Yomiuri Giants | 135 | 63 | 72 | 0 | 0.467 | 20.0 | 550 | 536 | 0.251 | 3.69 | Shigeo Nagashima |
| Hanshin Tigers | 136 | 62 | 73 | 1 | 0.460 | 21.0 | 504 | 575 | 0.244 | 3.70 | Yoshio Yoshida |
| Chunichi Dragons | 136 | 59 | 76 | 1 | 0.438 | 24.0 | 510 | 644 | 0.243 | 4.33 | Senichi Hoshino |
Pacific League[edit]
| Team | G | W | L | T | WPCT | GB | RS | RA | AVG | ERA | Manager(s) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Seibu Lions | 135 | 76 | 56 | 3 | 0.574 | 0.0 | 656 | 554 | 0.281 | 3.63 | Osamu Higashio |
| Orix BlueWave | 135 | 71 | 61 | 3 | 0.537 | 5.0 | 582 | 544 | 0.263 | 3.61 | Akira Ogi |
| Kintetsu Buffaloes | 135 | 68 | 63 | 4 | 0.519 | 7.5 | 603 | 579 | 0.274 | 3.79 | Kyosuke Sasaki |
| Fukuoka Daiei Hawks | 135 | 63 | 71 | 1 | 0.470 | 14.0 | 572 | 600 | 0.264 | 4.26 | Sadaharu Oh |
| Nippon Ham Fighters | 135 | 63 | 71 | 1 | 0.470 | 14.0 | 587 | 610 | 0.265 | 4.18 | Toshiharu Ueda |
| Chiba Lotte Marines | 135 | 57 | 76 | 2 | 0.430 | 19.5 | 466 | 584 | 0.249 | 3.84 | Akihito Kondo |
Leaders[edit]
- Bold indicates league record, Italics indicate all-time record
Batting[edit]
| Statistic | Central League | Pacific League | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Leader | Team | Number | Leader | Team | Number | |||
| Batting Average | Takanori Suzuki | Yokohama BayStars | .335 | Ichiro Suzuki | Orix BlueWave | .345 | ||
| Runs | Koichi Ogata | Hiroshima Toyo Carp | 103 | Ichiro Suzuki | Orix BlueWave | 94 | ||
| Hits | Luis Lopez | Hiroshima Toyo Carp | 170 | Ichiro Suzuki | Orix BlueWave | 185 | ||
| Doubles | Luis Lopez | Hiroshima Toyo Carp | 37 | Tuffy Rhodes Hiroki Kokubo |
Kintetsu Buffaloes Fukuoka Daiei Hawks |
37 | ||
| Triples | Daisuke Masuda | Chunichi Dragons | 8 | Kazuo Matsui | Seibu Lions | 13 | ||
| Home Runs | Dwayne Hosey | Yakult Swallows | 38 | Nigel Wilson | Nippon Ham Fighters | 37 | ||
| Runs Batted In | Luis Lopez | Hiroshima Toyo Carp | 112 | Hiroki Kokubo | Fukuoka Daiei Hawks | 114 | ||
| Stolen Bases | Koichi Ogata | Hiroshima Toyo Carp | 49 | Kazuo Matsui | Seibu Lions | 62 | ||
| Walks | Hideki Matsui | Yomiuri Giants | 100 | Ken Suzuki | Seibu Lions | 90 | ||
Pitching[edit]
All-Star Game[edit]
The NPB All-Star Game featured two games and was a tie, one game to one. The first game was played at Osaka Dome and was won by the PL, 5 - 0. The second game was played at Meiji Jingu Baseball Stadium and was won by the CL, 6 - 3.
Postseason[edit]
In the Nippon Series, the Yakult Swallows (CL) defeated the Seibu Lions (PL), 4 games to 1. The winning manager was Katsuya Nomura and the series MVP was Atsuya Furuta.
Award Winners[edit]
The winner of the 1997 Sawamura Award was Fumiya Nishiguchi of the Seibu Lions. He had a 15 - 5 win-loss record, 192 strikeouts, and a 3.12 ERA in 207.2 innings.
| Award | League | Player | Team | Position | AB | R | H | HR | RBI | SB | AVG | OBP | SLG | W - L | SV | IP | HA | HRA | BB | SO | ERA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Most Valuable Player | CL | Atsuya Furuta | Yakult Swallows | C | 509 | 74 | 164 | 9 | 86 | 9 | .322 | .413 | .446 | Did not pitch | |||||||
| PL | Fumiya Nishiguchi | Seibu Lions | P | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | .--- | .--- | .--- | 15 - 5 | 1 | 207.2 | 187 | 20 | 68 | 192 | 3.12 | |
| Rookie of the Year | CL | Toshikazu Sawazaki | Hiroshima Toyo Carp | P | 43 | 1 | 12 | 0 | 6 | 0 | .279 | .311 | .349 | 12 - 8 | 0 | 156.1 | 162 | 23 | 47 | 106 | 3.74 |
| PL | Makoto Kosaka | Chiba Lotte Marines | 2B | 499 | 66 | 130 | 1 | 30 | 56 | .261 | .329 | .323 | Did not pitch | ||||||||
Best Nine[edit]
The following players were part of the 1997 Best Nine teams.
Gold Gloves[edit]
The following players were the recipients of the Gold Glove Award in 1997.
High School Baseball[edit]
The 79th National High School Baseball Championship featured a total of 4093 schools competing for 49 spots in the finals at Koshien. In the championship game Chiben Wakayama High School (Wakayama) defeated Heian High School (Kyoto) by a score of 6 - 3.
The 69th National High School Baseball Invitational Tournament featured 32 schools competing in the tournament at Koshien. In the championship game Tenri High School (Nara) defeated Chukyo University Senior High School (Aichi) by a score of 4 - 1.
University Baseball[edit]
All-Japan University Baseball Championship Series[edit]
The 1997 All-Japan University Baseball Championship Series featured 25 schools competing in the tournament at Meiji-Jingu Stadium. In the championship game Kinki University defeated Asia University by a score of 2 - 0.
Meiji Jingu Baseball Convention[edit]
In the Meiji Jingu Baseball Convention Kinki University defeated Hosei University.
Tokyo Big6 Baseball League[edit]
| Season | First | Second | Third | Fourth | Fifth | Sixth |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Spring | Keio | Meiji | Hosei | Waseda | Rikkio | Tokyo |
| Fall | Hosei | Keio | Waseda | Meiji | Tokyo | Rikkio |
Tohto University Base Ball League[edit]
| Season | League | First | Second | Third | Fourth | Fifth | Sixth |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Spring | 1 | Asia | Aoyama Gakuin | Senshu | Komazawa | Rissho | Toyo |
| 2 | Chuo | Kokushikan | Nihon | Tokyo Agriculture | Kokugakuin | Takushoku | |
| Spring | 1 | Komazawa | Asia | Senshu&Rissho | Aoyama Gakuin | Toyo | |
| 2 | Nihon | Kokushikan&Tokyo Agriculture | Chuo | Takushoku | Kokugakuin | ||
Kansai 6 University Baseball League[edit]
| Season | First | Second | Third | Fourth | Fifth | Sixth |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Spring | Kinki | Ritsumeikan | Doshisha | Kwansei Gakuin | Kansai | Kyoto |
| Fall | Kinki | Ritsumeikan | Kansai | Doshisha | Kwansei Gakuin | Kyoto |
International Baseball[edit]
In the thirteenth Intercontinental Cup in Spain, the Japanese national baseball team won a gold medal.
Japanese Players in Other Countries[edit]
- Italics indicate a Major League appearance
- Shigetoshi Hasegawa: Anaheim Angels
- Koji Hoshina: GCL Expos, GCL (MON-R)
- Masashi Iida: AZL Padres, Arizona (SDP-R)
- Hideki Irabu: Tampa Yankees, Florida State (NYY-A-Adv); Norwich Navigators, Eastern (NYY-AA); Columbus Clippers, International (NYY-AAA); New York Yankees
- Taisuke Ishimaru: Arizona Mariners, Arizona (SEA-R)
- Takashi Kashiwada: Norfolk Tides, International (NYM-AAA); New York Mets
- Keiichi Kojima: Charlotte Rangers, Florida State (AA) and Tulsa Drillers, Texas (TEX-A-Adv)
- Katsuhiro Maeda: Norwich Navigators, Eastern League (NYY-AA)
- Yukio Matsunaga: Uni-President Lions, Chinese Professional Baseball League
- Jeff McCurry: Colorado Springs Sky Sox, Pacific Coast (COL-AAA); Colorado Rockies
- Keith McDonald: Arkansas Travelers, Texas (STL-AA)
- Daisuke Miyashita: Regina Cyclones, Prairie League
- Hideo Nomo: Los Angeles Dodgers
- Dave Roberts: Jacksonville Suns, Southern (DET-AA)
- Junichi Sasaki: GCL Expos, Gulf Coast (R); Vermont Expos, New York-Penn (A); West Palm Beach Expos, Florida State (MON-A-Adv)
- Ryosuke Sawai: AZL Padres, Arizona (SDP-R)
- Mac Suzuki: Tacoma Rainiers, Pacific Coast (SEA-AAA)
- Toshio Tajima: Brother Elephants, Chinese Professional Baseball League
- Minoru Tanaka: Ssangbangwool Raiders, Korea Baseball Organization
- Kota Yoshida: AZL Athletics, Arizona (OAK-R)
Hall of Fame[edit]
The following people were elected to the Japanese Baseball Hall of Fame:
- Makoto Hosaka, by Special Committee
- Katsuo Osugi, by Sportswriters Committee
- Eiichiro Yamamoto, by Special Committee
| Japanese Baseball Seasons
Pre-Professional Era
|
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