2003 in Japanese Baseball

2003 in baseball
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2003 in Japanese baseball

Nippon Professional Baseball

Standings

Bold indicates league champion; Italics indicate Nippon Series winner

Central League

Team	G	W	L	T	WPCT	GB	RS	RA	AVG	ERA	Manager(s)
Hanshin Tigers	140	87	51	2	0.629	0.0	728	538	0.287	3.53	Senichi Hoshino
Chunichi Dragons	140	73	66	1	0.525	14.5	616	578	0.268	3.80	Hisashi Yamada (59-61), Kyosuke Sasaki (14-5-1)
Yomiuri Giants	140	71	66	3	0.518	15.5	654	681	0.262	4.43	Tatsunori Hara
Yakult Swallows	140	71	66	3	0.518	15.5	683	627	0.283	4.12	Tsutomu Wakamatsu
Hiroshima Carp	140	67	71	2	0.486	20.0	558	653	0.259	4.23	Koji Yamamoto
Yokohama BayStars	140	45	94	1	0.325	42.5	563	725	0.258	4.80	Daisuke Yamashita

Pacific League

Team	G	W	L	T	WPCT	GB	RS	RA	AVG	ERA	Manager(s)
Daiei Hawks	140	82	55	3	0.596	0.0	822	588	0.297	3.94	Sadaharu Oh
Seibu Lions	140	77	61	2	0.557	5.5	692	660	0.272	4.43	Haruki Ihara
Kintetsu Buffaloes	140	74	64	2	0.536	8.5	718	632	0.274	4.30	Masataka Nashida
Chiba Lotte Marines	140	68	69	3	0.496	14.0	651	665	0.271	4.37	Koji Yamamoto
Nippon Ham Fighters	140	62	74	4	0.457	19.5	675	738	0.269	4.88	Trey Hillman
Orix BlueWave	140	48	88	4	0.357	33.5	652	927	0.276	5.95	Hiromichi Ishige, Leon Lee

Leaders

Bold indicates league record, Italics indicate all-time record

Batting

Statistic		Central League				Pacific League
		Leader	Team	Number		Leader	Team	Number
Batting Average		Makoto Imaoka	Hanshin Tigers	.340		Michihiro Ogasawara	Nippon Ham Fighters	.360
Runs		Kosuke Fukudome	Chunichi Dragons	107		Tadahito Iguchi	Fukuoka Daiei Hawks	112
Hits		Alex Ramirez	Yakult Swallows	189		Yoshitomo Tani	Orix BlueWave	189
Doubles		Ken Suzuki	Yakult Swallows	36		Kazuya Fukuura	Chiba Lotte Marines	50
Triples		Kosuke Fukudome	Chunichi Dragons	11		Arihito Muramatsu	Fukuoka Daiei Hawks	13
Home Runs		Alex Ramirez Tyrone Woods	Yakult Swallows Yokohama BayStars	40		Tuffy Rhodes	Osaka Kintetsu Buffaloes	51
Runs Batted In		Alex Ramirez	Yakult Swallows	124		Nobuhiko Matsunaka	Fukuoka Daiei Hawks	123
Stolen Bases		Norihiro Akahoshi	Hanshin Tigers	61		Tadahito Iguchi	Fukuoka Daiei Hawks	42
Walks		Tomoaki Kanemoto	Hanshin Tigers	93		Tuffy Rhodes	Osaka Kintetsu Buffaloes	98

Pitching

Statistic		Central League				Pacific League
		Leader	Team	Number		Leader	Team	Number
ERA		Kei Igawa	Hanshin Tigers	2.80		Daisuke Matsuzaka Kazumi Saito	Seibu Lions Fukuoka Daiei Hawks	2.83
Wins		Kei Igawa	Hanshin Tigers	20		Kazumi Saito	Fukuoka Daiei Hawks	20
Winning Percentage		Kei Igawa	Hanshin Tigers	.800		Kazumi Saito	Fukuoka Daiei Hawks	.870
Losses		Chris Holt	Yokohama BayStars	14		Itsuki Shoda	Nippon Ham Fighters	15
Saves		Shingo Takatsu	Yakult Swallows	34		Kiyoshi Toyoda	Seibu Lions	38
Save Points		Shingo Takatsu	Yakult Swallows	36		Kiyoshi Toyoda	Seibu Lions	40
Innings Pitched		Koji Uehara	Yomiuri Giants	207.1		Naoyuki Shimizu	Chiba Lotte Marines	204.1
Appearances		Ryota Igarashi	Yakult Swallows	66		Hideo Koike	Osaka Kintetsu Buffaloes	65
Hits Allowed		Masanori Ishikawa	Yakult Swallows	201		Nate Minchey	Chiba Lotte Marines	233
Home Runs Allowed		Koji Uehara	Yomiuri Giants	28		Mitsutaka Goto	Seibu Lions	29
Strikeouts		Koji Uehara	Yomiuri Giants	194		Daisuke Matsuzaka	Seibu Lions	215
Base-on-Balls		Shigeki Noguchi	Chunichi Dragons	59		Mac Suzuki	Orix BlueWave	74

All-Star Game

The NPB All-Star Game featured two games and was won by the Central League one game to none with one tie. The first game was played at Osaka Dome and was a tie, 4 - 4. The second game was played at Chiba Marine Stadium and was won by the CL, 5 - 3.

Postseason

In the Nippon Series, the Daiei Hawks (PL) defeated the Hanshin Tigers (CL), 4 games to 3. The winning manager was Sadaharu Oh and the series MVP was Toshiya Sugiuchi.

Award Winners

The winners of the 2003 Sawamura Award were Kei Igawa of the Hanshin Tigers and Kazumi Saito of the Daiei Hawks. Igawa had a 20 - 5 win-loss record, 179 strikeouts, and a 2.80 ERA in 206.0 innings. Saito had a 20 - 3 win-loss record, 160 strikeouts, and a 2.83 ERA in 194.0 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	Kei Igawa	Hanshin Tigers	P	62	5	8	0	5	0	.129	.194	.145	20 - 5	0	206.0	184	15	58	179	2.80
	PL	Kenji Johjima	Daiei Hawks	C	551	101	182	34	119	9	.330	.399	.593	Did not pitch
Rookie of the Year	CL	Hiroshi Kisanuki	Yomiuri Giants	P	56	0	4	0	0	0	.071	.071	.089	10 - 7	0	175.0	168	18	44	180	3.34
	PL	Tsuyoshi Wada	Daiei Hawks	P	0	0	0	0	0	0	.---	.---	.---	14 - 5	0	189.0	165	26	61	195	3.38

Best Nine

The following players were part of the 2003 Best Nine teams.

Central League			Position		Pacific League
Player	Team				Player	Team
Kei Igawa	Hanshin Tigers		P		Kazumi Saito	Daiei Hawks
Akihiro Yano	Hanshin Tigers		C		Kenji Johjima	Daiei Hawks
George Arias	Hanshin Tigers		1B		Nobuhiko Matsunaka	Daiei Hawks
Makoto Imaoka	Hanshin Tigers		2B		Tadahito Iguchi	Daiei Hawks
Ken Suzuki	Yakult Swallows		3B		Michihiro Ogasawara	Nippon Ham Fighters
Tomohiro Nioka	Yomiuri Giants		SS		Kazuo Matsui	Seibu Lions
Norihiro Akahoshi	Hanshin Tigers		OF		Tuffy Rhodes	Kintetsu Buffaloes
Kosuke Fukudome	Chunichi Dragons				Yoshitomo Tani	Orix BlueWave
Alex Ramirez	Yakult Swallows				Kazuhiro Wada	Seibu Lions
			DH		Alex Cabrera	Seibu Lions

Gold Gloves

The following players were the recipients of the Gold Glove Award in 2003.

Central League			Position		Pacific League
Player	Team				Player	Team
Koji Uehara	Yomiuri Giants		P		Daisuke Matsuzaka	Seibu Lions
Akihiro Yano	Hanshin Tigers		C		Kenji Johjima	Daiei Hawks
George Arias	Hanshin Tigers		1B		Kazuya Fukuura	Chiba Lotte Marines
Makoto Imaoka	Hanshin Tigers		2B		Tadahito Iguchi	Daiei Hawks
Kazuyoshi Tatsunami	Chunichi Dragons		3B		Michihiro Ogasawara	Nippon Ham Fighters
Shinya Miyamoto	Yakult Swallows		SS		Kazuo Matsui	Seibu Lions
Norihiro Akahoshi	Hanshin Tigers		OF		Arihito Muramatsu	Daiei Hawks
Kosuke Fukudome	Chunichi Dragons		OF		Naoyuki Ohmura	Osaka Kintetsu Buffaloes
Yoshinobu Takahashi	Yomiuri Giants		OF		Hiroshi Shibahara	Daiei Hawks
			OF		Yoshitomo Tani	Orix BlueWave

High School Baseball

The 85th National High School Baseball Championship featured a total of 4163 schools competing for 49 spots in the finals at Koshien. In the championship game Joso Gakuin High School (Ibaraki) defeated Tohoku High School (Miyagi) by a score of 4 - 2.

The 75th National High School Baseball Invitational Tournament featured 34 schools competing in the tournament at Koshien. In the championship game Koryo High School (Hiroshima) defeated Yokohama High School (Kanagawa) by a score of 15 - 3.

University Baseball

All-Japan University Baseball Championship Series

The 2003 All-Japan University Baseball Championship Series featured 26 schools competing in the tournament at Meiji-Jingu Stadium. In the championship game Nippon Bunri University defeated Asia University by a score of 4 - 3.

Meiji Jingu Baseball Convention

In the Meiji Jingu Baseball Convention University of East Asia defeated Kanagawa University.

Tokyo Big6 Baseball League

Season	First	Second	Third	Fourth	Fifth	Sixth
Spring	Waseda	Meiji	Keio	Hosei	Rikkio	Tokyo
Fall	Waseda	Meiji	Keio	Hosei	Rikkio	Tokyo

Tohto University Base Ball League

Season	League	First	Second	Third	Fourth	Fifth	Sixth
Spring	1	Asia	Aoyama Gakuin	Chuo	Toyo	Komazawa	Nihon
	2	Komazawa	Kokugakuin	Rissho	Takushoku	Kokushikan	Tokyo Agriculture
	3	Juntendo	Taisho	Shibaura Tech	Seikei	Sophia	Gakushuin
	4	Hitotsubashi	Musashi Tech	Tokyo Tech
Fall	1	Aoyama Gakuin	Nihon	Komazawa	Toyo	Chuo	Asia
	2	Rissho	Kokushikan	Kokugakuin	Takushoku	Tokyo Agriculture
	3	Juntendo	Taisho	Seikei	Shibaura Tech	Sophia	Tokyo Tech
	4	Gakushuin	Hitotsubashi	Musashi Tech

Kansai 6 University Baseball League

Season	First	Second	Third	Fourth	Fifth	Sixth
Spring	Kinki	Kansai	Ritsumeikan	Doshisha	Kwansei Gakuin	Kyoto
Fall	Doshisha	Kansai	Kinki	Kwansei Gakuin	Ritsumeikan	Kyoto

International Baseball

In the fifth AAA Asia Baseball Championship in Thailand, the Japanese national baseball team won a bronze medal. At the thirty-fifth Baseball World Cup in Cuba, the Japanese national baseball team won a bronze medal.

Japanese Players in Other Countries

Italics indicate a Major League appearance

• Tomoshi Aoki: Wisconsin Timber Rattlers, Midwest (SEA-A)
• Yusuke Arakawa: Tri-City Dust Devils, Northwest (COL-SS)
• Satoru Fujii: San Angelo Colts, Central (2003-Ind)
• Shigetoshi Hasegawa: Seattle Mariners
• Toshiyuki Hesaka: China Times Eagles, Chinese Professional Baseball League
• Craig House: Carolina Mudcats, Southern (FLA-AA); Albuquerque Isotopes, Pacific Coast (FLA-AAA); Tacoma Rainiers, Pacific Coast (SEA-AAA); San Antonio Missions, Texas (SEA-AA)
• Hiro Iida: Elizabethton Twins, Appalachian (MIN-R)
• Keigo Imai: Brother Elephants, Chinese Professional Baseball League
• Masaru Imazeki: Bridgeport Bluefish, Atlantic (2003-Ind)
• Satoshi Iriki: Doosan Bears, Korea Baseball Organization
• Kazuhisa Ishii: Los Angeles Dodgers
• Soichi Kamimura: GCL Marlins, Gulf Coast (FLA-R)
• Soichiro Kaneda: Calgary Outlaws, Canadian Baseball League
• Kenichiro Kawabata: Elmira Pioneers, Northeast (2003-Ind)
• Ryo Kumagai: Augusta Greenjackets, South Atlantic (BOS-A); Sarasota Red Sox, Florida State (BOS-A-Adv); Portland Sea Dogs, Eastern (BOS-AA)
• Katsuhiro Maeda: Italeri Fortitudo Bologna, Serie A1
• Masaki Maki: Calgary Outlaws, Northern (2003-Ind)
• Hideki Matsui: New York Yankees
• Keith McDonald: Chicago Cubs; Iowa Cubs, Pacific Coast (CHC-AAA)
• Hidekazu Mitsuyama, Lotte Giants, Korea Baseball Organization
• Takashi Miyoshi: London Monarchs, Canadian Baseball League
• Kazuma Mori, Lotte Giants, Korea Baseball Organization
• Tatsuhiko Muranishi: Florence Freedom, Frontier (2003-Ind)
• Shin Nakagomi: Brother Elephants, Chinese Professional Baseball League
• Micheal Nakamura: Minnesota Twins
• Hiroaki Nakayama: Brother Elephants, Chinese Professional Baseball League
• Yuji Nerei: London Monarchs, Canadian Baseball League
• Hideo Nomo: Los Angeles Dodgers
• Takeshi Nonogaki: China Times Eagles, Chinese Professional Baseball League
• Tomokazu Ohka: Montreal Expos
• Yoshiyuki Ohtsuka: Williamsport Crosscutters, New York-Penn (PIT-SS)
• Goh Ono: T&A San Marino, Italian Serie A1
• Stephen Randolph: Arizona Diamondbacks; Tucson Sidewinders, Pacific Coast (ARI-AAA)
• Dave Roberts: Ogden Raptors, Pioneer (LAD-R); Las Vegas 51s, Pacific Coast (LAD-AAA); Los Angeles Dodgers
• Mitsuru Sakamoto: Tri-City Dust Devils, Northwest (COL-SS); Colorado Springs Sky Sox, Pacific Coast (COL-AAA)
• Takashi Sasagawa: China Times Eagles, Chinese Professional Baseball League
• Kazuhiro Sasaki: Seattle Mariners; Everett Aqua Sox, Northwest (SEA-SS); Inland Empire 66ers, California (SEA-A-Adv)
• GG Sato: Lakewood Blue Claws, South Atlantic (PHI-A)
• Tsuyoshi Shinjo: New York Mets; Norfolk Tides, International (NYM-AAA)
• Ichiro Suzuki: Seattle Mariners
• Kazuhito Tadano: Kinston Indians, Carolina (CLE-A-Adv); Akron Aeros, Eastern (CLE-AA); Buffalo Bisons, International (CLE-AAA)
• So Taguchi: Memphis Redbirds, Pacific Coast (STL-AAA); St. Louis Cardinals
• Tomoyuki Takayama, Hanwha Eagles, Korea Baseball Organization; Samsung Lions, Korea Baseball Organization
• Kazuhiro Takeoka: Greenville Drive, Southern (ATL-AA); Richmond Braves, International (ATL-AAA); St. Paul Saints, Northern (Ind)
• Tetsuya Yamaguchi: Missoula Osprey, Pioneer (ARI-R)
• Tetsu Yofu: Birmingham Barons, Southern (CHW-AA); Charlotte Knights, International (CHW-AAA)
• Hisanori Yokota: Brother Elephants, Chinese Professional Baseball League
• Nobuaki Yoshida: Eugene Emeralds, Northwest (SDP-SS); Fort Wayne Wizards, Midwest (SDP-A); Lake Elsinore Storm, California (SDP-A-Adv)
• Hiroaki Yoshimi: Uni-President Lions, Chinese Professional Baseball League
• Kazuyoshi Yoshimoto, LG Twins, Korea Baseball Organization

Hall of Fame

The following people were elected to the Japanese Baseball Hall of Fame:

• Kohei Matsuda, by New Century Committee
• Junzo Sekine, by Sportswriters Committee
• Sakae Suzuka, by Special Committee
• Toshiharu Ueda, by Sportswriters Committee
• Horace Wilson, by New Century Committee