Central League
From BR Bullpen
(Redirected from Japanese Central League)
- For United States-based minor leagues with the name Central League, click here.
The Central League is one of the two leagues of Nippon Professional Baseball; the other being the Pacific League. The longest-running began in 1950 and is the most prominent pro baseball league in Japan. The league's pennant winner has faced the champion of the Pacific League in the Nippon Series each fall, but starting in 2007 the Central League will adopt the same playoff system as the Pacific League. The Central League has generally gotten far more media coverage in Japan than its Pacific rival, though the talent level is equal. The Giants have historically been the dominant team in league history. Interleague play began in 2005, allowing the two leagues to face off during the season for the first time. The Central League does not use a DH.
Current Teams[edit]
- Yomiuri Giants
- Hanshin Tigers
- Hiroshima Toyo Carp
- Tokyo Yakult Swallows
- Yokohama BayStars
- Chunichi Dragons
Yearly Results[edit]
- BOLD indicates league champion; GOLD indicates Nippon Series winner
MVPs[edit]
- 1950 Makoto Kozuru, Shochiku Robins OF
- 1951 Tetsuharu Kawakami, Yomiuri Giants 1B
- 1952 Takehiko Bessho, Yomiuri Giants P
- 1953 Takumi Otomo, Yomiuri Giants P
- 1954 Shigeru Sugishita, Chunichi Dragons P
- 1955 Tetsuharu Kawakami, Yomiuri Giants 1B
- 1956 Takehiko Bessho, Yomiuri Giants P
- 1957 Wally Yonamine, Yomiuri Giants OF
- 1958 Motoshi Fujita, Yomiuri Giants P
- 1959 Motoshi Fujita, Yomiuri Giants P
- 1960 Noboru Akiyama, Taiyo Whales P
- 1961 Shigeo Nagashima, Yomiuri Giants 3B
- 1962 Minoru Murayama, Hanshin Tigers P
- 1963 Shigeo Nagashima, Yomiuri Giants 3B
- 1964 Sadaharu Oh, Yomiuri Giants 1B
- 1965 Sadaharu Oh, Yomiuri Giants 1B
- 1966 Shigeo Nagashima, Yomiuri Giants 3B
- 1967 Sadaharu Oh, Yomiuri Giants 1B
- 1968 Shigeo Nagashima, Yomiuri Giants 3B
- 1969 Sadaharu Oh, Yomiuri Giants 1B
- 1970 Sadaharu Oh, Yomiuri Giants 1B
- 1971 Shigeo Nagashima, Yomiuri Giants 3B
- 1972 Tsuneo Horiuchi, Yomiuri Giants P
- 1973 Sadaharu Oh, Yomiuri Giants 1B
- 1974 Sadaharu Oh, Yomiuri Giants 1B
- 1975 Koji Yamamoto, Hiroshima Carp OF
- 1976 Sadaharu Oh, Yomiuri Giants 1B
- 1977 Sadaharu Oh, Yomiuri Giants 1B
- 1978 Tsutomu Wakamatsu, Yakult Swallows OF
- 1979 Yutaka Enatsu, Hiroshima Carp P
- 1980 Koji Yamamoto, Hiroshima Carp OF
- 1981 Suguru Egawa, Yomiuri Giants P
- 1982 Takayoshi Nakao, Chunichi Dragons C
- 1983 Tatsunori Hara, Yomiuri Giants 3B
- 1984 Sachio Kinugasa, Hiroshima Carp 3B
- 1985 Randy Bass, Hanshin Tigers 1B
- 1986 Manabu Kitabeppu, Hiroshima Carp P
- 1987 Kazuhiro Yamakura, Yomiuri Giants C
- 1988 Genji Kaku, Chunichi Dragons P
- 1989 Warren Cromartie, Yomiuri Giants OF
- 1990 Masaki Saito, Yomiuri Giants P
- 1991 Shinji Sasaoka, Hiroshima Carp P
- 1992 Jack Howell, Yakult Swallows 3B
- 1993 Atsuya Furuta, Yakult Swallows C
- 1994 Masumi Kuwata, Yomiuri Giants P
- 1995 Tom O'Malley, Yakult Swallows 3B
- 1996 Hideki Matsui, Yomiuri Giants OF
- 1997 Atsuya Furuta, Yakult Swallows C
- 1998 Kazuhiro Sasaki, Yokohama Bay Stars P
- 1999 Shigeki Noguchi, Chunichi Dragons P
- 2000 Hideki Matsui, Yomiuri Giants OF
- 2001 Roberto Petagine, Yakult Swallows 1B
- 2002 Hideki Matsui, Yomiuri Giants OF
- 2003 Kei Igawa, Hanshin Tigers P
- 2004 Kenshin Kawakami, Chunichi Dragons P
- 2005 Tomoaki Kanemoto, Hanshin Tigers LF
- 2006 Kosuke Fukudome, Chunichi Dragons OF
- 2007 Michihiro Ogasawara, Yomiuri Giants 3B
- 2008 Alex Ramirez, Yomiuri Giants OF
- 2009 Alex Ramirez, Yomiuri Giants OF
- 2010 Kazuhiro Wada, Chunichi Dragons OF
- 2011 Takuya Asao, Chunichi Dragons P
- 2012 Shinnosuke Abe, Yomiuri Giants C
- 2013 Wladimir Balentien, Yakult Swallows OF
- 2014 Tomoyuki Sugano, Yomiuri Giants P
- 2015 Tetsuto Yamada, Yakult Swallows 2B
- 2016 Takahiro Arai, Hiroshima Carp 1B
- 2017 Yoshihiro Maru, Hiroshima Carp OF
- 2018 Yoshihiro Maru, Hiroshima Carp OF
- 2019 Hayato Sakamoto, Yomiuri Giants OF
- 2020 Tomoyuki Sugano, Yomiuri Giants P
- 2021 Munetaka Murakami, Yakult Swallows 3B
- 2022 Munetaka Murakami, Yakult Swallows 3B
- 2023 Shoki Murakami, Hanshin Tigers P
We're Social...for Statheads
Every Sports Reference Social Media Account
Site Last Updated:
Question, Comment, Feedback, or Correction?
Subscribe to our Free Email Newsletter
Subscribe to Stathead Baseball: Get your first month FREE
Your All-Access Ticket to the Baseball Reference Database
Do you have a sports website? Or write about sports? We have tools and resources that can help you use sports data. Find out more.