# 1952 Nippon Professional Baseball season

The 1952 Nippon Professional Baseball season was the third season of operation of Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB).

## Regular season
### Standings

Central League regular season standings :
| Team | G | W | L | T | Pct. | GB |
| Yomiuri Giants | 120 | 83 | 37 | 0 | .692 | — |
| Osaka Tigers | 120 | 79 | 40 | 1 | .664 | 3.5 |
| Nagoya Dragons | 120 | 75 | 43 | 2 | .636 | 7.0 |
| Taiyo Whales | 120 | 58 | 62 | 0 | .483 | 25.0 |
| Kokutetsu Swallows | 120 | 50 | 70 | 0 | .417 | 33.0 |
| Hiroshima Carp | 120 | 37 | 80 | 3 | .316 | 44.5 |
| Shochiku Robins | 120 | 34 | 84 | 2 | .288 | 48.0 |
Pacific League regular season standings :
| Team | G | W | L | T | Pct. | GB |
| Nankai Hawks | 121 | 76 | 44 | 1 | .633 | — |
| Mainichi Orions | 120 | 75 | 45 | 0 | .625 | 1.0 |
| Nishitetsu Lions | 120 | 67 | 52 | 1 | .563 | 8.5 |
| Daiei Stars | 121 | 55 | 65 | 1 | .458 | 21.0 |
| Hankyu Braves | 108 | 49 | 58 | 1 | .458 | 20.5 |
| Tokyu Flyers | 108 | 49 | 59 | 0 | .454 | 21.0 |
| Kintetsu Pearls | 108 | 30 | 78 | 0 | .278 | 40.0 |

## Postseason
### Pacific League

For the first time, the Pacific League implemented a type of end-of-season playoff system. After the 108-game regular season, the four teams with the best winning percentages played an extra twelve regular season games to determine the league's champion. After the 108th game, the standings were:
| Pos | Team | G | W | L | T | Pct. |
| 1 | Nankai Hawks | 108 | 70 | 37 | 1 | .653 |
| 2 | Mainichi Orions | 108 | 65 | 43 | 0 | .602 |
| 3 | Nishitetsu Lions | 108 | 61 | 46 | 1 | .569 |
| 4 | Daiei Stars | 108 | 52 | 55 | 1 | .486 |
| 5 | Hankyu Braves | 108 | 49 | 58 | 1 | .458 |
| 6 | Tokyu Flyers | 108 | 49 | 59 | 0 | .454 |
| 7 | Kintetsu Pearls | 108 | 30 | 78 | 0 | .278 |
The four qualifying teams were the Nankai Hawks, the Mainichi Orions, the Nishitetsu Lions, and the Daiei Stars. These four teams proceeded to play in a twelve game "round-robin" stage, with three games versus each opponent, in late September and early October. The results of this stage were:
| Team | G | W | L | Pct. | vs. Mainichi | vs. Nishitetsu | vs. Nankai | vs. Daiei |
| Mainichi Orions | 12 | 10 | 2 | .833 | — | 3–1 | 3–1 | 4–0 |
| Nishitetsu Lions | 12 | 6 | 6 | .500 | 1–3 | — | 2–2 | 3–1 |
| Nankai Hawks | 12 | 5 | 7 | .417 | 1–3 | 2–2 | — | 2–2 |
| Daiei Stars | 12 | 3 | 9 | .250 | 0–4 | 1–3 | 2–2 | — |
The Mainichi Orions' won ten of the twelve extra games, which put them into a tie for the first place with the Nankai Hawks. Both teams had 75 wins, however the Hawks had one less loss than the Orions because of a game against the Daiei Stars that ended in a tie earlier in the season. Because of the impact the tie had on the pennant race, the Hawks and the Stars played an extra 121st game. The Hawks won the game, giving them sole claim to Pacific League title. After the season, this faux playoff system was scrapped because of criticism that it was unfair to the three non-qualifying teams that had their seasons truncated.

### Japan Series

CL Yomiuri Giants (4) vs. PL Nankai Hawks (2)
| Game | Date | Score | Location | Time | Attendance |
| 1 | October 11 | Nankai Hawks – 3, Yomiuri Giants – 6 | Korakuen Stadium | 1:57 | 23,794 |
| 2 | October 12 | Nankai Hawks – 0, Yomiuri Giants – 11 | Korakuen Stadium | 1:56 | 26,799 |
| 3 | October 14 | Yomiuri Giants – 0, Nankai Hawks – 4 | Osaka Stadium | 2:12 | 23,744 |
| 4 | October 15 | Yomiuri Giants – 6, Nankai Hawks – 2 | Osaka Stadium | 2:04 | 20,117 |
| 5 | October 16 | Yomiuri Giants – 1, Nankai Hawks – 4 | Osaka Stadium | 1:35 | 15,297 |
| 6 | October 18 | Nankai Hawks – 2, Yomiuri Giants – 3 | Korakuen Stadium | 2:02 | 34,595 |

## League leaders
### Central League

Batting leaders :
| Stat | Player | Team | Total |
| Batting average | Michio Nishizawa | Nagoya Dragons | .353 |
| Home runs | Satoshi Sugiyama | Nagoya Dragons | 27 |
| Runs batted in | Michio Nishizawa | Nagoya Dragons | 98 |
| Runs | Wally Yonamine | Yomiuri Giants | 104 |
| Hits | Wally Yonamine | Yomiuri Giants | 163 |
| Stolen bases | Jiro Kanayama | Shochiku Robins | 63 |
Pitching leaders :
| Stat | Player | Team | Total |
| Wins | Takehiko Bessho | Yomiuri Giants | 33 |
| Losses | Tsuneo Kobayashi | Shochiku Robins | 27 |
| Earned run average | Tadayoshi Kajioka | Osaka Tigers | 1.71 |
| Strikeouts | Masaichi Kaneda | Kokutetsu Swallows | 269 |
| Innings pitched | Takehiko Bessho | Yomiuri Giants | 3711⁄3 |

### Pacific League

Batting leaders :
| Stat | Player | Team | Total |
| Batting average | Shigeya Iijima | Daiei Stars | .336 |
| Home runs | Yasuhiro Fukami | Nishitetsu Lions, Tokyu Flyers | 25 |
| Runs batted in | Tokuji Iida | Nankai Hawks | 86 |
| Runs | Tokuji Iida | Nankai Hawks | 100 |
| Hits | Tokuji Iida | Nankai Hawks | 153 |
| Stolen bases | Chusuke Kizuka | Nankai Hawks | 55 |
Pitching leaders :
| Stat | Player | Team | Total |
| Wins | Masaaki Noguchi | Nishitetsu Lions | 23 |
| Losses | Mitsuro Sawafuji | Kintetsu Pearls | 22 |
| Earned run average | Susumu Yuki | Nankai Hawks | 1.91 |
| Strikeouts | Susumu Yuki | Nankai Hawks | 104 |
| Innings pitched | Giichi Hayashi | Daiei Stars | 2692⁄3 |

## Awards

* Most Valuable Player
** Takehiko Bessho, Yomiuri Giants (CL)
** Susumu Yuki, Nankai Hawks (PL)
* Rookie of the Year
** Takao Sato, Kokutetsu Swallows (CL)
** Futoshi Nakanishi, Nishitetsu Lions (PL)
* Eiji Sawamura Award
** Shigeru Sugishita, Nagoya Dragons (CL)
Central League Best Nine Award winners :
| Position | Player | Team |
| Pitcher | Takehiko Bessho | Yomiuri Giants |
| Catcher | Akira Noguchi | Nagoya Dragons |
| First baseman | Michio Nishizawa | Nagoya Dragons |
| Second baseman | Shigeru Chiba | Yomiuri Giants |
| Third baseman | Fumio Fujimura | Osaka Tigers |
| Shortstop | Masaaki Hirai | Yomiuri Giants |
| Outfielder | Wally Yonamine | Yomiuri Giants |
| Outfielder | Satoshi Sugiyama | Nagoya Dragons |
| Outfielder | Fukashi Minamimura | Yomiuri Giants |
Pacific League Best Nine Award winners :
| Position | Player | Team |
| Pitcher | Susumu Yuki | Nankai Hawks |
| Catcher | Takeshi Doigaki | Mainichi Orions |
| First baseman | Tokuji Iida | Nankai Hawks |
| Second baseman | Isami Okamoto | Nankai Hawks |
| Third baseman | Kazuo Kageyama | Nankai Hawks |
| Shortstop | Chusuke Kizuka | Nankai Hawks |
| Outfielder | Kaoru Betto | Mainichi Orions |
| Outfielder | Hiroshi Oshita | Tokyu Flyers |
| Outfielder | Shigeya Iijima | Daiei Stars |