# 2019 Nippon Professional Baseball season

The 2019 Nippon Professional Baseball season began on March 29. It was the 70th season since Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB) was reorganized in 1950. There are 12 teams NPB, split evenly between the Central League and Pacific League. The 2019 NPB season was 143 games long; teams in each league played 125 games against each other and 18 interleague games. The regular season was scheduled to end on September 24 except for any make-up games scheduled after it; the regular season eventually concluded on September 30. The top three teams in each league proceed to the Climax Series, NPB's postseason system.

## Regular season standings

Central League regular season standings :
| Rank | Team | G | W | L | T | Pct. | GB | Home | Road |
| 1 | Yomiuri Giants | 143 | 77 | 64 | 2 | .546 | - | 39–32–0 | 38–32–2 |
| 2 | Yokohama DeNA BayStars | 143 | 71 | 69 | 3 | .519 | 4.5 | 42–25–1 | 26–38–2 |
| 3 | Hanshin Tigers | 143 | 69 | 68 | 6 | .504 | 6.0 | 39–32–1 | 30–36–5 |
| 4 | Hiroshima Toyo Carp | 143 | 70 | 70 | 3 | .500 | 6.5 | 39–31–1 | 31–39–2 |
| 5 | Chunichi Dragons | 143 | 68 | 73 | 2 | .482 | 9.0 | 39–31–2 | 29–42–0 |
| 6 | Tokyo Yakult Swallows | 143 | 59 | 82 | 2 | .418 | 18.0 | 28–41–2 | 31-41–0 |
Pacific League regular season standings :
| Rank | Team | G | W | L | T | Pct. | GB | Home | Road |
| 1 | Saitama Seibu Lions | 143 | 80 | 62 | 1 | .563 | - | 43–29–0 | 37–33–1 |
| 2 | Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks | 143 | 76 | 62 | 5 | .551 | 2.0 | 42–27–3 | 34–35-2 |
| 3 | Tohoku Rakuten Golden Eagles | 143 | 71 | 68 | 4 | .511 | 7.5 | 36–33–2 | 35–35–2 |
| 4 | Chiba Lotte Marines | 143 | 69 | 70 | 4 | .504 | 9.5 | 37–32–2 | 32–38–2 |
| 5 | Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters | 143 | 65 | 73 | 5 | .471 | 12.0 | 35–34–3 | 30–39–2 |
| 6 | Orix Buffaloes | 143 | 61 | 75 | 7 | .452 | 14.0 | 32–34–5 | 29–41–2 |

## Climax Series

| First Stage | First Stage | First Stage | Final Stage | Final Stage | Final Stage | Japan Series | Japan Series | Japan Series |
| Central League | Central League | Central League | 1 | Yomiuri Giants | 4 | | | |
| 2 | Yokohama DeNA BayStars | 1 | 3 | Hanshin Tigers | 1 | | | |
| 3 | Hanshin Tigers | 2 | | | | CL1 | Yomiuri Giants | 0 |
| | | | | | | PL2 | Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks | 4 |
| Pacific League | Pacific League | Pacific League | 1 | Saitama Seibu Lions | 1 | | | |
| 2 | Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks | 2 | 2 | Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks | 4 | | | |
| 3 | Tohoku Rakuten Golden Eagles | 1 | | | | | | |

### First stage
#### Central League

Hanshin Tigers won the series, 2–1.
| Game | Date | Score | Location | Time | Attendance |
| 1 | October 5 | Hanshin Tigers - 8, Yokohama DeNA BayStars – 7 | Yokohama Stadium | 3:57 | 31,832 |
| 2 | October 6 | Hanshin Tigers - 4, Yokohama DeNA BayStars – 6 | Yokohama Stadium | 3:50 | 31,818 |
| 3 | October 7 | Hanshin Tigers - 2, Yokohama DeNA BayStars – 1 | Yokohama Stadium | 3:57 | 31,807 |

#### Pacific League

Fukuoka Hawks won the series, 2–1.
| Game | Date | Score | Location | Time | Attendance |
| 1 | October 5 | Tohoku Rakuten Golden Eagles – 5, Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks – 3 | Fukuoka Yahuoku! Dome | 3:15 | 39,745 |
| 2 | October 6 | Tohoku Rakuten Golden Eagles – 4, Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks – 6 | Fukuoka Yahuoku! Dome | 3:39 | 40,178 |
| 3 | October 7 | Tohoku Rakuten Golden Eagles – 1, Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks – 2 | Fukuoka Yahuoku! Dome | 3:05 | 38,265 |

### Final Stage
#### Central League

Yomiuri Giants won the series, 4–1.
| Game | Date | Score | Location | Time | Attendance |
| 1 | October 9 | Hanshin Tigers – 2, Yomiuri Giants – 5 | Tokyo Dome | 3:13 | 45,277 |
| 2 | October 10 | Hanshin Tigers – 0, Yomiuri Giants – 6 | Tokyo Dome | 2:43 | 45,168 |
| 3 | October 11 | Hanshin Tigers – 7, Yomiuri Giants – 6 | Tokyo Dome | 4:52 | 45,677 |
| 4 | October 13 | Hanshin Tigers – 1, Yomiuri Giants – 4 | Tokyo Dome | 2:58 | 45,931 |

#### Pacific League

Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks won the series, 4–1.
| Game | Date | Score | Location | Time | Attendance |
| 1 | October 9 | Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks – 8, Saitama Seibu Lions – 4 | MetLife Dome | 3:38 | 29,679 |
| 2 | October 10 | Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks – 8, Saitama Seibu Lions – 6 | MetLife Dome | 4:26 | 30,599 |
| 3 | October 11 | Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks – 7, Saitama Seibu Lions – 0 | MetLife Dome | 3:34 | 29,828 |
| 4 | October 13 | Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks – 9, Saitama Seibu Lions – 3 | MetLife Dome | 4:00 | 29,146 |

## Japan Series

Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks won the series, 4–0.
| Game | Date | Score | Location | Time | Attendance |
| 1 | October 19 | Yomiuri Giants – 2, Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks – 7 | Fukuoka Yahuoku! Dome | 3:15 | 37,198 |
| 2 | October 20 | Yomiuri Giants – 3, Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks – 6 | Fukuoka Yahuoku! Dome | 3:12 | 37,052 |
| 3 | October 22 | Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks – 6, Yomiuri Giants – 2 | Tokyo Dome | 3:38 | 44,411 |
| 4 | October 23 | Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks – 4, Yomiuri Giants – 3 | Tokyo Dome | 3:22 | 44,708 |

## League leaders
### Central League

Batting leaders :
| Stat | Player | Team | Total |
| Batting average | Seiya Suzuki | Hiroshima Toyo Carp | .335 |
| Home runs | Neftali Soto | Yokohama DeNA BayStars | 43 |
| Runs batted in | Neftali Soto | Yokohama DeNA BayStars | 108 |
| Runs | Seiya Suzuki | Hiroshima Toyo Carp | 112 |
| Hits | Yohei Oshima | Chunichi Dragons | 174 |
| Stolen bases | Kōji Chikamoto | Hanshin Tigers | 36 |
| On-base percentage | Seiya Suzuki | Hiroshima Toyo Carp | .453 |
| Slugging percentage | Hayato Sakamoto | Yomiuri Giants | .575 |
Pitching leaders :
| Stat | Player | Team | Total |
| Wins | Shun Yamaguchi | Yomiuri Giants | 15 |
| Earned run average | Yudai Ono | Chunichi Dragons | 2.58 |
| Strikeouts | Shun Yamaguchi | Yomiuri Giants | 188 |
| Innings pitched | Yudai Ono | Chunichi Dragons | 177.2 |
| Saves | Yasuaki Yamasaki | Yokohama DeNA BayStars | 30 |
| Holds | Joely Rodríguez | Chunichi Dragons | 41 |
| Winning percentage | Shun Yamaguchi | Yomiuri Giants | .789 |

### Pacific League

Batting leaders :
| Stat | Player | Team | Total |
| Batting average | Tomoya Mori | Saitama Seibu Lions | .329 |
| Home runs | Hotaka Yamakawa | Saitama Seibu Lions | 43 |
| Runs batted in | Takeya Nakamura | Saitama Seibu Lions | 123 |
| Runs | Shogo Akiyama | Saitama Seibu Lions | 112 |
| Hits | Shogo Akiyama | Saitama Seibu Lions | 179 |
| Stolen bases | Yuji Kaneko | Saitama Seibu Lions | 41 |
| On-base percentage | Kensuke Kondo | Hokkaido Nippon Ham Fighters | .422 |
| Slugging percentage | Tomoya Mori | Saitama Seibu Lions | .547 |
Pitching leaders :
| Stat | Player | Team | Total |
| Wins | Kohei Arihara | Hokkaido Nippon Ham Fighters | 15 |
| Earned run average | Yoshinobu Yamamoto | Orix Buffaloes | 1.95 |
| Strikeouts | Kodai Senga | Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks | 227 |
| Innings pitched | Kodai Senga | Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks | 180.1 |
| Saves | Yuki Matsui | Tohoku Rakuten Golden Eagles | 38 |
| Holds | Naoki Miyanishi | Hokkaido Nippon Ham Fighters | 43 |
| Winning percentage | Taisuke Yamaoka | Orix Buffaloes | .765 |

## Awards
### Regular season

NPB Awards :
| | Central League | Central League | Pacific League | Pacific League |
| Award | Player | Team | Player | Team |
| Rookie of the Year | Munetaka Murakami | Tokyo Yakult Swallows | Rei Takahashi | Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks |
| Most Valuable Player | Hayato Sakamoto | Yomiuri Giants | Tomoya Mori | Saitama Seibu Lions |
| Eiji Sawamura Award | Not awarded | Not awarded | Not awarded | Not awarded |
| Best Relief Pitcher | Joely Rodríguez | Chunichi Dragons | Naoki Miyanishi | Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters |
| Matsutaro Shoriki Award | | | Kimiyasu Kudo | Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks |
| Best Nine Award |||||
| Position | Player | Team | Player | Team |
| Pitcher | Shun Yamaguchi | Yomiuri Giants | Kodai Senga | Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks |
| Catcher | Tsubasa Aizawa | Hiroshima Toyo Carp | Tomoya Mori | Saitama Seibu Lions |
| 1st Base | Dayán Viciedo | Chunichi Dragons | Hotaka Yamakawa | Saitama Seibu Lions |
| 2nd Base | Tetsuto Yamada | Tokyo Yakult Swallows | Hideto Asamura | Tohoku Rakuten Golden Eagles |
| 3rd Base | Shuhei Takahashi | Chunichi Dragons | Takeya Nakamura | Saitama Seibu Lions |
| Shortstop | Hayato Sakamoto | Yomiuri Giants | Sosuke Genda | Saitama Seibu Lions |
| Outfield | Yoshihiro Maru | Yomiuri Giants | Shogo Akiyama | Saitama Seibu Lions |
| Outfield | Seiya Suzuki | Hiroshima Toyo Carp | Masataka Yoshida | Orix Buffaloes |
| Outfield | Neftalí Soto | Yokohama DeNA BayStars | Takashi Ogino | Chiba Lotte Marines |
| Designated hitter | Not applicable | Not applicable | Alfredo Despaigne | Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks |
Mitsui Golden Glove Award :
| | Central League | Central League | Pacific League | Pacific League |
| Position | Player | Team | Player | Team |
| Pitcher | Yuki Nishi | Hanshin Tigers | Kodai Senga | Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks |
| Catcher | Ryutaro Umeno | Hanshin Tigers | Takuya Kai | Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks |
| 1st Base | José López | Yokohama DeNA BayStars | Seiichi Uchikawa | Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks |
| 2nd Base | Ryosuke Kikuchi | Hiroshima Toyo Carp | Hideto Asamura | Tohoku Rakuten Golden Eagles |
| 3rd Base | Shuhei Takahashi | Chunichi Dragons | Nobuhiro Matsuda | Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks |
| Shortstop | Hayato Sakamoto | Yomiuri Giants | Sosuke Genda | Saitama Seibu Lions |

### Monthly MVPs

Position players :
| | Central League | Central League | Pacific League | Pacific League |
| Month | Player | Team | Player | Team |
| March/April | Hayato Sakamoto | Yomiuri Giants | Hotaka Yamakawa | Saitama Seibu Lions |
| May | Shuhei Takahashi | Chunichi Dragons | Shogo Akiyama | Saitama Seibu Lions |
| June | Yoshio Itoi | Hanshin Tigers | Daichi Suzuki | Chiba Lotte Marines |
| July | José López | Yokohama DeNA BayStars | Masataka Yoshida | Orix Buffaloes |
| August | Ryoma Nishikawa | Hiroshima Toyo Carp | Tomoya Mori | Saitama Seibu Lions |
| September | Nobumasa Fukuda | Chunichi Dragons | Masataka Yoshida | Orix Buffaloes |
Pitchers :
| | Central League | Central League | Pacific League | Pacific League |
| Month | Player | Team | Player | Team |
| March/April | Shun Yamaguchi | Yomiuri Giants | Kohei Arihara | Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters |
| May | Shota Imanaga | Yokohama DeNA BayStars | Kodai Senga | Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks |
| June | Shun Yamaguchi | Yomiuri Giants | Kodai Senga | Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks |
| July | Yasuaki Yamasaki | Yokohama DeNA BayStars | Taisuke Yamaoka | Orix Buffaloes |
| August | David Buchanan | Tokyo Yakult Swallows | Alan Busenitz | Tohoku Rakuten Golden Eagles |
| September | Yuki Nishi | Hanshin Tigers | Zach Neal | Saitama Seibu Lions |