Pacific League

The  or  is one of the two professional baseball leagues (that make up, or) constitute Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB) in Japan.Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB),  "Teams (Rosters, Schedules/Scores, Individual Stats); retrieved 2012-7-17.  There are six teams in the league.Tuchman, Robert. (2009). The 100 Sporting Events You Must See Live, p. 325.

History
In 1949, The league was founded as the Taiheiyo Baseball Union.  There were seven teams.

In 1980, the name was changed to Pacific League.

After the 2004 season, the Orix BlueWave and the Osaka Kintetsu Buffaloes merged to form the Orix Buffaloes.Tamer, Greg. (2004). The Hardball Times Baseball Annual, p. 36.  At the same time, the Tohoku Rakuten Golden Eagles were added to the league.Tamer, p. 37.

 Current teams 

 Team Japanese Name Place Sponsor Chiba Lotte Marines 千葉ロッテマリーンズChiba Rotte Marīnzu Chiba, Chiba Lotte Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks 福岡ソフトバンクホークスFukuoka Sofutobanku Hōkusu Fukuoka, Fukuoka SoftBank Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters 北海道日本ハムファイターズHokkaidō Nippon-Hamu Faitāzu Sapporo, Hokkaidō Nippon Ham Orix Buffaloes オリックス・バファローズOrikkusu Bafarōzu Osaka, Osaka / Kobe, Hyōgo ORIX Saitama Seibu Lions 埼玉西武ライオンズSaitama Seibu Raionzu Tokorozawa, Saitama Seibu Railway Tohoku Rakuten Golden Eagles 東北楽天ゴールデンイーグルスTōhoku Rakuten Gōruden Īgurusu Sendai, Miyagi Rakuten

Championships

League champion
The team which wins the most games in each year is the league champion or "pennant winner".Bjarkman, Peter C. (2005). Diamonds Around The Globe: The Encyclopedia Of International Baseball, pp. 142.

1950 Mainichi Orions
1951 Nankai Hawks 
1952 Nankai Hawks 
1953 Nankai Hawks 
1953 Nankai Hawks 
1954 Nishitetsu Lions  
1955 Nankai Hawks  
1956 Nishitetsu Lions  
1957 Nishitetsu Lions  
1958 Nishitetsu Lions  
1959 Nankai Hawks
_____
1960 Daimai Orions 
1961 Nankai Hawks 
1962 Toei Flyers 
1963 Nishitetsu Lions
1964 Nankai Hawks
1965 Nankai Hawks  
1966 Nankai Hawks 
1967 Hankyu Braves 
1968 Hankyu Braves 
1969 Hankyu Braves
_____
1970 Lotte Orions  
1971 Hankyu Braves  
1972 Hankyu Braves  
1973 Nankai Hawks  
1974 Lotte Orions 
1975 Hankyu Braves  
1976 Hankyu Braves  
1977 Hankyu Braves  
1978 Hankyu Braves  
1979 Kintetsu Buffaloes
_____
1980 Kintetsu Buffaloes 
1981 Nippon-Ham Fighters  
1982 Seibu Lions 
1983 Seibu Lions  
1984 Hankyu Braves  
1985 Seibu Lions 
1986 Seibu Lions 
1987 Seibu Lions 
1988 Seibu Lions  
1989 Kintetsu Buffaloes _____
1990 Seibu Lions 
1991 Seibu Lions  
1992 Seibu Lions
1993 Seibu Lions  
1994 Seibu Lions
1995 Orix BlueWave 
1996 Orix BlueWave
1997 Seibu Lions 
1998 Seibu Lions  
1999 Fukuoka Daiei Hawks 
_____
2000 Fukuoka Daiei Hawks 
2001 Osaka Kintetsu Buffaloes  
2002 Seibu Lions  
2003 Fukuoka Daiei Hawks  
2004 Seibu Lions 
2005 Chiba Lotte Marines 
2006 Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters
2007 Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters 
2008 Saitama Seibu Lions
2009 Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters
_____
2010 Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks
2011 Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks
2012 Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters 
2013
2014
2015
2016
2017
2018
2019

Since 2004, there has been a three-team playoff system called the "climax series". The teams with the 2nd- and 3rd-best records play in the 3-game first stage.  The winner plays in a 5-game final series against the top-ranked team.

Japan Series
Each year, the winner of the league championship competes against the Central League champion in the  or .Tuchman,  p. 324.

Related pages
 Sports in Japan

References

 Other websites 

  Pacific League website 

Category:Baseball in Japan
Category:1949 establishments in Japan
Category:Sports organizations of Japan