The MLB Japan All-Star Series is an irregular end-of-the-season tour of Japan made by an All-Star team from

Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball organization and the oldest major professional sports league in the world. MLB is composed of 30 total teams, divided equally between the National League (NL) and the American League (AL), ...

(MLB) since 1986, contested in a best-of format against the All-Stars from

Nippon Professional Baseball or NPB is the highest level of baseball in Japan. Locally, it is often called , meaning ''Professional Baseball''. Outside Japan, it is often just referred to as "Japanese baseball". The roots of the league can be traced back to the formation ...

(NPB) or recently as of

2014 File:2014 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: Stocking up supplies and personal protective equipment (PPE) for the Western African Ebola virus epidemic; Citizens examining the ruins after the Chibok schoolgirls kidnapping; Bundles of wat ...

their national team Samurai Japan (SJP). The series has featured many great players, such as

Nori Aoki is a Japanese professional baseball outfielder for the Tokyo Yakult Swallows of Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB). He previously played for the Milwaukee Brewers, Kansas City Royals, San Francisco Giants, Seattle Mariners, Houston Astros, Toro ...

, Barry Bonds, Ken Griffey Jr.,

Chase Utley Chase Cameron Utley (born December 17, 1978), nicknamed "The Man" and "Silver Fox", is an American former professional baseball second baseman who played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for 16 seasons, primarily for the Philadelphia Phillies. ...

, Ryan Howard,

Hideki Matsui , nicknamed " Godzilla", is a Japanese former professional baseball outfielder and designated hitter who played baseball in Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB) and Major League Baseball (MLB). He batted left-handed and threw right-handed. Mats ...

, Ichiro Suzuki, Shinnosuke Abe, David Ortiz, Sammy Sosa,

Justin Morneau Justin Ernest George Morneau (born May 15, 1981) is a Canadian former professional baseball first baseman. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Minnesota Twins, Pittsburgh Pirates, Colorado Rockies, and Chicago White Sox. At and , ...

, David Wright, Jose Reyes,

José Altuve José Carlos Altuve (; born May 6, 1990) is a Venezuelan professional baseball second baseman for the Houston Astros of Major League Baseball (MLB). The Astros signed Altuve as an amateur free agent in 2007, and he made his major league debut ...

, Robinson Canó and

Manny Ramírez Manuel Arístides Ramírez Onelcida (born May 30, 1972) is a Dominican Americans (Dominican Republic), Dominican-American former professional baseball outfielder. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for parts of 19 seasons. He played with ...

. In the beginning of all games the American,

Canadian Canadians (french: Canadiens) are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of ...

and

Japanese Japanese may refer to: * Something from or related to Japan, an island country in East Asia * Japanese language, spoken mainly in Japan * Japanese people, the ethnic group that identifies with Japan through ancestry or culture ** Japanese diaspor ...

national anthems are all played. Games can end in a tie if it persists through 12 innings, just as in NPB rules.

List of series

MLB vs. NPB (1986–2006)

MLB vs. SJP (2014, 2018)

The Japan All-Star Series was resumed in 2014 after an eight-year break. Katsuhiko Kumazaki, then the new Commissioner of NPB, decided to field the national team Samurai Japan, instead of a NPB All-Star line-up, for the 2014 series. Kumazaki saw in this series a big opportunity for the Japanese team to gain hugely useful experience for the 2017 World Baseball Classic. Samurai Japan won the best-of-five series by a margin of three games to two. Particularly noteworthy was a combined no-hitter by Samurai Japan in Game 3 as their pitchers shut out the MLB All-Stars 4–0. On May 1, 2018, MLB announced that it would send again an All-Star team to tour Japan after the end of current season, with six games scheduled against the Japan national team from November 9 to 15.

References

External links

MLB-Japan Plays
{{MLB Japan All-Star Series Major League Baseball international baseball competitions Major League Baseball competitions Baseball competitions in Japan Recurring sporting events established in 1986

List of series

MLB vs. NPB (1986–2006)

MLB vs. SJP (2014, 2018)

See also

References

External links