The are a professional

baseball Baseball is a bat-and-ball games, bat-and-ball sport played between two team sport, teams of nine players each, taking turns batting (baseball), batting and Fielding (baseball), fielding. The game occurs over the course of several Pitch ...

team in Japan's

Pacific League The , or , or the , due to sponsorship reasons, is one of the two professional baseball leagues constituting Nippon Professional Baseball in Japan. The winner of the league championship competes against the winner in the Central League for the a ...

based north of

Tokyo Tokyo, officially the Tokyo Metropolis, is the capital of Japan, capital and List of cities in Japan, most populous city in Japan. With a population of over 14 million in the city proper in 2023, it is List of largest cities, one of the most ...

Tokorozawa is a Cities of Japan, city located in Saitama Prefecture, Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 343,298 in 168,939 households and a population density of 4761 persons per km². The total area of the city is . Geography Tokorozawa is ...

, Saitama Prefecture. Before 1979, they were based in

Fukuoka is the List of Japanese cities by population, sixth-largest city in Japan and the capital city of Fukuoka Prefecture, Japan. The city is built along the shores of Hakata Bay, and has been a center of international commerce since ancient times. ...

, Fukuoka Prefecture, in

Kyushu is the third-largest island of Japan's Japanese archipelago, four main islands and the most southerly of the four largest islands (i.e. excluding Okinawa Island, Okinawa and the other Ryukyu Islands, Ryukyu (''Nansei'') Ryukyu Islands, Islands ...

. The team is owned by a subsidiary of

Seibu Railway is a conglomerate based in Tokorozawa, Saitama, Japan, with principal business areas in railways, tourism, and real estate. Seibu Railway's operations are concentrated in northwest Tokyo and Saitama Prefecture; the name "Seibu" is an abbrevi ...

, which in turn is owned by the

Seibu Holdings is a Japanese Multinational corporation, multinational holding company that primarily owns Seibu Railway, Prince Hotels, and Seibu Bus and its subsidiary, subsidiaries, which are collectively known as the . In total, fifty-three companies across ...

. The team experienced a recent period of financial difficulty, but the situation brightened when the team received a record ¥6 billion (about $51.11 million) posting fee from the

Boston Red Sox The Boston Red Sox are an American professional baseball team based in Boston. The Red Sox compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) American League East, East Division. Founded in as one of the Ameri ...

for the right to negotiate a contract with

Daisuke Matsuzaka is a Japanese former professional baseball pitcher, who pitched professionally for 23 seasons, 16 of them in NPB, 7 in MLB. He is currently a baseball color commentator, critic, Sports journalism, reporter, and YouTuber. Daisuke is nicknamed i ...

. Between 1978 and 2008, the team logo and mascot were based on the adult version of

Kimba the White Lion ''Kimba the White Lion'', known in Japan as , is a Japanese ''shōnen manga, shōnen'' manga series written and illustrated by Osamu Tezuka which was serialized in the ''Manga Shōnen'' magazine from November 1950 to April 1954. An ani ...

, a classic Japanese

anime is a Traditional animation, hand-drawn and computer animation, computer-generated animation originating from Japan. Outside Japan and in English, ''anime'' refers specifically to animation produced in Japan. However, , in Japan and in Ja ...

and

manga are comics or graphic novels originating from Japan. Most manga conform to a style developed in Japan in the late 19th century, and the form has a long history in earlier Japanese art. The term is used in Japan to refer to both comics ...

series by

Osamu Tezuka Osamu Tezuka (, born , ''Tezuka Osamu'', – 9 February 1989) was a Japanese manga artist, cartoonist and animator. Considered to be among the greatest and most influential cartoonists of all time, his prolific output, pioneering techniques an ...

. In 2004, former Seibu Lions player

Kazuo Matsui is a Japanese former professional baseball player who played as a shortstop and is a former manager of the Saitama Seibu Lions. He is a switch-hitter. Matsui signed with the New York Mets on December 17, 2003, becoming the first Japanese infie ...

became the first Japanese infielder to play in

Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball league composed of 30 teams, divided equally between the National League (baseball), National League (NL) and the American League (AL), with 29 in the United States and 1 in Canada. MLB i ...

Franchise history

Nishitetsu Clippers (1950)

In 1950, the team became a founding member of the

. It was then owned by a private railroad company

Nishi-Nippon Railroad The , also called or NNR, is one of Japan's "Big 16" private railroad companies. With headquarters in Fukuoka, it operates local and highway buses, supermarkets, real estate and travel agencies, as well as railways in Fukuoka Prefecture. It ...

, well known as "Nishitetsu", which was based in

, the western area of Japan (Nishi-Nippon). The Clippers name was chosen as Nishitetsu was in charge of

Pan American Airlines Pan American World Airways, originally founded as Pan American Airways and more commonly known as Pan Am, was an airline that was the principal and largest international air carrier and unofficial overseas flag carrier of the United States for ...

' Japanese operations (back then, Pan Am's jets were known as "Clippers" due to them being aeronautical

Boeing 314 Clipper The Boeing 314 Clipper was an American long-range flying boat produced by Boeing from 1938 to 1941. One of the largest aircraft of its time, it had the range to cross the Atlantic and Pacific oceans. For its wing, Boeing re-used the design fro ...

). The team finished sixth that year, and at the end of the season, Nishitetsu was merged with another professional baseball club in Fukuoka, the Nishi-Nippon Pirates, which belonged to the

Central League The or , also known as the for sponsorship reasons, is one of the two professional baseball leagues that constitute Nippon Professional Baseball in Japan. The winner of the league championship plays against the winner of the Pacific League i ...

and managed by a local newspaper company the

Nishinippon Shimbun The is a Japanese language daily newspaper published by the . As of 2022, it had a circulation of about 467,000 (total of morning and evening editions). It is headquartered in Fukuoka, which accounts for the bulk of its circulation, and is also ...

. The new club was to form the Nishitetsu Lions. Thus the Lions name was adopted and has been retained up to today as the name of the franchise.

Nishitetsu Lions (1951–1972)

The Nishitetsu Lions called

Heiwadai Stadium was a Baseball park, ballpark located in the Fukuoka, Fukuoka Prefecture, Japan. From 1950 to 1978, it served as the home ballpark of the Nishitetsu Lions, a team in Nippon Professional Baseball's (NPB) Pacific League. It also briefly served as ...

home for their entire existence. They were one of the most dominant teams in the Pacific League during the 1950s, winning four pennants, including three straight

Japan Series The Japan Series ( , officially the Japan Championship Series, ), also the Nippon Series, is the annual championship series in Nippon Professional Baseball, the top baseball league in Japan. It is a best-of-seven series between the winning cl ...

against the

Yomiuri Giants The are a Japanese professional baseball team competing in Nippon Professional Baseball's Central League. Based in Bunkyo, Tokyo, they are one of two professional baseball teams based in Tokyo, the other being the Tokyo Yakult Swallows. They h ...

behind famed manager

Osamu Mihara was a professional Japanese baseball player and manager. External links

* 1911 births 1984 deaths Baseball people from Kagawa Prefecture Waseda University alumni Japanese baseball players Nippon Professional Baseball infielders Yom ...

; their last championship in Fukuoka came in 1958; after which Mihara left for the Taiyo Whales and led them to a Japan Series championship over the Daimai Orions in 1960. The team struggled through the following decade and did not witness much success on the field. In 1969 and 1970, the team was caught up in the infamous Black Mist game-fixing scandal, which resulted in four Lions pitchers being banned from NPB for life, as well as other players receiving lesser punishments. These losses decimated the team which the team would not recover from for the rest of their time in Fukuoka, which finished the 1970 season in last place. After a third straight last-place finish, and with Nishi-Nippon not wanting to do with anything to the team due to the Black Mist Scandal, in November 1972, the franchise was sold to the Fukuoka Baseball Corporation, a shell company within

. Following the sale, the team was renamed the Taiheiyo Club Lions.

Taiheiyo Club Lions (1973–1976)

Nishi-Nippon Railroad, founded by Nagayoshi Nakamura, then owner of

Lotte Corporation Lotte Corporation is a South Korean Multinational corporation, multinational Conglomerate (company), conglomerate corporation, and the fifth-largest chaebol in South Korea. Lotte was founded on 28 June 1948 by Korean businessman Shin Kyuk- ...

and the Orions, sold the team's sponsorship rights to Taiheiyo Club, a golf course and resort developer in 1973. The Lions, still smarting from the after-effects of the Black Mist Scandal, finished no higher than third throughout the 1970s.

Crown Lighter Lions (1977–1978)

At the end of the 1976 season, the Fukuoka Baseball Corporation announced that the team's new sponsor was Crown Gas Lighter. With this, the team's name for the upcoming season was changed to the Crown Lighter Lions. On October 25, 1978, the team was sold to Kokudo Keikaku (later Kokudo), and then merged into Prince Hotels.

Seibu Lions (1979–2007)

Following the sale of the Crown Lighter Lions and their merging into Prince Hotels, the team was renamed the Seibu Lions and relocated to a new ballpark northward in

Tokorozawa, Saitama is a Cities of Japan, city located in Saitama Prefecture, Japan. , the city had an estimated population of 343,298 in 168,939 households and a population density of 4761 persons per km². The total area of the city is . Geography Tokorozawa is ...

, west of the Tokyo area. Fukuoka would be left without an NPB team until , when the erstwhile

Nankai Hawks The are a Japanese professional baseball team based in Fukuoka, Fukuoka Prefecture. They compete in Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB) as a member of the Pacific League. Founded on February 22, 1938, as the Nankai Club, being the first Kansai t ...

were bought by

Daiei , based in Kobe, Hyōgo, is one of the largest supermarket chains in Japan. In 1957, Isao Nakauchi founded the chain in Osaka near Sembayashi Station on the Keihan train line. Daiei is now under a restructuring process supported by Marubeni ...

(they are now owned by the

SoftBank Group is a Japanese multinational investment holding company headquartered in Minato, Tokyo, that focuses on investment management. The group primarily invests in companies operating in technology that offer goods and services to customers in a m ...

) and moved to the Lions' former stadium,

Golden Age (1982–1994)

The Lions finished in last place in (something the team would not do again until ), and finished in fourth place in and . However, the following seasons would mark the beginning of a period of sustained success for the team under new manager

Tatsuro Hirooka Tatsuro Hirooka (広岡達朗, ''Hirooka Tatsurō'' born February 9, 1932) is a Japanese retired professional baseball player and manager. Hirooka played his entire career, from 1954 to 1966, for the Yomiuri Giants. He was awarded the Central ...

and with star players such as

Osamu Higashio is a Japanese former baseball player who played in the Japanese professional leagues from 1969–1988, being remembered as one of the leading Japanese pitchers in the 1980s. He also was manager of the Seibu Lions from 1995 to 2001. Professional ...

and Kōichi Tabuchi. Tatsuro Hirooka told the players that meat and other animal foods increase athletes' susceptibility to injury, and decrease their ability to perform. He required all players to take up a strictly

vegetarian diet Vegetarian diet may refer to: *Vegetarianism *Vegetarian cuisine *Plant-based diet (i.e., not necessarily stemming from vegetarian beliefs) *Veganism {{Disambig ...

. The club won consecutive

in and , and went to the

again in , but lost to the

Hanshin Tigers The are a Nippon Professional Baseball team playing in the Central League. The team is based in Nishinomiya, Hyōgo Prefecture, Japan, next to their main stadium, Hanshin Koshien Stadium. The Tigers are owned by Hanshin Electric Railway Co., ...

, who won their first Japan Series title. That Japan Series was also notable for the Tigers also breaking tradition by becoming the first Central League club to use the designated hitter during the Japan Series, prior to the NPB requiring its use during the Japan Series in Pacific League stadiums in 1990 (with it eventually being also used in

interleague play Interleague play in Major League Baseball refers to regular-season baseball games played between an American League (AL) team and a National League (NL) team. Interleague play was first introduced during the 1997 Major League Baseball season. ...

when it was introduced in 2005). Following the 1986 season, the club replaced Hirooka with

Masaaki Mori is a former Japanese football player. He played for Japan national team. Club career Mori was born in Nagasaki Prefecture on July 12, 1961. After graduating from Fukuoka University, he joined Japan Soccer League Division 1 club Fujita Industr ...

, who was able to sustain the team's prolonged success. Mori won eight league championships, between 1986 and 1988 and 1990–1994, and six Japan Series championships in his nine-year managing career, winning the Japan Series in

1986 The year 1986 was designated as the International Year of Peace by the United Nations. Events January * January 1 ** Aruba gains increased autonomy from the Netherlands by separating from the Netherlands Antilles. ** Spain and Portugal en ...

1987 Events January * January 1 – Bolivia reintroduces the Boliviano currency. * January 2 – Chadian–Libyan conflict – Battle of Fada: The Military of Chad, Chadian army destroys a Libyan armoured brigade. * January 3 – Afghan leader ...

1988 1988 was a crucial year in the early history of the Internet—it was the year of the first well-known computer virus, the Morris worm, 1988 Internet worm. The first permanent intercontinental Internet link was made between the United State ...

1990 Important events of 1990 include the Reunification of Germany and the unification of Yemen, the formal beginning of the Human Genome Project (finished in 2003), the launch of the Hubble Space Telescope, the separation of Namibia from South ...

1991 It was the final year of the Cold War, which had begun in 1947. During the year, the Soviet Union Dissolution of the Soviet Union, collapsed, leaving Post-soviet states, fifteen sovereign republics and the Commonwealth of Independent State ...

, and

1992 1992 was designated as International Space Year by the United Nations. Events January * January 1 – Boutros Boutros-Ghali of Egypt replaces Javier Pérez de Cuéllar of Peru as United Nations Secretary-General. * January 6 ** The Republ ...

. The team gained the moniker "Invincible Seibu" during the 1980s and 1990s due to their sustained domination of the league. The Lions had a powerful lineup in this period, loaded with sluggers such as

Koji Akiyama Koji Akiyama (秋山幸二 ''Akiyama Kōji'', born April 6, 1962) is a retired Japanese professional baseball player. He played for the Seibu Lions and the Fukuoka Daiei Hawks (currently the Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks) in Japan's Nippon Professional ...

Kazuhiro Kiyohara is a Japanese television personality, YouTuber and former professional baseball player. He played in Japan's Nippon Professional Baseball league for 23 seasons. He retired following the 2008 season. Born in Kishiwada, Osaka in 1967, his family w ...

and

Orestes Destrade Orestes Destrade (born May 8, 1962) is a Cuban American former professional baseball infielder. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the New York Yankees, Pittsburgh Pirates, and Florida Marlins. Destrade also played in Nippon Professio ...

. Their defense also benefited from the services of skilled players such as

Hiromichi Ishige Hiromichi Ishige (石毛宏典, born September 22, 1956) is a retired Japanese professional baseball player and manager in Japan's Nippon Professional Baseball. He played most of his career for the Seibu Lions. The 1986 Pacific League Most Va ...

, Romeo Calhoun,

Hatsuhiko Tsuji is a former Nippon Professional Baseball player and manager. During his playing career he was well known as a skillful second baseman. Career After spending six seasons as the manager of the Saitama Seibu Lions, Tsuji stepped down from his pos ...

and catcher Tsutomu Ito. Among the pitchers employed by the Lions in this period was "The Oriental Express"

Taigen Kaku Kuo Tai-yuan (; (Kaku Taigen); born 20 March 1962) is a Taiwanese former professional baseball pitcher who played in Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB). He is currently a baseball coach. With 117 wins accumulated during his 13 seasons pitching f ...

, Kimiyasu Kudoh,

Hisanobu Watanabe Hisanobu Watanabe (渡辺久信 born August 2, 1965) nicknamed "Nabe-Q", is a Japanese former professional baseball pitcher. He played in Nippon Professional Baseball is a professional baseball league and the highest level of baseball in ...

, and relievers Yoshitaka Katori and Tetsuya Shiozaki.

= Prominent Golden Age Players

Saitama Seibu Lions (2008–)

In order to reinforce the affiliation between the team and their home region, the Lions added the prefecture name "Saitama" to their team name in 2008. They were Pacific League Champions that year and went on to win the

. The team logo and uniforms were further modified for the 2009 season, with the team trading in their traditional light-blue colour scheme for a dark blue design similar to that employed during the Nishitetsu Lions era in the 1950s and 1960s. Between 2010 and 2019, the Lions made the Pacific League Climax Series 1st stage 5 times, (2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2017) but lost to the

Chiba Lotte Marines The are a professional baseball team in Japan's Pacific League based in Chiba, Chiba, Chiba City, Chiba Prefecture, in the Kantō region, and owned by Lotte Holdings, Lotte Holdings Co., Ltd. The Marines were a founding member of the Pacific Le ...

in 2010 and 2013, the

Tohoku Rakuten Golden Eagles The , often shortened as the , are a baseball team based in Sendai, Miyagi Prefecture, Japan. It has played in Nippon Professional Baseball's Pacific League since the team's formation in November 2004. The team is owned by the Internet shopping ...

in 2017, and to the

Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks The are a Japanese professional baseball team based in Fukuoka, Fukuoka Prefecture. They compete in Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB) as a member of the Pacific League. Founded on February 22, 1938, as the Nankai Club, being the first Kansai t ...

in 2011 and 2012. They made the Final Stage twice in back to back years in 2018 and 2019, but lost to the Hawks on both occasions. In 2020, the team finished in 3rd place, but was unable to make the playoffs. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic, the Pacific League removed the First Stage of the playoffs; only the top 2 teams in Pacific League made the playoffs, while Central League removed it entirely, instead opting to send the regular season champion (

) straight to the

. In 2021, the Lions finished in 6th and last place for the first time since 1979 with a 55–70–18 record.

Season-by-season records

Current roster

Managers

* Statistics current through the end of the season.

Former players of note

* () 1952–1959 * () 1952–1969 * () 1953 * () 1953–1962 * () 1954–1968 * () 1956–1969 * () 1969–1988 * () 1972–1978 * () 1973–1978 * () 1974–1976 * () 1976–1981 * () 1977–1991 * () 1981–1983 * () 1979–1984 * () 1979–1984 * () 1980–1985 * () 1984 * () 1986–1987 * () 1987–1990 * () 1975–1981 * () 1981–1993 * () 1983–1997 * () 1981–1994 * () 1982–2003 * () 1982–1994, 2010 * () 1984–1995 * () 1985–1997 * () 1985–1999 * () 1986–1996 * () 1989–1992, 1995 * () 1989–1997 * () 1989–2002 * () 1990–2004 * () 1992–1999 * 1993–1998 * () 1994–1998 * () 1994–2003, 2018 * () 1995–1996 * () 1995–2015 * () 1997–2002 * () 1997–1998 * () 1997–2005 * () 1998–2000 * () 2000 * () 1999–2001 * () 1997–2007 * () 1999–2006, 2021 * () 2000–2011 * () 2001–2004 * () 2002–2006 * () 2001–2007 * () 2001–2012 * () 2006–2011 * () 2008–2013 * () 2010–2018 * () 2012–2022 * () 2012 * () 2012–2013 * () 2014–2021 * () 2014–2022 * () 2014–2023 * () 2013–2024 * () 2013–2024

Retired number

Team announced

Kazuhisa Inao was a Japanese professional baseball pitcher. In 1957, he won 20 consecutive games. In 1958 Japan Series, he pitched six games and won 4 consecutive games after his team lost 3 games. He even hit a home run in fifth game of Japan Series. He was t ...

's No.24 was the first retired number of the Lions on May 1, 2012.

MLB players

Yusei Kikuchi is a Japanese professional baseball pitcher for the Los Angeles Angels of Major League Baseball (MLB). He has previously played in MLB for the Seattle Mariners, Toronto Blue Jays, and Houston Astros, and in Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB) fo ...

(2019–) Retired From MLB: * Frank Howard (1974) *

Tony Fernández Octavio Antonio Fernández Castro (June 30, 1962 – February 16, 2020), better known as Tony Fernández, was a Dominican baseball player who played as a shortstop in Major League Baseball (MLB) for seven teams from 1983 to 2001, most notably ...

(2000) *

Kazuhisa Ishii Kazuhisa Ishii (石井一久 ''Ishii Kazuhisa'') (born September 9, 1973) is a Japanese former professional baseball pitcher and manager and general manager. He played in Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB) for the Yakult Swallows and Saitama Se ...

(2002–2006) *

(2004–2010) *

Shinji Mori Shinji Mori (, September 12, 1974 – June 28, 2017) was a right-handed pitcher in professional baseball. Career From –, he played for the Seibu Lions in Nippon Professional Baseball. After the 2005 season, he was acquired by the Tampa Bay De ...

(2006–2007) *

(2007–2014) Kikuchiyusei.jpg,

Daisuke Matsuzaka on March 25, 2008.jpg,

Kazuo_Matsui_on_April_11,_2010.jpg,

Lions_Hotaka_Yamakawa.JPG,

Hotaka Yamakawa , is a Japanese baseball infielder for the Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks of Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB). He has previously played in NPB for the Saitama Seibu Lions. Yamakawa led the Pacific League in home runs in , , and . Career He was select ...

Minor League team

The Lions farm team plays in the Eastern League. The year of the team's founding is unknown. They first played in the Kansai Farm League in 1952 and joined the Eastern League in 1979.

Notes

References

External links

Official website

High resolution photos and discussion of the Lions in English
{{Authority control Nippon Professional Baseball teams Baseball teams established in 1950 Jungle Emperor Leo Sports clubs and teams in Saitama Prefecture Tokorozawa, Saitama 1950 establishments in Japan Railway sports clubs and teams