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| Saitama Seibu Lions | |||||
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| 埼玉西武ライオンズ | |||||
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| Information | |||||
| League | Nippon Professional Baseball
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| Location | Tokorozawa,Saitama,Japan | ||||
| Ballpark | Belluna Dome | ||||
| Founded | November 26, 1949; 75 years ago (1949-11-26) | ||||
| Nickname(s) | Shishi (獅子, lion) | ||||
| Japan Series championships | 13 (1956,1957,1958,1982,1983,1986,1987,1988,1990,1991,1992,2004,2008) | ||||
| PL pennants | 23 (1954,1956,1957,1958,1963,1982,1983,1985,1986,1987,1988,1990,1991,1992,1993,1994,1997,1998,2002,2004,2008,2018,2019) | ||||
| Playoff berths | 13 (1982,2004,2005,2006,2008,2010,2011,2012,2013,2017,2018,2019,2022) | ||||
| Former name(s) |
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| Former ballparks |
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| Colors | Legend Blue, Lions Blue, Black, Red, White[1] | ||||
| Mascot | Leo and Lina | ||||
| Retired numbers | |||||
| Ownership | Takashi Goto | ||||
| Management | Seibu Railway | ||||
| Manager | Fumiya Nishiguchi | ||||
| Current uniforms | |||||
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TheSaitama Seibu Lions (埼玉西武ライオンズ,Saitama Seibu Raionzu) are a professionalbaseball team in Japan'sPacific League based north ofTokyo inTokorozawa, Saitama Prefecture. Before 1979, they were based inFukuoka, Fukuoka Prefecture, inKyushu. The team is owned by a subsidiary ofSeibu Railway, which in turn is owned by theSeibu Holdings. 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 theBoston Red Sox for the right to negotiate a contract withDaisuke Matsuzaka. Between 1978 and 2008, the team logo and mascot were based on the adult version ofKimba the White Lion, a classic Japaneseanime andmanga series byOsamu Tezuka.[a][b] In 2004, former Seibu Lions playerKazuo Matsui became the first Japanese infielder to play inMajor League Baseball.[2]
In 1950, the team became a founding member of thePacific League. It was then owned by a private railroad companyNishi-Nippon Railroad, well known as "Nishitetsu", which was based inFukuoka inKyushu, the western area of Japan (Nishi-Nippon). The Clippers name was chosen as Nishitetsu was in charge ofPan American Airlines' Japanese operations (back then, Pan Am's jets were known as "Clippers" due to them being aeronauticalBoeing 314 Clipper).[3] The team finished sixth that year, and at the end of the season, Nishitetsu was merged with another professional baseball club in Fukuoka, theNishi-Nippon Pirates, which belonged to theCentral League and managed by a local newspaper company theNishinippon Shimbun. The new club was to form theNishitetsu Lions. Thus the Lions name was adopted and has been retained up to today as the name of the franchise.
The Nishitetsu Lions calledHeiwadai Stadium 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 straightJapan Series against theYomiuri Giants behind famed managerOsamu Mihara; 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 infamousBlack 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 theFukuoka Baseball Corporation, a shell company withinNishi-Nippon Railroad. Following the sale, the team was renamed theTaiheiyo Club Lions.
Nishi-Nippon Railroad, founded byNagayoshi Nakamura, then owner ofLotte Corporation and theOrions, sold the team's sponsorship rights toTaiheiyo 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.
At the end of the 1976 season, the Fukuoka Baseball Corporation announced that the team's new sponsor wasCrown Gas Lighter. With this, the team's name for the upcoming season was changed to theCrown Lighter Lions. On October 25, 1978, the team was sold to Kokudo Keikaku (later Kokudo), and then merged into Prince Hotels.
Following the sale of the Crown Lighter Lions and their merging into Prince Hotels, the team was renamed theSeibu Lions and relocated to a new ballpark northward inTokorozawa, Saitama, west of the Tokyo area. Fukuoka would be left without an NPB team until1989, when the erstwhileNankai Hawks were bought byDaiei (they are now owned by theSoftBank Group) and moved to the Lions' former stadium,Heiwadai Stadium.
The Lions finished in last place in1979 (something the team would not do again until2021), and finished in fourth place in1980 and1981. However, the following seasons would mark the beginning of a period of sustained success for the team under new managerTatsuro Hirooka and with star players such asOsamu Higashio andKōichi 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 strictlyvegetarian diet.[4] The club won consecutiveJapan Series in1982 and1983, and went to theJapan Series again in1985, but lost to theHanshin Tigers, 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 ininterleague play when it was introduced in 2005).
Following the 1986 season, the club replaced Hirooka withMasaaki Mori, 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 in1986,1987,1988,1990,1991, and1992.
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 asKoji Akiyama,Kazuhiro Kiyohara andOrestes Destrade. Their defense also benefited from the services of skilled players such asHiromichi Ishige,Romeo Calhoun,Hatsuhiko Tsuji and catcherTsutomu Ito. Among the pitchers employed by the Lions in this period was "The Oriental Express"Taigen Kaku,Kimiyasu Kudoh,Hisanobu Watanabe, and relieversYoshitaka Katori andTetsuya Shiozaki.
| Name | position | Title and accomplishment | Note |
|---|---|---|---|
| Koji Akiyama | CF | Home Run title 1987,Stolen Base title 1990, Golden Glove 1987–1996, 1999 437 HR and 303 SB in career | Belonged toFukuoka Daiei Hawks from 1994 to 2002. Hawks manager from 2009 to 2014. |
| Kazuhiro Kiyohara | 1B | Rookie of the year 1986, Golden Glove (1988,1990, 1992–1994), 525 HR and 1527 RBIs in career | Belonged toYomiuri Giants from 1997 to 2005,Orix Buffaloes from 2006 to 2008. Retired in 2008. |
| Orestes Destrade | DH | Home Run title 1990–1992,RBI Title 1990–1991 | Played 1993–1994 seasons withFlorida Marlins of MLB. |
| Hiromichi Ishige | SS | Rookie of the year, Golden Glove 1981–1983, 1985–1988, 1991–1993,MVP 1986 | Manager ofOrix BlueWave from 2002 to 2003. |
| Hatsuhiko Tsuji | 2B | Batting title 1993, Golden Glove 1986, 1988–1994 | Played forYakult Swallows in 1996, retired after '96 season. Current Lions manager. |
| Tsutomu Ito | C | Golden Glove 1985–1988, 1990–1992, 1994–1995, 1997–1998 | Retired in 2003, Lions manager from 2004 to 2007, Marines manager from 2013 to 2017. CurrentChunichi Dragons head coach. |
| Hisanobu Watanabe | P | Winning Percentage title 1986, 1988, 1990,ERA Title 1986,Strikeout title 1986, Golden Glove 1990,No-hitter 1996 | Played forYakult Swallows in 1998, retired from NPB after '98 season. Lions manager from 2008 to 2013. |
| Osamu Higashio | P | Wins Champion 1975,1983,ERA Title 1983,Strikeout title 1975,MVP 1983, 1987, Golden Glove 1983–1987 | Member of Lions through four different team owners (Nishitetsu, Taiheyo Club, Crown Lighter, Seibu). Lions manager from 1995 to 2001. |
| Terry Whitfield | OF | Best Nine Award 1981, 1983 | |
| Steve Ontiveros | 3B | OBP 1983, 1984Best Nine Award 1982, 1983 | |
| Taigen Kaku | P | MVP1991, Golden Glove 1991–1992,No-hitter 1985 | Retired in 1996.Taiwan national team manager 2007. |
| Kimiyasu Kudoh | P | ERA title 1985,1987,1993,1999,Winning Percentage Title1987,1991,1993,2000,Strikeout title 1996,1999, Golden Glove 1994–1995,2000,MVP 1999, longest NPB career as player (28 years) | Belonged toFukuoka Daiei Hawks from 1994,Yomiuri Giants from 2000,Yokohama BayStars from 2007 to 2009, returned to Lions in 2010. Only active player in "Golden Age" in 2010 season. Manager of the Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks from 2015 to 2021, winning 5 championships including 4 straight from 2017 to 2020. |
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 theJapan Series. The team logo and uniforms were further modified for the2009 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 theChiba Lotte Marines in 2010 and 2013, theTohoku Rakuten Golden Eagles in 2017, and to theFukuoka SoftBank Hawks 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 (Yomiuri Giants) straight to theJapan Series. In 2021, the Lions finished in 6th and last place for the first time since 1979 with a 55–70–18 record.
| Year | Team Name | Finish | Playoffs |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1950 | Nishitetsu Clippers | 5th, Pacific | Did not qualify |
| 1951 | Nishitetsu Lions | 2nd, Pacific | Did not qualify |
| 1952 | Nishitetsu Lions | 3rd, Pacific | Did not qualify |
| 1953 | Nishitetsu Lions | 4th, Pacific | Did not qualify |
| 1954 | Nishitetsu Lions | 1st, Pacific | Lost Japan Series (3–4, Dragons) |
| 1955 | Nishitetsu Lions | 2nd, Pacific | Did not qualify |
| 1956 | Nishitetsu Lions | 1st, Pacific | Won Japan Series (4–2, Giants) |
| 1957 | Nishitetsu Lions | 1st, Pacific | Won Japan Series (4–0, Giants) |
| 1958 | Nishitetsu Lions | 1st, Pacific | Won Japan Series (4–3, Giants) |
| 1959 | Nishitetsu Lions | 4th, Pacific | Did not qualify |
| 1960 | Nishitetsu Lions | 3rd, Pacific | Did not qualify |
| 1961 | Nishitetsu Lions | 3rd, Pacific | Did not qualify |
| 1962 | Nishitetsu Lions | 3rd, Pacific | Did not qualify |
| 1963 | Nishitetsu Lions | 1st, Pacific | Lost Japan Series (3–4, Giants) |
| 1964 | Nishitetsu Lions | 5th, Pacific | Did not qualify |
| 1965 | Nishitetsu Lions | 3rd, Pacific | Did not qualify |
| 1966 | Nishitetsu Lions | 2nd, Pacific | Did not qualify |
| 1967 | Nishitetsu Lions | 2nd, Pacific | Did not qualify |
| 1968 | Nishitetsu Lions | 5th, Pacific | Did not qualify |
| 1969 | Nishitetsu Lions | 5th, Pacific | Did not qualify |
| 1970 | Nishitetsu Lions | 6th, Pacific | Did not qualify |
| 1971 | Nishitetsu Lions | 6th, Pacific | Did not qualify |
| 1972 | Nishitetsu Lions | 6th, Pacific | Did not qualify |
| 1973 | Taiheiyo Club Lions | 4th, Pacific | Did not qualify |
| 1974 | Taiheiyo Club Lions | 4th, Pacific | Did not qualify |
| 1975 | Taiheiyo Club Lions | 3rd, Pacific | Did not qualify |
| 1976 | Taiheiyo Club Lions | 6th, Pacific | Did not qualify |
| 1977 | Crown Lighter Lions | 6th, Pacific | Did not qualify |
| 1978 | Crown Lighter Lions | 5th, Pacific | Did not qualify |
| 1979 | Seibu Lions | 6th, Pacific | Did not qualify |
| 1980 | Seibu Lions | 4th, Pacific | Did not qualify |
| 1981 | Seibu Lions | 4th, Pacific | Did not qualify |
| 1982 | Seibu Lions | 1st, Pacific | Won Japan Series (4–2, Dragons) |
| 1983 | Seibu Lions | 1st, Pacific | Won Japan Series (4–3, Giants) |
| 1984 | Seibu Lions | 3rd, Pacific | Did not qualify |
| 1985 | Seibu Lions | 1st, Pacific | Lost Japan Series (2–4, Tigers) |
| 1986 | Seibu Lions | 1st, Pacific | Won Japan Series (4–3, Carp) |
| 1987 | Seibu Lions | 1st, Pacific | Won Japan Series (4–2, Giants) |
| 1988 | Seibu Lions | 1st, Pacific | Won Japan Series (4–1, Dragons) |
| 1989 | Seibu Lions | 3rd, Pacific | Did not qualify |
| 1990 | Seibu Lions | 1st, Pacific | Won Japan Series (4–0, Giants) |
| 1991 | Seibu Lions | 1st, Pacific | Won Japan Series (4–3, Carp) |
| 1992 | Seibu Lions | 1st, Pacific | Won Japan Series (4–3, Swallows) |
| 1993 | Seibu Lions | 1st, Pacific | Lost Japan Series (3–4, Swallows) |
| 1994 | Seibu Lions | 1st, Pacific | Lost Japan Series (2–4, Giants) |
| 1995 | Seibu Lions | 3rd, Pacific | Did not qualify |
| 1996 | Seibu Lions | 3rd, Pacific | Did not qualify |
| 1997 | Seibu Lions | 1st, Pacific | Lost Japan Series (1–4, Swallows) |
| 1998 | Seibu Lions | 1st, Pacific | Lost Japan Series (2–4, BayStars) |
| 1999 | Seibu Lions | 2nd, Pacific | Did not qualify |
| 2000 | Seibu Lions | 2nd, Pacific | Did not qualify |
| 2001 | Seibu Lions | 3rd, Pacific | Did not qualify |
| 2002 | Seibu Lions | 1st, Pacific | Lost Japan Series (0–4, Giants) |
| 2003 | Seibu Lions | 2nd, Pacific | Did not qualify |
| 2004 | Seibu Lions | 1st, Pacific | Won Japan Series (4–3, Dragons) |
| 2005 | Seibu Lions | 3rd, Pacific | Lost CS First Stage (0–2, Marines) |
| 2006 | Seibu Lions | 2nd, Pacific | Lost CS First Stage (1–2, Hawks) |
| 2007 | Seibu Lions | 5th, Pacific | Did not qualify |
| 2008 | Saitama Seibu Lions | 1st, Pacific | Won Japan Series (4–3, Giants) |
| 2009 | Saitama Seibu Lions | 4th, Pacific | Did not qualify |
| 2010 | Saitama Seibu Lions | 2nd, Pacific | Lost CS First Stage (0–2, Marines) |
| 2011 | Saitama Seibu Lions | 3rd, Pacific | Lost CS Final Stage (0–4, Hawks) |
| 2012 | Saitama Seibu Lions | 2nd, Pacific | Lost CS First Stage (1–2, Hawks) |
| 2013 | Saitama Seibu Lions | 2nd, Pacific | Lost CS First Stage (1–2, Marines) |
| 2014 | Saitama Seibu Lions | 5th, Pacific | Did not qualify |
| 2015 | Saitama Seibu Lions | 4th, Pacific | Did not qualify |
| 2016 | Saitama Seibu Lions | 4th, Pacific | Did not qualify |
| 2017 | Saitama Seibu Lions | 2nd, Pacific | Lost CS First Stage (1–2, Golden Eagles) |
| 2018 | Saitama Seibu Lions | 1st, Pacific | Lost CS Final Stage (2–4, Hawks) |
| 2019 | Saitama Seibu Lions | 1st, Pacific | Lost CS Final Stage (1–4, Hawks) |
| 2020 | Saitama Seibu Lions | 3rd, Pacific | Did not qualify |
| 2021 | Saitama Seibu Lions | 6th, Pacific | Did not qualify |
| 2022 | Saitama Seibu Lions | 3rd, Pacific | Lost CS First Stage (0–2, Hawks) |
| 2023 | Saitama Seibu Lions | 5th, Pacific | Did not qualify |
| 2024 | Saitama Seibu Lions | 6th, Pacific | Did not qualify |
| No. | Years in office | YR | Managers | G | W | L | T | Win% | Pacific League championships | Japan Series championships | Playoff berths |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 1950 | 1 | Kaname Miyazaki | 120 | 51 | 67 | 2 | .432 | |||
| 2 | 1951-1959 | 9 | Osamu Mihara | 1,189 | 680 | 458 | 51 | .598 | 4 times (1954,1956, 1957,1958) | 3 times (1956,1957,1958) | |
| 3 | 1960-1961 | 2 | Tokuji Kawasaki | 276 | 151 | 116 | 9 | .566 | |||
| 4 | 1962-1969 | 8 | Futoshi Nakanishi | 1,117 | 531 | 541 | 45 | .495 | 1 (1963) | ||
| 5 | 1970-1974 | 5 | Kazuhisa Inao | 650 | 246 | 370 | 34 | .399 | |||
| 6 | 1975 | 1 | Shinichi Eto | 130 | 58 | 62 | 10 | .483 | |||
| 7 | 1976 | 0 | Leo Durocher | — | — | — | — | — | |||
| 8 | 1976-1977 | 2 | Masaichi Kito | 260 | 93 | 149 | 18 | .384 | |||
| 9 | 1978-1981 | 4 | Rikuo Nemoto | 520 | 219 | 265 | 36 | .452 | |||
| 10 | 1982-1985 | 4 | Tatsuro Hirooka | 520 | 295 | 204 | 21 | .591 | 3 times (1982,1983,1985) | 2 (1982,1983 | 1 (1982) |
| 11 | 1986-1994 | 9 | Masaaki Mori | 1,170 | 673 | 438 | 59 | .606 | 8 times (1986,1987,1988, 1990,1991,1992, 1993,1994) | 6 times (1986,1987,1988, 1990,1991,1992) | |
| 12 | 1995-2001 | 7 | Osamu Higashio | 937 | 489 | 425 | 23 | .535 | 2 (1997,1998) | ||
| 13 | 2002-2003 | 2 | Haruki Ihara (1st) | 280 | 167 | 110 | 3 | .603 | 1 (2002) | ||
| 14 | 2004-2007 | 4 | Tsutomu Itoh | 549 | 287 | 257 | 5 | .528 | 1 (2004) | 1 (2004) | 3 times (2004,2005,2006) |
| 15 | 2008-2013 | 6 | Hisanobu Watanabe | 864 | 438 | 395 | 31 | .526 | 1 (2008) | 1 (2008) | 5 times (2008,2010,2011, 2012,2013) |
| 16 | 2014 | 1 | Haruki Ihara (2nd) | 144 | 63 | 77 | 4 | .450 | |||
| 17 | 2015-2016 | 2 | Norio Tanabe | 286 | 133 | 145 | 8 | .478 | |||
| 18 | 2017–2022 | 6 | Hatsuhiko Tsuji | 835 | 432 | 372 | 31 | .537 | 2 (2018,2019) | 4 (,2017,2018,2019,2022) | |
| 19 | 2023–2024 | 2 | Kazuo Matsui | 188 | 80 | 107 | 1 | .428 | |||
| 20 | 2025– | 1 | Fumiya Nishiguchi | . | |||||||
| Totals | 71 seasons | 17 managers | 9,564 | 4,882 | 4,313 | 369 | .531 | 23 times | 13 times | 12 times |
Hiroshi Ohshita (大下 弘) 1952–1959Futoshi Nakanishi (中西 太) 1952–1969
Phil Paine (フィル・ペイン) 1953Yasumitsu Toyoda (豊田 泰光) 1953–1962Akira Ohgi (仰木 彬) 1954–1968Kazuhisa Inao (稲尾 和久) 1956–1969Osamu Higashio (東尾 修) 1969–1988Yoshiharu Wakana (若菜 嘉晴) 1972–1978Akinobu Mayumi (真弓 明信) 1973–1978
Mateo Alou (マティ・アルー) 1974–1976Yutaka Saotome (五月女 豊) 1976–1981Yoshiie Tachibana (立花 義家) 1977–1991Terry Whitfield (テリー・ウィットフィールド, テリー) 1981–1983Koichi Tabuchi (田淵 幸一) 1979–1984Hiroyuki Yamazaki (山崎 裕之) 1979–1984Steve Ontiveros (スティーブ・オンティベロス, スティーブ) 1980–1985Yutaka Enatsu (江夏 豊) 1984George Vukovich (ジョージ・ブコビッチ) 1986–1987Ty Van Burkleo (タイラー・バンバークレオ, バークレオ) 1987–1990Masahiro Doi (土井 正博) 1975–1981Kouji Akiyama (秋山 幸二) 1981–1993Seiji Tomashino (笘篠 誠治) 1983–1997Hiromichi Ishige (石毛 宏典) 1981–1994Tsutomu Itō (伊東 勤) 1982–2003Kimiyasu Kudo (工藤 公康) 1982–1994, 2010Hatsuhiko Tsuji (辻 発彦) 1984–1995
Kuo Tai-yuan (郭 泰源) 1985–1997Norio Tanabe (田辺 徳雄) 1985–1999Kazuhiro Kiyohara (清原 和博) 1986–1996
Orestes Destrade (オレステス・デストラーデ) 1989–1992, 1995Takehiro Ishii (石井 丈裕) 1989–1997Ken Suzuki (鈴木 健) 1989–2002Tetsuya Shiozaki (潮崎 哲也) 1990–2004Hiroshi Shintani (新谷 博) 1992–1999Romeo Calhoun 1993–1998Makoto Sasaki (佐々木 誠) 1994–1998Kazuo Matsui (松井 稼頭央) 1994–2003, 2018Darrin Jackson (ダリン・ジャクソン) 1995–1996Fumiya Nishiguchi (西口 文也) 1995–2015Denney Tomori (デニー 友利, デニー) 1997–2002Domingo Martínez (ドミンゴ・マルティネス) 1997–1998Shinji Mori (森 慎二) 1997–2005James L. Byers (ジェームズ・バイアーズ) 1998–2000Tony Fernández (トニー・フェルナンデス) 2000Corey Paul (コーリー・ポール) 1999–2001Kazuhiro Wada (和田 一浩) 1997–2007Daisuke Matsuzaka (松坂 大輔) 1999–2006, 2021Hsu Ming-Chieh (許 銘傑) 2000–2011Scott McClain (スコット・マクレーン) 2001–2004Chang Chih-Chia (張 誌家) 2002–2006
Alex Cabrera (アレックス・カブレラ) 2001–2007Hiroyuki Nakajima (中島 裕之) 2001–2012Alex Graman (アレックス・グラマン) 2006–2011Kazuhisa Ishii (石井 一久) 2008–2013Yusei Kikuchi (菊池 雄星) 2010–2018Ken Togame (十亀 剣) 2012–2022
Michael Nakamura (マイケル 中村, MICHAEL) 2012Esteban Germán (エステバン・ヘルマン) 2012–2013Ernesto Mejía (エルネスト・メヒア) 2014–2021Tomoya Mori (森 友哉) 2014–2022Hotaka Yamakawa (山川 穂高) 2014–2023Tatsushi Masuda (増田 達至) 2013–2024Yuji Kaneko (金子 侑司) 2013–2024Team announcedKazuhisa Inao's No.24 was the first retired number of the Lions on May 1, 2012.
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Retired From MLB:
The Lions farm team plays in theEastern 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.
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