The 1998 Japan Series was the 48th meeting between the champions of the Central and Pacific Leagues. The Seibu Lions

Seibu Lions

The are a professional baseball team in Japan's Pacific League based west of Tokyo in Tokorozawa, Saitama. Before 1979, they were based in Fukuoka in Kyushu. The team is owned by a subsidiary of Prince Hotels, which in turn is owned by the Seibu Group...

 represented the Pacific League

Pacific League

The or 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 annual Japan Series...

, while the Yokohama BayStars

Yokohama BayStars

The are a professional baseball team in the Japanese Central League. Home field is the Yokohama Stadium, located in central Yokohama. The clubhouse is located near the stadium....

 represented the Central League

Central League

The or is one 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 in the annual Japan Series. It currently consists of six teams from around the country,The Central League...

. The BayStars won the series in six games, giving them their first Japan Series championship since 1960.

Background

This was a matchup of one of the most successful teams in the last two decades against one of the least successful. The Lions were the team of the 1980's, winning eight championships from 1982 to 1992, and making five straight appearances in the championship series from 1990 until 1994. On the other hand, the BayStars had not won the Japan Series since 1960, when the team was known as the Taiyō Whales, and had not made any appearances since.

Seibu Lions

This Seibu team was far different from the dominating teams that they enjoyed in the 1980's. Fumiya Nishiguchi

Fumiya Nishiguchi

, born September 26, 1972 in Wakayama, Japan) is a Japanese baseball player. He is a right-handed pitcher in Japan's Nippon Professional Baseball for the Seibu Lions.-External links:...

 (13-12, 3.38) led the Lions pitching staff, which was also anchored in the bullpen by Denny Tomori, Shinji Mori

Shinji Mori

Shinji Mori is a right-handed pitcher.From -, he played for the Seibu Lions in Nippon Professional Baseball. After the 2005 season, he was acquired by the Tampa Bay Devil Rays through the posting system....

, and Kiyoshi Toyoda

Kiyoshi Toyoda

Kiyoshi Toyoda is a Japanese professional baseball player. He is currently with the Hiroshima Toyo Carp in Japan's Nippon Professional Baseball.-External links:...

. Offensively, the Lions had Kazuo Matsui

Kazuo Matsui

is a Japanese second baseman for the Tohoku Rakuten Golden Eagles of Nippon Professional Baseball. Matsui is a switch-hitter...

 at the top of the lineup, as he batted .311 and stole 43 bases. Rudy Pemberton and Ken Suzuki supplied the power numbers for the Lions.

Yokohama BayStars

The team's offense was known as the "Machine Gun Offense," since the BayStars led the league in batting average and were capable of rapping out hits in quick succession at practically any time. Takanori Suzuki (.337), Bobby Rose (.325), and team captain Takuro Ishii

Takuro Ishii

Takuro Ishii is a Japanese professional baseball player. He currently plays for Hiroshima Toyo Carp. He bats left-handed and throws right-handed....

 (.314) led the team with their hitting prowess, and their teammates in the batting order all followed suit. Pitching-wise, Yokohama was led by Takashi Saito

Takashi Saito

is a Japanese professional baseball player.Saito previously pitched for the Yokohama BayStars in the Japanese Central League, compiling a record of 87–80 over 13 seasons...

 and Daisuke Miura

Daisuke Miura

Daisuke Miura is a professional baseball player from Kashihara, Nara, Japan. He is a starting pitcher for the Yokohama BayStars....

 for starters, and Kazuhiro Sasaki

Kazuhiro Sasaki

Kazuhiro "Daimajin" Sasaki is a former Nippon Professional Baseball and Major League Baseball right-handed relief pitcher. He played his entire NPB career with the Yokohama Taiyo Whales / Yokohama BayStars...

 was practically automatic at closer, recording 45 saves and posting a microscopic 0.64 ERA.

Summary

Game	Score	Date	Location	Attendance
1	BayStars – 9, Lions – 4	October 18	Yokohama Stadium Yokohama Stadium is a stadium in Naka Ward, Yokohama, Japan. It opened in 1978 and holds 30,000 people.It is primarily used for baseball and is the home field of the Yokohama BayStars. The stadium is unique, because it features dirt around the bases and pitcher's mound, but with dirt colored turf infield and base...	29,025
2	BayStars – 4, Lions – 0	October 19	Yokohama Stadium Yokohama Stadium is a stadium in Naka Ward, Yokohama, Japan. It opened in 1978 and holds 30,000 people.It is primarily used for baseball and is the home field of the Yokohama BayStars. The stadium is unique, because it features dirt around the bases and pitcher's mound, but with dirt colored turf infield and base...	29,076
3	Lions – 7, BayStars – 3	October 22	Seibu Dome Seibu Dome is the home field of the Saitama Seibu Lions professional baseball team located in Tokorozawa, Saitama, Japan.The stadium has a roof over the field and the stands, like other indoor ballparks. However, it lacks a wall behind the stands so that natural air comes into the field. This makes it...	31,599
4	Lions – 4, BayStars – 2	October 23	Seibu Dome Seibu Dome is the home field of the Saitama Seibu Lions professional baseball team located in Tokorozawa, Saitama, Japan.The stadium has a roof over the field and the stands, like other indoor ballparks. However, it lacks a wall behind the stands so that natural air comes into the field. This makes it...	31,685
5	Lions – 5, BayStars – 17	October 24	Seibu Dome Seibu Dome is the home field of the Saitama Seibu Lions professional baseball team located in Tokorozawa, Saitama, Japan.The stadium has a roof over the field and the stands, like other indoor ballparks. However, it lacks a wall behind the stands so that natural air comes into the field. This makes it...	31,756
6	BayStars – 2, Lions – 1	October 26	Yokohama Stadium Yokohama Stadium is a stadium in Naka Ward, Yokohama, Japan. It opened in 1978 and holds 30,000 people.It is primarily used for baseball and is the home field of the Yokohama BayStars. The stadium is unique, because it features dirt around the bases and pitcher's mound, but with dirt colored turf infield and base...	29,289