Japan national baseball team

Japan national baseball team
Uniforms

Country	Japan
Federation	Baseball Federation of Japan
Confederation	Baseball Federation of Asia
Manager	Hiroki Kokubo
WBSC World Rank	1st
2009 World Baseball Classic
World Baseball Classic
Appearances	3 (First in 2006)
Best result	1st (2 times, most recent in 2009)
Olympic Games
Appearances	5 (First in 1992)
Best result	2nd (1 time, in 1996)
World Cup
Appearances	15 (First in 1972)
Best result	2nd (1 time, in 1982)
Intercontinental Cup
Appearances	15 (First in 1973)
Best result	1st (2 times, most recent in 1997)
Asian Games
Appearances	4 (First in 1994)
Best result	1st (1 time, in 1994)
Asian Championship
Appearances	25 (First in 1954)
Best result	1st (16 times, most recent in 2009)

The Japan national baseball team is the national team representing Japan in international baseball competitions. They have won the World Baseball Classic in 2006 and 2009. The team is currently ranked #1 in the world by the International Baseball Federation.^[1] The team has been nicknamed "Samurai Japan" (侍ジャパン).^[2]

The team participated in every Summer Olympic Games since the first demonstration tournament in 1984 through when it was discontinued following the 2008 Beijing Games. Until 2000, the team was made up exclusively of amateur players. Since the 2000 Summer Olympics, the team has been composed of players from Nippon Professional Baseball. The team playing in the 2006 World Baseball Classic included Japanese players from Major League Baseball as well. In the Classic, the team played in Pool A and placed second, advancing to round two. They went on to win the Classic. They played at the Beijing Olympics in 2008, as they had qualified through the Asian Baseball Championship in 2007. Unlike the WBC roster, the Olympic team was exclusively formed by NPB players (but included one amateur player, who was drafted during the tournament's progress).

Like other national teams in Japan, the nickname is usually prefixed with the surname of the manager. However, in the 2009 World Baseball Classic, the team used Samurai, a symbol of Japan's history, instead of Hara, the surname of their manager. In 2012, it was adopted officially.

Regional competition

Asian Baseball Championship

Main article: Asian Baseball Championship

Japan have dominated the Asian Baseball Championship since its inception, and have competed in every year. Japan have never missed out on placing in the top 3 in any tournament, and is the only team to have achieved this feat. Japan also holds the record for most consecutive Asian Championships, having won four times in a row on two separate occasions, including the four most recent tournaments to be held.

Asian Games

Main article: Baseball at the Asian Games

In all four Asian Games to include baseball, Japan have placed in the top 3 in every tournament, though they have only won the tournament once in the first event held in Hiroshima in 1994.

International competition

2009 World Baseball Classic finals. Kenji Johjima and Yu Darvish

World Baseball Classic Championship Trophy

World Baseball Classic

Main article: World Baseball Classic

2006

Japan won the inaugural 2006 World Baseball Classic, defeating Cuba in the Final.

2009

Japan also won the 2009 World Baseball Classic, hosting the Pool A games in the Tokyo Dome. Japan started the tournament opener with a 4–0 win over China. Japan then secured advancement into the second round with a 14–2 win in seven innings over rival South Korea. The game was shortened due to the WBC's mercy rule. Japan then played South Korea again to determine seeding for the second round. In the rematch, the Koreans shut out Japan 1–0, making Japan advance as the Pool A runner-up. In Pool 1 of the WBC quarter-finals, Japan defeated Cuba 6–0, but lost to Korea again 4–1. In the elimination match that followed, Japan secured a spot in the semi-finals with a 5–0 win over Cuba. Japan defeated South Korea in the Finals 5–3 partly because of an Ichiro Suzuki base hit in the 10th inning.

2013: The end of the championship streak

Japan, the two-time world defending champions, enters the 2013 World Baseball Classic, hosting Pool A games in the Fukuoka Dome, facing off against Cuba, China and newcomers Brazil. Despite their first loss against the Cuban team, they have secured their position for the second round in 2013 World Baseball Classic – Pool 1 to face off the Netherlands and Chinese Taipei. The Japanese team narrowly wins against Chinese Taipei 4-3 before proceeding to face off the Dutch team, winning against them twice before proceeding to the semi-final round, along with the Netherlands, as they face off against Puerto Rico. Despite Japan's efforts, they eventually lose 3-1 against the Puerto Rican team right after Alex Ríos scored two additional runs from a home run. Japan finishes third in the 2013 WBC, as their two-time championship streak has ended. The Japanese team bowed out to both the crowd and the Puerto Rican team as a gesture of respect.

2013 WBC roster

Japan National Baseball Team roster

Players

Coaches

Pitchers

Catchers

Infielders

Outfielders

Manager

83 Koji Yamamoto

Coaches

MLB Japan All-Star Series

Main article: MLB Japan All-Star Series

Since 1986 an All-Star team from Major League Baseball (MLB) is sent to a biennial end-of-the-season tour of Japan, dubbed as MLB Japan All-Star Series, playing exhibition games in a best-of format against the All-Stars from NPB or recently as of 2014 the Samurai Japan.

International Tournament Results

World Baseball Classic

Japan World Baseball Classic
Tournament Results
Japan / United States 2006	1st
Japan / United States 2009	1st
Japan / United States 2013	3rd
Medal Tally
Gold	2006, 2009
Silver	-
Bronze	2013

World Baseball Classic record								Qualification record
Year	Host(s)	Round	Position	W	L	RS	RA	Host	W	L	RS	RA
2006	Japan/United States	Final	1st	5	3	60	21	No qualifiers held
2009	Japan/United States	Final	1st	7	2	50	16	No qualifiers held
2013	Japan/United States	Semifinal	3rd	5	2	44	27	Automatically qualified
2017								Automatically qualified
Total	4/4			17	7	154	64		-	-	-	-

Olympic Games

Summer Olympics record								Qualification
Year	Host	Round	Position	W	L	RS	RA	Qualification
1964	Japan	Exhibition only		0	1	2	6
1984	United States	Finals	1st ^{[lower-alpha 1]}	4	1	33	11
1988	South Korea	Finals	2nd ^{[lower-alpha 1]}	4	1	27	17
1992	Spain	Finals	3rd	6	3	70	22
1996	United States	Finals	2nd	5	4	77	59
2000	Australia	Finals	4th	4	5	42	29	1999 Asian Baseball Championship
2004	Greece	Finals	3rd	7	2	60	23	2003 Asian Baseball Championship
2008	People's Republic of China	Finals	4th	4	5	36	28	2007 Asian Baseball Championship
Total ^{[lower-alpha 2]}	5/5			26	19	285	161

1 2 No medals awarded; tournament was a demonstration sport only
↑ Totals only include years 1992 to 2008, during which baseball was an official medal sport.

Baseball World Cup

1972 : 4th
1973 : did not qualify
1974 : did not qualify
1976 : 3rd
1978 : 4th
1980 : 3rd

1982 : 2nd
1984 : 4th
1986 : 5th
1988 : 4th
1990 : 5th
1994 : 3rd

1998 : 5th
2001 : 4th
2003 : 3rd
2005 : 5th
2007 : 3rd
2009 : 10th
2011 : 12th