Nippon Professional Baseball or NPB is the highest level of baseball in Japan. Locally, it is often called Puro Yakyū (プロ野球), meaning Professional Baseball. Outside of Japan, it is often referred to as "Japanese baseball".
The Asia Series was an international club baseball competition, contested by the champions of all four of the professional leagues that are associated with the World Baseball Softball Confederation (WBSC) — Australian Baseball League (ABL), Chinese Professional Baseball League (CPBL), Korea Baseball Organization League, and Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB) — along with the CEB European Champion Cup holder and the host city, to bring the number of teams up to six.
Koji Uehara is a Japanese former professional baseball pitcher. He previously played for the Yomiuri Giants of Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB), as well as the Baltimore Orioles, Texas Rangers, Boston Red Sox, and Chicago Cubs of Major League Baseball (MLB).
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 (MLB) since 1986, contested in a best-of format against the All-Stars from Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB) or recently as of 2014 their national team Samurai Japan (SJP).
The 1986 MLB Japan All-Star Series was the first edition of the championship, a best-of-seven series between the All-Star teams from Major League Baseball (MLB) and Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB), then-called All-Japan.
The 2006 MLB Japan All-Star Series was the tenth edition of the championship, a best-of-five series between the All-Star teams from Major League Baseball (MLB) and Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB). After the 2006 championship, the series became defunct.
The 2004 MLB Japan All-Star Series was the ninth edition of the championship, a best-of-eight series between the All-Star teams from Major League Baseball (MLB) and Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB).
Shinnosuke Abe is a Japanese former professional baseball player who spent his entire 19-year career with Nippon Professional Baseball's Yomiuri Giants, serving as the team's captain from 2007 to 2014. He has twice been named the MVP of the Nippon Professional Baseball All-Star Series, in 2007 and 2010.
Ryosuke Kikuchi is a Japanese professional baseball player for the Hiroshima Toyo Carp of the Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB).
Tetsuto Yamada is a Japanese professional baseball infielder for the Tokyo Yakult Swallows of Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB). Yamada made his NPB debut in 2012 with Yakult. He has won the Central League MVP award, has received the Best Nine Award six times, has been selected to six NPB All-Star Series appearances, and has a Japan Series championship. He has led the Central League in stolen bases three times and home runs once, hitting 30 home runs and stealing 30 bases in a single season on four occasions. In 2014 he broke the single season record for most hits by a Japanese right-hander in the NPB, and in 2015 became the first player in NPB history to lead his league in home runs and stolen bases in the same season. He has been compared to Mike Trout for his combination of power and speed.
Kodai Senga is a Japanese professional baseball pitcher for the New York Mets of Major League Baseball (MLB). He made his Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB) debut in 2012 for the Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks, and played for them until 2022. He is a three-time NPB All-Star and a one-time MLB All-Star.
The 2014 MLB Japan All-Star Series was the eleventh edition of the MLB Japan All-Star Series, a best-of-five series between the All-Star team from Major League Baseball (MLB) and, for the first time in series history, the national team Samurai Japan. The then-new Commissioner of Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB) saw in this championship a big opportunity for their Japanese team to gain hugely useful experience for the 2017 World Baseball Classic.
The 2002 MLB Japan All-Star Series was the eighth edition of the championship, a best-of-eight series between the All-Star teams from Major League Baseball (MLB) and Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB).
The 1988 MLB Japan All-Star Series was the second edition of the championship, a best-of-seven series between the All-Star teams from Major League Baseball (MLB) and Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB), then-called All-Japan.
The 1992 MLB Japan All-Star Series was the fourth edition of the championship, a best-of-eight series between the All-Star teams from Major League Baseball (MLB) and Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB), then-called All-Japan.
The 1996 MLB Japan All-Star Series was the fifth edition of the championship, a best-of-eight series between the All-Star teams from Major League Baseball (MLB) and Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB), then-called All-Japan.
The 1998 MLB Japan All-Star Series was the sixth edition of the championship, a best-of-eight series between the All-Star teams from Major League Baseball (MLB) and Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB), then-called All-Japan.
The 2000 MLB Japan All-Star Series was the seventh edition of the championship, a best-of-eight series between the All-Star teams from Major League Baseball (MLB) and Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB).
Shuta Tonosaki, nicknamed "Apple Punch", is a Japanese professional baseball infielder for the Saitama Seibu Lions in Japan's Nippon Professional Baseball.
Sōsuke Genda is a Japanese professional baseball infielder for the Saitama Seibu Lions in Japan's Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB).
