| 1997 NPB season | |
|---|---|
| League | Nippon Professional Baseball |
| Sport | Baseball |
| Regular season | |
| Season MVP | CL: Atsuya Furuta (YAK) PL: Fumiya Nishiguchi (SEI) |
| League postseason | |
| CL champions | Yakult Swallows |
| CL runners-up | Yokohama BayStars |
| PL champions | Seibu Lions |
| PL runners-up | Orix BlueWave |
| Japan Series | |
| Champions | Yakult Swallows |
| Runners-up | Seibu Lions |
| Finals MVP | Atsuya Furuta (YAK) |
The 1997 Nippon Professional Baseball season was the 48th season of operation for the league.
| Central League [1] | G | W | L | T | Pct. | GB |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Yakult Swallows | 137 | 83 | 52 | 2 | .615 | -- |
| Yokohama BayStars | 135 | 72 | 63 | 0 | .533 | 11.0 |
| Hiroshima Toyo Carp | 135 | 66 | 69 | 0 | .489 | 17.0 |
| Yomiuri Giants | 135 | 63 | 72 | 0 | .467 | 20.0 |
| Hanshin Tigers | 136 | 62 | 73 | 1 | .459 | 21.0 |
| Chunichi Dragons | 136 | 59 | 76 | 1 | .437 | 24.0 |
| Pacific League [2] | G | W | L | T | Pct. | GB |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Seibu Lions | 135 | 76 | 56 | 3 | .576 | -- |
| Orix BlueWave | 135 | 71 | 61 | 3 | .538 | 5.0 |
| Kintetsu Buffaloes | 135 | 68 | 63 | 4 | .519 | 7.5 |
| Nippon-Ham Fighters | 135 | 63 | 71 | 1 | .470 | 14.0 |
| Fukuoka Daiei Hawks | 135 | 63 | 71 | 1 | .470 | 14.0 |
| Chiba Lotte Marines | 135 | 57 | 76 | 2 | .429 | 19.5 |
CL Yakult Swallows (4) vs. PL Seibu Lions (1)
| Game | Date | Score | Location | Time | Attendance |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | October 18 | Yakult Swallows – 1, Seibu Lions – 0 | Seibu Dome | 2:41 | 31,634 [3] |
| 2 | October 19 | Yakult Swallows – 5, Seibu Lions – 6 | Seibu Dome | 4:45 | 31,397 [3] |
| 3 | October 21 | Seibu Lions – 3, Yakult Swallows – 5 | Meiji Jingu Stadium | 3:25 | 32,867 [3] |
| 4 | October 22 | Seibu Lions – 1, Yakult Swallows – 7 | Meiji Jingu Stadium | 3:08 | 32,877 [3] |
| 5 | October 23 | Seibu Lions – 0, Yakult Swallows – 3 | Meiji Jingu Stadium | 2:50 | 33,056 [3] |