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The Saitama Seibu Lions are a professional baseball team in Japan's Pacific League based north of Tokyo in Tokorozawa,Saitama Prefecture. Before 1979,they were based in Fukuoka,Fukuoka Prefecture in Kyushu. The team is owned by a subsidiary of Seibu Railway,which in turn is owned by the Seibu Holdings. The team experienced a recent period of financial difficulty,but the situation brightened when the team received a record ¥6 billion posting fee from the Boston Red Sox for the right to negotiate a contract with Daisuke Matsuzaka. Between 1978 and 2008,the team logo and mascot were based on the adult version of Kimba the White Lion,a classic Japanese anime and manga series by Osamu Tezuka. In 2004,former Seibu Lions player Kazuo Matsui became the first Japanese infielder to play in Major League Baseball.
Hideki Irabu was a Japanese professional baseball player of American and Japanese mixed ancestry. He played professionally in both Japan and the United States. Irabu played for the Lotte Orions / Chiba Lotte Marines and Hanshin Tigers of Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB) and for the New York Yankees,Montreal Expos,and Texas Rangers of Major League Baseball (MLB).
Alex Joseph Graman is former Major League Baseball pitcher. He bats and throws left-handed. He retired in 2014.
Scott Kendrick Cooper is an American former professional baseball third baseman. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Boston Red Sox,St. Louis Cardinals,and Kansas City Royals,and in Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB) for the Seibu Lions.
Orestes Destrade is a Cuban American former professional baseball infielder. He played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the New York Yankees,Pittsburgh Pirates,and Florida Marlins. Destrade also played in Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB) for the Seibu Lions. He was also a broadcaster for the Tampa Bay Rays for 11 seasons. He was nicknamed "The Big O".
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Yusei Kikuchi is a Japanese professional baseball pitcher who is a free agent. He has played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Seattle Mariners,Toronto Blue Jays and Houston Astros and in Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB) for the Saitama Seibu Lions.
Kazuhisa Makita is a Japanese former professional baseball pitcher,and current the third squad pitching coach for the Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks of Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB).
Dietrich Enns is an American professional baseball pitcher for the LG Twins of the KBO League. He has previously played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Minnesota Twins and Tampa Bay Rays,and in Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB) for the Saitama Seibu Lions.
Mark D. Payton is an American professional baseball outfielder who is a free agent. He has previously played in Major League Baseball (MLB) for the Cincinnati Reds and Chicago White Sox and in Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB) for the Saitama Seibu Lions.
Kōsuke Noda is a former professional Japanese baseball catcher and current coach for the Saitama Seibu Lions in Japan's Nippon Professional Baseball.
Brooks Joseph Kriske is an American professional baseball pitcher for the Baltimore Orioles of Major League Baseball (MLB). He has previously played in MLB for the New York Yankees and Kansas City Royals. He has also played in Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB) for the Yokohama DeNA BayStars and Saitama Seibu Lions.
References
- ↑ Associated Press Published: May 18, 1996 12:00 am (May 18, 1996). "Yankees Banking On New Import From Japan". Deseret News. Archived from the original on February 13, 2019. Retrieved February 13, 2019.
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link) - ↑ Baseball / MLB. "Ex-Lion Maeda heads for China". The Japan Times. Retrieved February 13, 2019.
