Nippon Professional Baseball is a professional baseball league and the highest level of baseball in Japan. Locally, it is often called Puro Yakyū (プロ野球), meaning simply Professional Baseball; outside of Japan, NPB is often referred to as "Japanese baseball."
The Brooklyn Dodgers were an American football team that played in the National Football League from 1930 to 1943, and in 1944 as the Brooklyn Tigers. The team played its home games at Ebbets Field of the baseball National League's team, the Brooklyn Dodgers. In 1945, because of financial difficulties and the increasing scarcity of major league–level players because of the war-time defense requirements at the height of World War II, the team was merged with the Boston Yanks and were known as the Yanks for that season.
The Japanese Baseball League was a professional baseball league in Japan which operated from 1936 to 1949, before reorganizing in 1950 as Nippon Professional Baseball.
Cecil Howell Travis was an American professional baseball player and scout. He played his entire career in Major League Baseball as a shortstop and third baseman for the Washington Senators from 1933 to 1947, losing four seasons to military service during World War II. He led the American League in hits in 1941 and his career batting average of .314 is a record for American League shortstops, and ranks third among all shortstops behind Honus Wagner (.327) and Arky Vaughan (.318).
James Vincent "Jim" Castiglia was an American football fullback in the National Football League (NFL) for the Washington Redskins and Philadelphia Eagles as well as the Baltimore Colts of the All-America Football Conference (AAFC). He also briefly played Major League Baseball as a catcher for the Philadelphia Athletics.
The Shochiku Robins were a Japanese baseball team that played in Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB). The franchise originated in the Japanese Baseball League and existed from 1936–1953, when it merged with the Taiyo Whales. Originally based in Tokyo, the club moved to Osaka in 1941.
The Hyundai Unicorns were a South Korean professional baseball team based in Suwon. They were a member of the KBO League. The Unicorns won the KBO championship four times.
The history of professional baseball in Allentown, Pennsylvania dates back 138 years, starting with the formation of the Allentown Dukes in 1884 and continuing through the present with its hosting of the Allentown-based Lehigh Valley IronPigs, the Triple-A Minor League affiliate of the Philadelphia Phillies of Major League Baseball, who play at Coca-Cola Park on the city's East Side.
Takehiko Bessho, born Akira Bessho, was a Japanese baseball player whose professional career as a player lasted from 1942 until 1960. Bessho first achieved fame as a pitcher in Japanese professional baseball; later, he served as a Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB) manager.
The Paducah Chiefs are a collegiate summer baseball team in Paducah, Kentucky. They are a member of the Ohio Valley League. The Chiefs has been the primary nickname for various Paducah teams, who began play in 1897.
The Daiei Stars were a Japanese professional baseball team that was founded in 1946, and played in various incarnations until 1957, when it merged with another team. Overall, the franchise only had three winning seasons, never rising higher than third place. The team was in the second division, or B-class, for seven seasons, including its last four years of existence. The Stars played in Korakuen Stadium in Bunkyo, Tokyo.
The Elizabethton Phils were a Minor League Baseball team that played in the Class D Appalachian League from 1937 to 1942 and 1945 to 1951. They were located in Elizabethton, Tennessee, and played their home games at Cherokee Park.
The Nishitetsu Baseball Club was a team in the Japanese Baseball League (JBL). Founded in 1936 as the Tokyo Senators, the team went through a number of name changes and mergers before being dissolved after the 1943 season.
Nagoya Kinko was a Japanese baseball team that played in the Japanese Baseball League (JBL) before it merged with another team. It was owned by the daily broadsheet Nagoya Shimbun. Notable players for the team over the course of its existence included Harris McGalliard, Herb North, and Toshio Kurosawa.
Saburo Yokozawa (1904–1995) is a Japanese former professional baseball manager and umpire. He was involved in various iterations of Japanese professional baseball from 1929 through 1959.
Jirō Noguchi was a Japanese baseball pitcher and outfielder/infielder who played 13 seasons in the Japanese Baseball League and then Nippon Professional Baseball, from 1939 to 1952. A two-way player who really excelled at pitching, Noguchi was a six-time 20-game winner, a three-time 30-game winner, and once won 40 games in a season. His 1.96 career earned run average is second all-time. As a batter, Noguchi had a 31-game hitting streak, a Japanese professional baseball record which stood for 25 years. He was elected to the Japanese Baseball Hall of Fame in 1989.
Akira Noguchi was a Japanese baseball pitcher, infielder, catcher, and manager who played 15 total seasons in the Japanese Baseball League and then Nippon Professional Baseball, during the period 1936 to 1955. The rare two-way player, Noguchi was particularly unusual in that he excelled in the specialized positions of both pitcher and catcher.
Komajirō Tamura was a Japanese businessman and professional baseball team owner.
Minor league baseball teams were based in Fulton, Kentucky in various seasons between 1911 and 1955. Fulton teams played exclusively as members of the Class D level Kentucky–Illinois–Tennessee League under differing names in five different decades, winning three league championships and two league pennants. Fulton was a minor league affiliate of the Detroit Tigers from 1939 to 1942 and Washington Senators from 1948 to 1955. Fulton minor league teams hosted home games at High Street Park from 1922 to 1924 and Fairfield Park between 1936 and 1955.
