Hanshin Tigers

Hanshin Tigers
Established 1935
Team logo Cap Insignia
League affiliations
Japanese Baseball League (1936-1949) Nippon Professional Baseball (1950–present) Central League (1950–present)
Current uniform
Retired Numbers	10, 11, 23
Colors	Yellow, Black, White
Name
Osaka Tigers (1935–1940) Hanshin (1940–1944) Osaka Tigers (1946–1960) Hanshin Tigers (1961–present)
Other nicknames
Tora (トラ?, tigers) Mōko (猛虎?, fierce tigers)
Ballpark
Koshien Stadium (1936–present)
League titles
Japan Series titles (1)	1985
CL Pennants (5)	1962, 1964, 1985, 2003, 2005
Japanese Baseball League titles (4)	Fall 1937, Spring 1938, 1944, 1947
Owner(s): Hanshin Electric Railway Co.
Manager: Yutaka Wada
General Manager: Shoji Numasawa
2011 Hanshin Tigers season

HANSHIN Tigers Co., Ltd.
株式会社阪神タイガース

Type	Kabushiki gaisha
Founded	Nishinomiya, Hyogo Prefecture, Japan (December 10, 1935(1935-12-10), Osaka
Headquarters	2-33, Koshiencho, Nishinomiya, Hyogo Prefecture, Japan
Parent	Hanshin Electric Railway Co., Ltd.
References: renamed "Hanshin Tigers Co., Ltd." in 1961

The Hanshin Tigers (阪神タイガース, Hanshin Taigāsu^?) are a Nippon Professional Baseball team based in Koshien, Nishinomiya, Hyōgo Prefecture, Japan, and are in the Central League. Hanshin Electric Railway Co., Ltd., the subsidiary of Hankyu Hanshin Holdings Inc., owns the Hanshin Tigers directly. The team's circular logo is very similar to the classic Detroit Tigers logo, except that the tiger in the Major League version is orange whereas Hanshin's is yellow. The Tigers' cap logo is very similar to that of the New York Yankees and they often wear similar pinstriped uniforms.

Though they are the sister team of the American baseball team Detroit Tigers, they are frequently compared to the Boston Red Sox. Both the Tigers and Red Sox have an enthusiastic fan base and play in older stadiums. The Tigers' rivalry with the Yomiuri Giants of Tokyo parallels the rivalry between the Red Sox and the New York Yankees. At one time both teams shared the title of "cursed"; leading to the Tigers' nickname of "Hard-Luck Hanshin." This idea is explored in Stephen King and Stewart O'Nan's 2004 book Faithful: Two Diehard Boston Red Sox Fans Chronicle the Historic 2004 Season where the Tigers are often portrayed as the Japanese Red Sox.

History of the Hanshin Tigers

Kōshien Stadium (in 2009)

The Hanshin Tigers, one of the oldest professional clubs in Japan, were founded on December 10, 1935 with the team being formed in 1936. The team was first called "the Ōsaka Tigers". In 1940, amid anti-foreign sentiment, the Tigers changed the name to "Hanshin" and in 1947 changed the name back to "Ōsaka Tigers". The current team name was assumed in 1961.

The Tigers won four titles before the establishment of the two league system in 1950. Since the league was split into the Central League and the Pacific League, the Tigers have won the Central League pennant five times (1962, 1964, 1985, 2003, 2005) and the Japan Series once (1985).

When the 2004 Major League Baseball season opened in Japan, the Tigers played an exhibition game against the New York Yankees at the Tokyo Dome on March 29. The Tigers won 11–7.

In each of 2005, 2006, 2007 and 2009, more than three million people attended games hosted by the Tigers. The Tigers were the only one of the 12 Nippon Professional Baseball teams to achieve this.

On January 31, 2007, the Tigers presented uniforms for the 2007 season. For the home uniforms, yellow, one of the colors of the team, was used again.

The home field, Hanshin Kōshien Stadium, is used by high school baseball teams from all over Japan for play in the national championship tournaments in spring and summer.

Famous players in Hanshin Tigers history include Randy Bass, Masayuki Kakefu, Minoru Murayama, Jeff Williams, and many others.

Koshien Stadium

The home field of the Tigers, Hanshin Koshien Stadium, is one of three major natural grass baseball stadiums in Japan. The others are the Mazda Stadium in Hiroshima (Hiroshima Toyo Carp), and Skymark Stadium in Kobe (part-time home of the newly-merged Orix Buffaloes). Of the three, only Koshien has a dirt infield. There are numerous smaller grass field ballparks around the country; Japanese baseball teams frequently play games in small cities so that local fans can see more of their heroes.

Koshien Stadium is the oldest ballpark in Japan; built in 1924, the stadium was once visited by American baseball legend Babe Ruth on a tour of Major League stars in 1934. There is a monument commemorating this visit at the front gates of the park.

Koshien is revered as a "sacred" ballpark, and players traditionally bow before entering and before leaving its hallowed field. The losing team in any high school baseball game played at the ballpark is allowed to scoop up handfuls of Koshien infield dirt, stuffing holy clay clods into tiny plastic bags as hordes of Japanese papparazzi snap photos at arm's length.

Curse of the Colonel

Main article: Curse of the Colonel

As with many other underachieving baseball teams, a curse is believed to lurk over the Tigers.^[1] After their 1985 Japan Series win, fans celebrated by having people who looked like Tigers players jump into the Dotonbori Canal. According to legend, because none of the fans resembled first baseman Randy Bass, fans grabbed a life-sized statue of Kentucky Fried Chicken mascot Colonel Sanders and threw it into the river (like Bass, the Colonel had a beard and was not Japanese). After many series without a series win, the Tigers were said to be doomed never to win the season again until the Colonel was rescued from the river.

In 2003, when the Tigers returned to the Japan Series after 18 years with one of the worst records in the Central League, many KFC outlets in Kōbe and Ōsaka moved their Colonel Sanders statues inside until the series was over to protect them from Tigers fans.

The top half of the statue (excluding its left hand) was finally recovered on March 10, 2009, and the bottom half and right hand shortly after, in the canal by construction workers while constructing a new boardwalk area as part of a beautification project. The KFC outlet where this statue once stood has since closed.

Fandom

Tigers fans are known as perhaps the most fanatical and dedicated fans in all of Japanese professional baseball. They often outnumber the home team fans at Tigers "away" games. Tigers fans also have a reputation for rough behavior and a willingness to brawl with other fans or with each other, although long fights are rare. A famous Tigers fan tradition is the release, by the fans, of hundreds of air-filled balloons immediately following the seventh inning stretch and the singing of the Tigers' fight song. This tradition is carried-out at all home and away games, except at games against the Yomiuri Giants in the Tokyo Dome due to the Giants' notoriously authoritarian and heavy-handed rules for controlling behavior by visiting fans.

The Tigers-Giants rivalry is considered the national Japanese rivalry, on par with the New York Yankees vs. the Boston Red Sox in Major League Baseball or Real Madrid vs. FC Barcelona in Spanish football.

"The Hanshin Tigers' Song (阪神タイガースの歌, Hanshin Tigers no Uta^?)", as known as "Rokko Oroshi (六甲颪, 六甲おろし^?, lit. The (Downward) Wind of Mount Rokko)", lyrics by Sonosuke Sato (佐藤 惣之助^?) and composed by Yuji Koseki (古関 裕而^?), is a popular song in the Kansai area. In Japan, wind which blow down from mountain is known to be cold and harsh, hence the song symbolise Tiger's brave challenge under hardship. The song can even be found on karaoke boxes.

阪神タイガースの歌 (六甲颪, kanji) 六甲颪 (ろっこうおろし)に颯爽 (さっそう)と 蒼天 (そうてん)翔 (か)ける日輪 (にちりん)の 青春の覇気 美 (うるわ)しく 輝く我が名ぞ 阪神タイガース オウ オウ オウオウ 阪神タイガース フレフレフレフレ 闘志 (とうし)溌剌 (はつらつ) 起 (た)つや今 熱血 既 (すで)に敵を衝 (つ)く 獣王の意気高らかに 無敵の我等ぞ 阪神タイガース オウ オウ オウオウ 阪神タイガース フレフレフレフレ 鉄腕強打幾千 (いくち)度 (た)び 鍛えてここに 甲子園 勝利に燃ゆる栄冠は 輝く我等ぞ 阪神タイガース オウ オウ オウオウ 阪神タイガース フレフレフレフレ

Hanshin Tigers no Uta (Rokko Oroshi, romaji) Rokkō oroshi ni sassō to Sōten kakeru nichirin no Seishun no haki uruwashiku Kagayaku wagana zo Hanshin Tigers Ō-ō-ō-ō Hanshin Tigers Fure-fure-fure-fure Tōshi hatsuratsu tatsu ya ima Nekketsu sude ni teki o tsuku Jūō no iki takaraka ni Muteki no warera zo Hanshin Tigers Ō-ō-ō-ō Hanshin Tigers Fure-fure-fure-fure Tetsuwan kyōda ikuchitabi Kitaete koko ni Kōshien Shōri ni moyuru eikan wa Kagayaku warera zo Hanshin Tigers Ō-ō-ō-ō Hanshin Tigers Fure-fure-fure-fure

The Hanshin Tigers' Song (The Wind of Mount Rokko) (An official English version, not a direct translation) Dashing swiftly through the wind blowin' from Rokko Like the big sun soaring in the clear blue sky Mighty spirit of the youth shows the victor's grace The name that shines in glory "Hanshin Tigers" Oh! Oh! Oh! Oh! Hanshin Tigers Go, Go, Go, Go! Powerful hits and skillful pitch achieved a thousand times Trained with every discipline here at Koshien Crowned with constant victory glorious, matchless feat Always proud, invincible "Hanshin Tigers" Oh! Oh! Oh! Oh! Hanshin Tigers Go, Go, Go, Go!

Season-by-season

From the Kosaido Publishing Co., Ltd. (株式会社廣済堂出版, Kabushikigaisha Kōsaidō Shuppan^?) guidebook.

Season	Place	Manager
Former Japanese Baseball League
1936	Spring: Did not place Summer: Did not place Autumn: 2nd	Shigeo Mori (森 茂雄?, spring, summer) → Shuichi Ishimoto (石本 秀一?, autumn)
1937	Spring: 2nd Autumn: 1st (League Champion) Annual League Champion	Shuichi Ishimoto (石本 秀一?)
1938	Spring: 1st (League Champion) Autumn: 2nd Annual League Champion	Shuichi Ishimoto (石本 秀一?)
1939	2nd	Shuichi Ishimoto (石本 秀一?)
1940	2nd	Kenjiro Matsuki (松木 謙治郎?)
1941	5th	Kenjiro Matsuki (松木 謙治郎?)
1942	3rd	Tadashi Wakabayashi (若林 忠志?)
1943	3rd	Tadashi Wakabayashi (若林 忠志?)
1944	1st (League Champion)	Tadashi Wakabayashi (若林 忠志?)
1945	No league play
1946	3rd	Fumio Fujimura (藤村 富美男?)
1947	1st (League Champion)	Tadashi Wakabayashi (若林 忠志?)
1948	3rd	Tadashi Wakabayashi (若林 忠志?)
1949	6th	Tadashi Wakabayashi (若林 忠志?)
In the Central League
1950	4th	Kenjiro Matsuki (松木 謙治郎?)
1951	3rd	Kenjiro Matsuki (松木 謙治郎?)
1952	2nd	Kenjiro Matsuki (松木 謙治郎?)
1953	2nd	Kenjiro Matsuki (松木 謙治郎?)
1954	3rd	Kenjiro Matsuki (松木 謙治郎?)
1955	3rd	Ichiro Kishi (岸 一郎?) → Fumio Fujimura (藤村 富美男?)
1956	2nd	Fumio Fujimura (藤村 富美男?)
1957	2nd	Fumio Fujimura (藤村 富美男?)
1958	2nd	Yoshio Tanaka (田中 義雄?)
1959	2nd	Yoshio Tanaka (田中 義雄?)
1960	3rd	Masayasu Kaneda (金田 正泰?)
1961	4th	Masayasu Kaneda (金田 正泰?) → Sadayoshi Fujimoto (藤本 定義?)
1962	1st (League Champion)	Sadayoshi Fujimoto (藤本 定義?)
1963	3rd	Sadayoshi Fujimoto (藤本 定義?)
1964	1st (League Champion)	Sadayoshi Fujimoto (藤本 定義?)
1965	3rd	Sadayoshi Fujimoto (藤本 定義?)
1966	3rd	Shigeru Sugishita (杉下 茂?) → Sadayoshi Fujimoto (藤本 定義?)
1967	3rd	Sadayoshi Fujimoto (藤本 定義?)
1968	2nd	Sadayoshi Fujimoto (藤本 定義?)
1969	2nd	Tsuguo Goto (後藤 次男?)
1970	2nd	Minoru Murayama (村山 実?)
1971	5th	Minoru Murayama (村山 実?)
1972	2nd	Minoru Murayama (村山 実?, - April 21) → Masayasu Kaneda (金田 正泰?, April 22 -)
1973	2nd	Masayasu Kaneda (金田 正泰?)
1974	4th	Masayasu Kaneda (金田 正泰?)
1975	3rd	Yoshio Yoshida (吉田 義男?)
1976	2nd	Yoshio Yoshida (吉田 義男?)
1977	4th	Yoshio Yoshida (吉田 義男?)
1978	6th (last place)	Tsuguo Goto (後藤 次男?)
1979	4th	Don Blasingame (Don Blazer)
1980	5th	Don Blasingame (Don Blazer) → Futoshi Nakanishi (中西 太?)
1981	3rd	Futoshi Nakanishi (中西 太?)
1982	3rd	Motoo Andoh (安藤 統男?) Takao Sato (佐藤 孝夫?, June 13 - June 15)
1983	4th	Motoo Andoh (安藤 統男?)
1984	4th	Motoo Andoh (安藤 統男?)
1985	1st (League Champion) Japan Series Champion	Yoshio Yoshida (吉田 義男?)
1986	3rd	Yoshio Yoshida (吉田 義男?)
1987	6th (last place)	Yoshio Yoshida (吉田 義男?)
1988	6th (last place)	Minoru Murayama (村山 実?)
1989	5th	Minoru Murayama (村山 実?)
1990	6th (last place)	Katsuhiro Nakamura (中村 勝広?)
1991	6th (last place)	Katsuhiro Nakamura (中村 勝広?)
1992	2nd	Katsuhiro Nakamura (中村 勝広?)
1993	4th	Katsuhiro Nakamura (中村 勝広?)
1994	4th	Katsuhiro Nakamura (中村 勝広?)
1995	6th (last place)	Katsuhiro Nakamura (中村 勝広?, - July 23) → Taira Fujita (藤田 平?, July 24 -)
1996	6th (last place)	Taira Fujita (藤田 平?, - September 11) → Takeshi Shibata (柴田 猛?, September 12 -)
1997	5th	Yoshio Yoshida (吉田 義男?)
1998	6th (last place)	Yoshio Yoshida (吉田 義男?)
1999	6th (last place)	Katsuya Nomura (野村 克也?)
2000	6th (last place)	Katsuya Nomura (野村 克也?)
2001	6th (last place)	Katsuya Nomura (野村 克也?)
2002	4th	Senichi Hoshino (星野 仙一?)
2003	1st (League Champion)	Senichi Hoshino (星野 仙一?)
2004	4th	Akinobu Okada (岡田 彰布?)
2005	1st (League Champion)	Akinobu Okada (岡田 彰布?)
2006	2nd	Akinobu Okada (岡田 彰布?)
2007	3rd (Advanced to the Climax Series)	Akinobu Okada (岡田 彰布?)
2008	2nd (Advanced to the Climax Series)	Akinobu Okada (岡田 彰布?)
2009	4th	Akinobu Mayumi (真弓 明信?)
2010	2nd (Advanced to the Climax Series)	Akinobu Mayumi (真弓 明信?)
2011	4th	Akinobu Mayumi (真弓 明信?)

Players of note

Current players

Hanshin Tigers rosterview · talk · edit
First squad				Second squad
Pitchers 12 Ryo Watanabe 13 Daiki Enokida 14 Atsushi Nomi 21 Minoru Iwata 22 Kyuji Fujikawa 28 Shinobu Fukuhara 30 Tomoyuki Kubota 41 Hiroyuki Kobayashi 54 Randy Messenger 55 Jason Standridge 62 Yusuke Kawasaki Catchers 39 Shinji Komiyama 50 Akihito Fujii 57 Taichi Okazaki		Infielders  1 Takashi Toritani  3 Kentaro Sekimoto  4 Hiroki Uemoto  5 Keiichi Hirano 25 Takahiro Arai 32 Ryota Arai 67 Craig Brazell Outfielders 00 Kohei Shibata  6 Tomoaki Kanemoto  7 Shunsuke  8 Ryo Asai  9 Matt Murton 24 Shinjiro Hiyama 31 Wei-Chu Lin Manager 72 Yutaka Wada		Pitchers 15 Masanori Fujihara 16 Yuya Ando 17 Naohisa Sugiyama 18 Kazuhito Futagami 19 Ikketsu Sho 20 Kazuya Tsutsui 27 Takumi Akiyama 29 Tatsuya Kojima 34 Yasutomo Kubo 36 Shinta Hifumi 40 Cheng Kai-Wen 42 Tsuyoshi Shimoyanagi 43 Ken Nishimura 46 Naoto Tsuru 47 Keiji Uezono 48 Shunsuke Ishikawa 49 Ryuji Wakatake 56 Kenta Abe 59 Akira Iwamoto 63 Kosuke Kato 65 Daiki Kiyohara 68 Ryunosuke Yokoyama Catchers  2 Kenji Johjima 38 Ryohei Hashimoto 45 Takashi Shimizu 52 Fumihito Haraguchi 60 Masahiro Nakanishi		Infielders  0 Yamato 35 Katsuhiko Saka 37 Masashi Nohara 58 Fumiya Araki 66 Haruki Kurose 69 Issei Morita Outfielders 33 Ikuro Katsuragi 44 Yuhei Kai 51 Kodai Sakurai 61 Kenichi Tagami 94 Yuya Nohara 99 Keisuke Kano Manager 74 Haruki Yoshitake Development Players 116 Robert Zarate (pitcher) 117 Masashi Sajikihara (pitcher) 118 Yutaka Tamaki (pitcher) 120 Shintaro Tanaka (infielder) 121 Yusuke Kuroda (outfielder) 122 Tetsuya Sakaguchi (infielder) 123 Shuhei Takada (pitcher) 124 Koji Yoshioka (pitcher) 125 Kosei Fujii (infielder) 126 Hiroya Shimamoto (pitcher) 127 Masaki Anada (infielder) 128 Marcos Vechionacci (infielder) Updated June 25, 2011

Former players

• Norihiro Akahoshi (赤星 憲広) - OF
• George Altman - OF
• Sohachi Aniya (安仁屋 宗八) - P
• George Arias - IF
• Scott Atchison - P
• Gene Bacque - P
• Randy Bass - IF
• Mike Blowers - IF
• Jamie Brown - P
• Darnell Coles - IF, OF
• Doug Creek - P
• Glenn Davis
• Rob Deer - OF
• Yutaka Enatsu (江夏 豊) - P
• Tom Evans - IF
• Cecil Fielder - IF
• Lew Ford - OF
• Atsushi Fujimoto (藤本 敦士) - IF
• Fumio Fujimura (藤村 富美男) - P, IF
• Taira Fujita - IF (藤田 平)
• Rich Gale - P
• Mike Greenwell - OF
• Shosei Go (呉 昌征) - OF
• Dave Hansen - IF
• Jason Hardtke - IF
• Phil Hiatt - IF
• Katsumi Hirosawa (広澤 克実) - IF, OF
• Trey Hodges - P
• Osamu Hoshino (星野 修, 星野 おさむ) - IF
• Nobuyuki Hoshino (星野 伸之) - P
• Makoto Imaoka (今岡 誠) - IF
• Kei Igawa (井川 慶) - P
• Atsunori Itoh (伊藤 敦規) - P
• Mark Johnson - IF, OF
• Masaru Kageura (景浦 將) - OF, IF, P
• Masayuki Kakefu (掛布 雅之) - IF
• Tsutomu Kameyama (亀山 努, 亀山 つとむ) - OF
• Atsushi Kataoka (片岡 篤史) - IF
• Kozo Kawato (川藤 幸三) - PH, OF
• Matt Keough - P
• Katsuhiko Kido (木戸 克彦) - C
• Mike Kinkade - IF
• Willie Kirkland - OF
• Masaaki Koyama (小山 正明) - P
• Kuo Lee Chien-Fu (郭李 建夫) - P
• Kojiro Machida (町田 公二郎) - OF
• Kenjiro Matsuki (松木 謙治郎) - IF
• Darrell May - P
• Akinobu Mayumi (真弓 明信) - IF, OF
• Susumu Mikoshiba (御子柴 進) - P
• Kurt Miller - P
• Toyozo Minamimure (南牟礼 豊蔵) - IF, OF
• Takao Misonoo (御園生 崇男) - P
• Trey Moore - P
• Ramon Morel - P
• Minoru Murayama (村山 実) - P
• Rodney Myers - P
• Yutaka Nakamura (中村 豊) - OF
• Kiyooki Nakanishi (中西 清起) - P
• Toshihiro Noguchi (野口 寿浩) - C
• Akinobu Okada (岡田 彰布) - IF
• Tom O'Malley - IF
• Curtis Olsen - P
• Chris Oxspring - P
• Eduardo Perez - IF
• Larry Parrish - IF
• Alonzo Powell - OF
• Mike Reinbach - OF
• Jerrod Riggan - P
• Bienvenido Rivera - OF
• Tsuyoshi Shinjo (新庄 剛志) - OF
• Shane Spencer - OF
• Kento Sugiyama (杉山 賢人) - P
• Koichi Tabuchi (田淵 幸一) - C
• Shuta Tanaka (田中 秀太, 秀太) - IF
• Tony Tarasco - OF
• Katsunori Tomari (渡真利 克則) - IF, OF, PH
• Shoji Toyama (遠山 奬志) - P
• Tomochika Tsuboi (坪井 智哉) - OF
• Marc Valdes - P
• Ryan Vogelsong - P
• Yutaka Wada (和田 豊) - IF
• Tadashi Wakabayashi (若林 忠志) - P
• Jeff Williams - P
• Craig Worthington - IF
• Marvell Wynne - OF
• Keiichi Yabu (藪 恵壹) - P
• Hiroshi Yagi (八木 裕) - IF, PH
• Kazuhiro Yamauchi (山内 一弘) - OF
• Akihiro Yano (矢野 輝弘, 矢野 耀大) - C
• Hiroshi Yoshida (吉田 浩) - OF
• Yoshio Yoshida (吉田 義男) - IF
• Toshiro Yufune (湯舟 敏郎) - P

Retired numbers

• 10 Fumio Fujimura (藤村 富実男)
• 11 Minoru Murayama (村山 実)
• 23 Yoshio Yoshida (吉田 義男)

MLB Players

Active:

• Kei Igawa (2007-)

Retired:

• Tsuyoshi Shinjo (2001-2003)
• Keiichi Yabu (2005-2008)

Media relating to the Tigers

Newspapers

• Daily Sports (デイリースポーツ, published by the Kobe Shimbun, except Hiroshima region)
• Nikkan Sports (日刊スポーツ, affiliated company of the Asahi Shimbun, Kansai region)
• Sankei Sports (サンケイスポーツ, published by the Sankei Shimbun Osaka Head Office)
• Sports Nippon (スポーツニッポン, affiliated company of the Mainichi Shimbun, Kansai region)

Broadcasting stations

• Mainichi Broadcasting System, Inc. (MBS, 毎日放送, Radio and TV)
• Asahi Broadcasting Corporation (ABC, 朝日放送, Radio and TV)
• Kansai Telecasting Corporation (関西テレビ, TV)
• Yomiuri Telecasting Corporation (読売テレビ, TV)
• Television Osaka, Inc. (テレビ大阪, TV)
• SUN-TV (サンテレビ, TV)

See also

• Central League
• Western League
• Hankyu Hanshin Toho Group - Hanshin Electric Railway Co., Ltd.

References

1. ^ http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/vault/article/web/COM1032847/index.htm

External links

• (Japanese) Hanshin Tigers official web site
• Suicide Spurs Reflections on Japanese Baseball - The New York Times