Kintetsu Buffaloes
Encyclopedia
The was a Nippon Professional Baseball team based in Osaka
, Japan
, which were in the Pacific League
. The team was owned by Kinki Nippon Railway Co. (later: Kintetsu
Corp.) and later sold to the Orix Group, the owner of the Orix BlueWave baseball team, in 2004. The new owner then announced that they would merged the two teams into one team called the Orix Buffaloes
before the start of the 2004-2005 NPB season.
The team was founded in 1950 and was known by various names: the Kintetsu Pearls (1950-1958), Kintetsu Buffalo (1959-1961), Kintetsu Buffaloes (1962-1998), Osaka Kintetsu Buffaloes (1999-2004), and Orix Buffaloes (2005-now).
The team played in Fujiidera Stadium
, and later in Osaka Dome
. Its batting lineup is known as Itemae Dasen (いてまえ打線).
Osaka
is a city in the Kansai region of Japan's main island of Honshu, a designated city under the Local Autonomy Law, the capital city of Osaka Prefecture and also the biggest part of Keihanshin area, which is represented by three major cities of Japan, Kyoto, Osaka and Kobe...
, Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
, which were in the Pacific League
Pacific League
The or is one of the two professional baseball leagues constituting Nippon Professional Baseball in Japan. The winner of the league championship competes against the winner in the Central League for the annual Japan Series...
. The team was owned by Kinki Nippon Railway Co. (later: Kintetsu
Kintetsu
, named Kinki Nippon Railway Co., Ltd. in English until June 27, 2003, is a Japanese rail transit corporation commonly known as . It is the largest non-JR railway in Japan. Its complex network of lines connects Osaka, Kyoto, Nara, Nagoya, Tsu and Ise...
Corp.) and later sold to the Orix Group, the owner of the Orix BlueWave baseball team, in 2004. The new owner then announced that they would merged the two teams into one team called the Orix Buffaloes
Orix Buffaloes
The are a Nippon Professional Baseball team based in Osaka and Kobe, Japan. They play in the Pacific League. The team is owned by the Orix Group, a leading diversified financial services company based in Tokyo....
before the start of the 2004-2005 NPB season.
The team was founded in 1950 and was known by various names: the Kintetsu Pearls (1950-1958), Kintetsu Buffalo (1959-1961), Kintetsu Buffaloes (1962-1998), Osaka Kintetsu Buffaloes (1999-2004), and Orix Buffaloes (2005-now).
The team played in Fujiidera Stadium
Fujiidera Stadium
was a multi-use stadium in Fujiidera, Osaka, Japan. It was used mostly for baseball and was the home of the Kintetsu Buffaloes prior to the Osaka Dome opening in 1997. The stadium holds 32,000 people. The stadium was built in 1928, and closed in 2005...
, and later in Osaka Dome
Osaka Dome
Osaka Dome is a baseball stadium located in Osaka, Japan. Beginning in 1997, the stadium was the home field of the Kintetsu Buffaloes. In 2005, the stadium became one of the homes of the Orix Buffaloes, a result of the merger between the Orix Blue Wave and Kintetsu Buffaloes. Prior to the Osaka...
. Its batting lineup is known as Itemae Dasen (いてまえ打線).
- Uniform colors: Red, navy blue and white
- Nickname: Kintetsu (近鉄), Buffaloes (バファローズ), Mougyu (猛牛) means violent buffalo, Ushi (牛,丑) means cow.
- Logo design: A stylized buffalo's head with angry-looking red eyes which is designed by Okamoto TaroOkamoto Tarowas a Japanese artist noted for his abstract and avant-garde paintings and sculpture.- Biography :He studied at Panthéon-Sorbonne in the 1930s, and created many great works of art after World War II...
; or "Buffaloes" in red script, outlined with white. - League championships won (4): 1979, 1980, 1989, 2001
- Japan SeriesJapan Series, or is the annual championship series in Nippon Professional Baseball, the top baseball league in Japan. It is a seven-game series between the winning clubs of the league's two circuits, the Central League and the Pacific League....
championships won (0):
Japanese
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(岩隈 久志) - Yoshiaki Kanemura (金村 義明)
- Norihiro NakamuraNorihiro Nakamurais a Japanese professional baseball third baseman who plays for the Yokohama BayStars.-Career:He was born in Osaka, Japan, and spent almost all of his professional career in Japan with the Osaka Kintetsu Buffaloes. Drafted in , Nakamura began to emerge as one the leading power hitters in Nippon...
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(大塚 晶則) - Keishi Suzuki (鈴木 啓示)
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(吉井 理人)
Foreign players
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- Kyle AbbottKyle AbbottLawrence Kyle Abbott is a former professional baseball player. In an eight-year career, Abbott played four seasons for the California Angels and Philadelphia Phillies of Major League Baseball, as well as one season for the Kintetsu Buffaloes of Nippon Professional Baseball...
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- Ralph BryantRalph BryantRalph Wendell Bryant is a former Major League Baseball player. He played with the Los Angeles Dodgers in the major leagues, and with the Chunichi Dragons and Kintetsu Buffaloes in Nippon Professional Baseball...
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- Phil Clark
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- Pat Dodson
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- Mike Johnson
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- Phil LeftwichPhil LeftwichPhillip Dale Leftwich is a former professional baseball player who played three seasons for the California Angels of Major League Baseball. He also played two seasons in Japan for the Kintetsu Buffaloes....
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- Glenn MickensGlenn MickensGlenn Roger Mickens was a pitcher in Major League Baseball. He pitched in four games for the 1953 Brooklyn Dodgers. He also played for five years in Japan, from until for the Kintetsu Buffaloes...
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- Don MoneyDon MoneyDonald Wayne Money is a retired major league baseball player. He currently serves as the special instructor of player development for the Milwaukee Brewers....
- Ben OglivieBen OglivieBenjamin Ambrosio Oglivie Palmer is a former Major League Baseball left fielder for the Boston Red Sox , Detroit Tigers , and the Milwaukee Brewers . He also played two seasons in Japan for the Kintetsu Buffaloes...
- Dennis PowellDennis PowellDennis Clay Powell is a former pitcher in Major League Baseball. He pitched from 1985-1993 for the Los Angeles Dodgers and Seattle Mariners. He also played one season in Japan in 1995 for the Kintetsu Buffaloes....
- Jim QuallsJim QuallsJames Robert Qualls is a former Major League Baseball outfielder and pinch-hitting specialist for the Chicago Cubs in 1969, the Montreal Expos in 1970 and the Chicago White Sox in 1972...
- R. J. ReynoldsR. J. Reynolds (baseball)Robert James Reynolds is a former outfielder in Major League Baseball. He played with the Los Angeles Dodgers and the Pittsburgh Pirates from 1983-1990. He also played three seasons in Japan for the Yokohama Taiyo Whales and Kintetsu Buffaloes from 1991-1993.Reynolds broke in as a September...
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- Carlos ValdezCarlos Valdez (baseball)Carlos Luis Lorenzo Valdez is a former middle relief pitcher in Major League Baseball who played in part of two seasons for the San Francisco Giants and Boston Red Sox . He also played in Japan for the Kintetsu Buffaloes . Listed at 5' 11", 191 lb., he batted and threw right-handed...
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