2001 Japan Series
| 2001 Japan Series | |||||||||||||
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| Teams | |||||||||||||
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| Dates | October 20 – October 25 | ||||||||||||
| MVP | Atsuya Furuta | ||||||||||||
| Broadcast | |||||||||||||
| Television | ABC (Games 1, 2), Fuji Television (Games 3, 5), TV Asahi (Game 4) | ||||||||||||
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| Team (Wins) | Manager | Season | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Yakult Swallows (4) | Tsutomu Wakamatsu | ||
| Osaka Kintetsu Buffaloes (1) | Masataka Nashida |
The 2001 Japan Series matched the Central League champion Yakult Swallows against the Pacific League champion Osaka Kintetsu Buffaloes.
Kintetsu had one of the most powerful offenses ever seen in the league. Foreign import Tuffy Rhodes teamed up with Norihiro Nakamura to become one of the most feared hitting tandems in Nippon Professional Baseball history. Rhodes hit 55 home runs to tie the NPB record for most home runs hit in a season, while Nakamura hit 46 home runs of his own.
Most of the core team from the 1997 Japan Series championship still remained in Kazuhisa Ishii and all-world catcher Atsuya Furuta. Shinya Miyamoto anchored the middle of the infield.
Game 1
Game 1 would become one of the best pitching performances turned in by any one starter in quite some time. In fact, it almost became historic. Yakult ace Kazuhisa Ishii kept the powerful Buffaloes lineup at bay, striking out 12 batters and walking 4. After walking the first batter of the game, Ishii retired the next 8 batters he faced. He would no-hit the Buffaloes through 6 and 1/3 innings and eventually shut them out, throwing a complete game.
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