Japan national baseball team

National sports team

This article is about the men's team. For the women's team, see Japan women's national baseball team.

Japan national baseball team

Information
Country|  Japan
Federation| Baseball Federation of Japan
Confederation| WBSC Asia
Manager| Hirokazu Ibata
WBSC ranking
Current|  1  (31 December 2024)[1]
Highest| 1 (8 times; latest in December 2021)
Lowest| 3 (December 2012)
Uniforms

Home

Away

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World Baseball Classic
Appearances| 6 (first in 2006)
Best result|  1st (3 times, most recent in 2023)
Olympic Games
Appearances| 6 (first in 1992)
Best result|  1st (1 time, in 2020)
WBSC Premier12
Appearances| 3 (first in 2015)
Best result|  1st (1 time, in 2019)
World Cup
Appearances| 15 (first in 1972)
Best result|  2nd (1 time, in 1982)
Intercontinental Cup
Appearances| 15 (first in 1973)
Best result|  1st (2 times, most recent in 1997)
Asian Games
Appearances| 7 (first in 1994)
Best result|  1st (1 time, in 1994)
Asian Championship
Appearances| 25 (first in 1954)
Best result|  1st (17 times, most recent in 2017)

The Japan national baseball team (野球日本代表, Yakyū Nippon Daihyō or Yakyū Nihon Daihyō), also known as Samurai Japan (侍ジャパン), is the national team representing Japan in international baseball competitions. It won the World Baseball Classic in 2006, 2009, and 2023 as well as WBSC Premier12 in 2019. The team is currently ranked 1st in the world by the World Baseball Softball Confederation and is a baseball powerhouse.[1]

The team has participated in every Summer Olympic Games since the first demonstration tournament in 1984, through when baseball was discontinued following the 2008 Beijing Games and again when it returned in Tokyo. Until 2000, the team was made up exclusively of amateur players. Since the 2000 Summer Olympics, the team has been composed of players from Nippon Professional Baseball. The team that played in the 2006 World Baseball Classic included Japanese players from Major League Baseball as well.

The team won the 2006 Classic. It played at the Beijing Olympics in 2008, as it had qualified through the Asian Baseball Championship in 2007. Unlike the WBC roster, the Olympic team was composed exclusively of NPB players (though it included one amateur player, who was drafted during the tournament's progress). Japan participated in the 2017 World Baseball Classic, finishing third.

Team Japan won the 2019 WBSC Premier12 Tournament. At the Olympics in 2021, it faced Israel, Mexico, South Korea, the United States, and the Dominican Republic, and won gold. At the 2023 World Baseball Classic, Japan defeated the defending champion United States to become the champions. Their 2023 win was their third World Baseball Classic championship, the most championships for any country.

## Current roster

[edit]

Japan – 2024 WBSC Premier12 roster

Players | Coaches
Pitchers

*   * 15 Taisei Ota
*   * 16 Chihiro Sumida
*   * 19 Hiroto Takahashi
*   * 20 Shosei Togo
*   * 21 Takahisa Hayakawa
*   * 35 Hiroto Saiki
*   * 46 Shoma Fujihira
*   * 47 Shōta Suzuki
*   * 50 Tatsuya Shimizu
*   * 56 Sora Suzuki
*   * 57 Koki Kitayama
*   * 60 Rikuto Yokoyama
*   * 97 Haruto Inoue

|  | Catchers

*   * 22 Yūto Koga
*   * 31 Shōgo Sakakura
*   * 32 Toshiya Satoh

Infielders

*   *  6 Sosuke Genda
*   * 51 Kaito Kozono
*   * 24 Kotaro Kurebayashi
*   * 23 Ryoya Kurihara
*   *  2 Shugo Maki
*   * 25 Kazuma Okamoto
*   *  4 Naoki Yoshikawa

Outfielders

*   *  5 Ryota Isobata
*   * 66 Chusei Mannami
*   *  1 Shota Morishita
*   *  7 Keita Sano
*   *  8 Ryōsuke Tatsumi

|  | Manager

*   * 89 Hirokazu Ibata

Coaches

*   * 79 Yoshiyuki Kamei
*   * 88 Makoto Kaneko
*   * 74 Yoshinori Murata
*   * 77 Eishin Soyogi
*   * 81 Kazuki Yoshimi

## Nickname

[edit]

The team has been nicknamed "Samurai Japan" (侍ジャパン).[2] Like other national teams in Japan, the nickname is usually prefixed with the surname of the manager. However, in the 2009 World Baseball Classic, the team used Samurai, a symbol of Japan's history, instead of Hara, the surname of their manager. In 2012, it was adopted officially.

## Results and fixtures

[edit]

The following is a list of professional baseball match results currently active in the latest version of the WBSC World Rankings, as well as any future matches that have been scheduled.[3]

Legend

Win   Lose   Void or postponed   Fixture

### 2019

[edit]

Friendly | March 9  | Japan  | 2–4  |  Mexico | Kyocera Dome, Japan

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19:12 JT | LP: Takahiro Matsunaga
| Boxscore | WP: Fabián Cota
Sv: Jake Sanchez
| Attendance: 28,933

Friendly | March 10  | Mexico  | 0–6  |  Japan | Kyocera Dome, Japan

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19:09 JT | LP: Manny Barreda
| Boxscore | WP: Juri Hara
HR: Masataka Yoshida (1)  | Attendance: 28,622

Friendly | October 31  | Canada  | 6–5  |  Japan | Cellular Stadium, Japan

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19:08 JT | WP: Phillippe Aumont
Sv: Scott Mathieson
| Boxscore | LP: Shun Yamaguchi
| Attendance: 14,858

Friendly | November 1  | Japan  | 3–0  |  Canada | Cellular Stadium, Japan

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19:09 JT | WP: Shota Imanaga
Sv: Yasuaki Yamasaki
| Boxscore | LP: Daniel Procopio
| Attendance: 15,253

WBSC Premier 12 GS | November 5  | Venezuela  | 4–8  |  Japan | Taoyuan Baseball Stadium, Taiwan

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18:00 NST | LP: Anthony Vizcaya
| Boxscore | WP: Hiroshi Kaino
| Attendance: 3,868

WBSC Premier 12 GS | November 6  | Puerto Rico  | 0–4  |  Japan | Taoyuan Baseball Stadium, Taiwan

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18:00 NST | LP: Giovanni Soto
| Boxscore | WP: Rei Takahashi
HR: Seiya Suzuki (1)  | Attendance: 4,209

WBSC Premier 12 GS | November 7  | Japan  | 8–1  |  Chinese Taipei | Taichung Intercontinental Baseball Stadium, Taiwan

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18:30 NST | WP: Yūdai Ōno
HR: Seiya Suzuki (1)  | Boxscore | LP: Liao Yi-Chung
| Attendance: 20,465

WBSC Premier 12 SR | November 11  | Australia  | 2–3  |  Japan | ZOZO Marine Stadium, Japan

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19:00 JT | LP: Jon Kennedy
| Boxscore | WP: Hiroshi Kaino
Sv: Yasuaki Yamasaki
| Attendance: 17,819

WBSC Premier 12 SR | November 12  | United States  | 4–3  |  Japan | Tokyo Dome, Japan

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19:00 JT | WP: Clayton Richard
Sv: Brandon Dickson
HR: Jordan Adell (1)  | Boxscore | LP: Rei Takahashi
| Attendance: 27,827

WBSC Premier 12 SR | November 13  | Mexico  | 1–3  |  Japan | Tokyo Dome, Japan

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19:00 JT | LP: Horacio Ramírez
HR: Jonathan Jones (1)  | Boxscore | WP: Shota Imanaga
Sv: Yasuaki Yamasaki
| Attendance: 31,776

WBSC Premier 12 SR | November 16  | South Korea  | 8–10  |  Japan | Tokyo Dome, Japan

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19:00 JT | LP: Lee Seung-ho
HR: Jaegyun Hwang (1)  | Boxscore | WP: Yūdai Ōno
Sv: Kazuto Taguchi
| Attendance: 44,224

WBSC Premier 12 F | November 17  | South Korea  | 3–5  |  Japan | Tokyo Dome, Japan

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19:00 JT | LP: Yang Hyeon-jong
HR: Ha-seong Kim (1), Hyun-soo Kim (1)  | Boxscore | WP: Rei Takahashi
Sv: Yasuaki Yamasaki
HR: Tetsuto Yamada (1)  | Attendance: 44,960

### 2021

[edit]

2020 Summer Olympics GS | July 28  | Dominican Republic  | 3–4  |  Japan | Azuma Baseball Stadium, Japan

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12:00 JT | LP: Jairo Asencio
| Boxscore | WP: Ryoji Kuribayashi

2020 Summer Olympics GS | July 31  | Japan  | 7–4  |  Mexico | Yokohama Stadium, Japan

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12:00 JT | WP: Masato Morishita
Sv: Ryoji Kuribayashi
HR: Tetsuto Yamada (1), Hayato Sakamoto (1)  | Boxscore | LP: Juan Pablo Oramas
HR: Joey Meneses (1)  |
2020 Summer Olympics R2 | August 2  | United States  | 6–7 (F/10) |  Japan | Yokohama Stadium, Japan

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19:00 JT | LP: Edwin Jackson
HR: Triston Casas (2)  | Boxscore | WP: Ryoji Kuribayashi
HR: Seiya Suzuki (1)  |
2020 Summer Olympics SF | August 4  | South Korea  | 2–5  |  Japan | Yokohama Stadium, Japan

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19:00 JT | LP: Go Woo-suk
| Boxscore | WP: Hiromi Itoh
Sv: Ryoji Kuribayashi

2020 Summer Olympics F | August 7  | United States  | 0–2  |  Japan | Yokohama Stadium, Japan

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19:00 JT | LP: Nick Martinez
| Boxscore | WP: Masato Morishita
Sv: Ryoji Kuribayashi
HR: Munetaka Murakami (1)  |

### 2022

[edit]

Friendly | November 9  | Australia  | 1–8  |  Japan | Sapporo Dome, Japan

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19:00 JT | LP: Warwick Saupold
| Boxscore | WP: Shota Imanaga
HR: Munetaka Murakami (1)  |
Friendly | November 10  | Japan  | 9–0  |  Australia | Sapporo Dome, Japan

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18:30 JT | WP: Roki Sasaki
| Boxscore | LP: Tim Atherton

### 2023

[edit]

World Baseball Classic GS | March 9  | China  | 1–8  |  Japan | Tokyo Dome, Japan

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19:00 JT | LP: Wang Xiang (0–1)
HR: Pei Liang (1)  | Boxscore | WP: Shohei Ohtani (1–0)
HR: Shugo Maki (1)  | Attendance: 41,616
Umpires: HP – Stu Scheurwater, 1B – Cuti Suarez, 2B – Ben May, 3B – Delfin Colon
World Baseball Classic GS | March 10  | South Korea  | 4–13  |  Japan | Tokyo Dome, Japan

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19:00 JT | LP: Kwang-hyun Kim (0–1)
HR: Yang Eui-ji (2), Park Kun-woo (1)  | Boxscore | WP: Yu Darvish (1–0)
HR: Kensuke Kondo (1)  | Attendance: 41,629
Umpires: HP: Laz Díaz, 1B: Stu Scheurwater, 2B: Delfin Colon, 3B: Cuti Suárez
World Baseball Classic GS | March 11  | Czech Republic  | 2–10  |  Japan | Tokyo Dome, Japan

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19:00 JT | LP: Ondřej Satoria (0–1)
| Boxscore | WP: Rōki Sasaki (1–0)
Sv: Hiroya Miyagi (1)
HR: Shugo Maki (2)  | Attendance: 41,637
Umpires: HP: Ben May, 1B: Ramon De Jesus, 2B: Cuti Suárez, 3B: Fabrizio Fabrizzi
World Baseball Classic GS | March 12  | Japan  | 7–1  |  Australia | Tokyo Dome, Japan

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19:00 JT | WP: Yoshinobu Yamamoto (1–0)
HR: Shohei Ohtani (1)  | Boxscore | LP: Will Sherriff (0–1)
HR: Alex Hall (1)  | Attendance: 41,664
Umpires: HP – Pat Hoberg, 1B – Cuti Suárez, 2B – Adam Hamari, 3B – Chan-Jung Chang
World Baseball Classic QF | March 16  | Italy  | 3–9  |  Japan | Tokyo Dome, Japan

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19:00 JT | LP: Joe LaSorsa (0–1)
HR: Dominic Fletcher (1)  | Boxscore | WP: Shohei Ohtani (2–0)
HR: Kazuma Okamoto (1), Masataka Yoshida (1)  | Attendance: 41,723
Umpires: HP – Pat Hoberg, 1B – Laz Díaz, 2B – Delfin Colon, 3B – Cuti Suárez
World Baseball Classic SF | March 20  | Mexico  | 5–6  |  Japan | LoanDepot Park, United States

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19:00 ET | LP: Giovanny Gallegos
HR: Luis Urías (1)  | Boxscore | WP: Taisei Ota
HR: Masataka Yoshida (2)  | Attendance: 35,933
Umpires: HP – Quinn Wolcott, 1B – Ramiro Alfaro, 2B – Jong-Chui Park, 3B – Lance Barksdale, LF – Edward Pinales, RF: John Tumpane
World Baseball Classic F | March 21  | United States  | 2–3  |  Japan | LoanDepot Park, United States

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19:00 ET | LP: Merrill Kelly (0–1)
HR: Trea Turner (5), Kyle Schwarber (2)  | Boxscore | WP: Shōta Imanaga (1–0)
Sv: Shohei Ohtani (1)
HR: Munetaka Murakami (1), Kazuma Okamoto (2)  | Attendance: 36,098
Umpires: HP – Lance Barksdale, 1B – John Tumpane, 2B – Edward Pinales, 3B – Ramiro Alfaro, LF – Jong-Chui Park, RF – Quinn Wolcott

### 2024

[edit]

Friendly | March 6  | Europe  | 0–5  |  Japan | Kyocera Dome, Japan

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19:00 JT | LP: Tom de Blok
| Boxscore | WP: Kaima Taira
| Attendance: 27,698

Friendly | March 7  | Japan  | 2–0  |  Europe | Kyocera Dome, Japan

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19:00 JT | WP: Yumeto Kanemaru
Sv: Atsuki Taneichi
| Boxscore | LP: Markus Solbach
| Attendance: 25,379

Friendly | November 9  | Czech Republic  | 1–7  |  Japan | Vantelin Dome, Japan

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19:06 JT | LP: Jan Tomek
| Boxscore | WP: Hiroto Saiki
HR: Ryosuke Tatsumi (1)  | Attendance: 33,758

Friendly | November 10  | Japan  | 9–0  |  Czech Republic | Vantelin Dome, Japan

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19:08 JT | WP: Takahisa Hayakawa
HR: Shota Morishita (1)  | Boxscore | LP: Ondřej Satoria
| Attendance: 23,223

WBSC Premier 12 GS | November 13  | Australia  | 3–9  |  Japan | Vantelin Dome, Japan

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19:00 JT | LP: Lewis Thorpe
HR: Ulrich Bojarski (1), Rixon Wingrove (1)  | Boxscore | WP: Haruto Inoue
| Attendance: 30,691

WBSC Premier 12 GS | November 15  | South Korea  | 3–6  |  Japan | Taipei Dome, Taiwan

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18:00 NST | LP: Kwak Do-Kyu
HR: Dongwon Park (1)  | Boxscore | WP: Chihiro Sumida
Sv: Taisei Ota
HR: Shota Morishita (1)  | Attendance: 20,028

WBSC Premier 12 GS | November 16  | Japan  | 3–1  |  Chinese Taipei | Taipei Dome, Taiwan

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18:00 NST | WP: Hiroto Saiki
Sv: Taisei Ota
HR: Sosuke Genda (1)  | Boxscore | WP: Chen Po-Ching
HR: Pei-Fong Dai (1)  | Attendance: 34,882

WBSC Premier 12 GS | November 17  | Cuba  | 6–7  |  Japan | Tianmu Baseball Stadium, Taiwan

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18:00 NST | LP: Liván Moinelo
| Boxscore | WP: Tatsuya Shimizu
Sv: Shōma Fujihira
| Attendance: 4,955

WBSC Premier 12 GS | November 18  | Japan  | 11–3  |  Dominican Republic | Tianmu Baseball Stadium, Taiwan

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18:00 NST | WP: Haruto Inoue
| Boxscore | LP: Héctor Pérez
| Attendance: 2,572

WBSC Premier 12 SR | November 21  | United States  | 1–9  |  Japan | Tokyo Dome, Japan

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19:00 JT | LP: Darrell Thompson
HR: Colby Thomas (1)  | Boxscore | WP: Chihiro Sumida
HR: Kaito Kozono (2)  | Attendance: 26,297

WBSC Premier 12 SR | November 22  | Venezuela  | 6–9  |  Japan | Tokyo Dome, Japan

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19:00 JT | LP: José Álvarez
HR: Carlos Pérez (1), Ángel Reyes (1)  | Boxscore | WP: Haruto Inoue
HR: Shugo Maki (1), Shōgo Sakakura (1)  | Attendance: 33,300

WBSC Premier 12 SR | November 23  | Chinese Taipei  | 6–9  |  Japan | Tokyo Dome, Japan

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19:00 JT | LP: Chen Po-Ching
HR: An-Ko Lin (1)  | Boxscore | WP: Koki Kitayama
HR: Itsuki Murabayashi (1)  | Attendance: 41,674

WBSC Premier 12 F | November 24  | Chinese Taipei  | 4–0  |  Japan | Tokyo Dome, Japan

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19:00 JT | WP: Yi Chang
HR: Chien-Hsien Chen (1), Chia-Cheng Lin (1)  | Boxscore | LP: Shosei Togo
| Attendance: 41,827
Umpires: Angel Campos

### 2025

[edit]

Friendly | March 5  | Netherlands  | 0–5  |  Japan | Kyocera Dome, Japan

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19:07 JT | LP: Kevin Kelly
| Boxscore | WP: Hiroya Miyagi
HR: Shun Mizutani (1)  | Attendance: 28,618

Friendly | March 6  | Japan  | 9–0  |  Netherlands | Kyocera Dome, Japan

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18:35 JT | WP: Ryosuke Ohtsu
HR: Yusuke Oyama (1)  | Boxscore | LP: Koen Postelmans
| Attendance: 21,747

Friendly | November 15  | South Korea  |  |  Japan | Tokyo Dome, Japan

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Friendly | November 16  | South Korea  |  |  Japan | Tokyo Dome, Japan

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### 2026

[edit]

World Baseball Classic GS | March 6  | Japan  |  |  Chinese Taipei | Tokyo Dome, Japan

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19:00 JT |  |  |  |
World Baseball Classic GS | March 7  | South Korea  |  |  Japan | Tokyo Dome, Japan

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19:00 JT |  |  |  |
World Baseball Classic GS | March 8  | Australia  |  |  Japan | Tokyo Dome, Japan

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19:00 JT |  |  |  |
World Baseball Classic GS | March 10  | Czech Republic  |  |  Japan | Tokyo Dome, Japan

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19:00 JT |  |  |  |

## Regional competition

[edit]

### Asian Baseball Championship

[edit]

Main article: Asian Baseball Championship

Japan have dominated the Asian Baseball Championship since its inception, and have competed in every year. Japan have never missed out on placing in the top 3 in any tournament, and is the only team to have achieved this feat. Japan also holds the record for most consecutive Asian Championships, having won four times in a row on two occasions.

### Asian Games

[edit]

Main article: Baseball at the Asian Games

In all four Asian Games to include baseball, Japan have placed in the top 3 in every tournament, though they have only won the tournament once in the first event held in Hiroshima in 1994.

## International competition

[edit]

2009 World Baseball Classic finals. Kenji Johjima and Yu Darvish World Baseball Classic Championship Trophy

### World Baseball Classic

[edit]

Main article: World Baseball Classic

See also: 2006 World Baseball Classic rosters § Japan, 2009 World Baseball Classic rosters § Japan, and 2013 World Baseball Classic rosters § .C2.A0Japan

#### 2006

[edit]

Japan won the inaugural 2006 World Baseball Classic, defeating Cuba in the Final.

##### 2006 WBC roster

[edit]

* v
* t
* e

Japan roster – 2006 World Baseball Classic champions (1st title)

* 1 Akinori Iwamura
* 2 Michihiro Ogasawara
* 3 Nobuhiko Matsunaka
* 5 Kazuhiro Wada
* 6 Hitoshi Tamura
* 7 Tsuyoshi Nishioka
* 8 Toshiaki Imae
* 9 Tatsuhiko Kinjō
* 10 Shinya Miyamoto
* 11 Naoyuki Shimizu
* 12 Soichi Fujita
* 15 Tomoyuki Kubota
* 17 Kosuke Fukudome
* 18 Daisuke Matsuzaka
* 19 Koji Uehara
* 20 Yasuhiko Yabuta
* 21 Tsuyoshi Wada
* 22 Tomoya Satozaki
* 23 Nori Aoki
* 24 Kyuji Fujikawa
* 25 Takahiro Arai
* 27 Motonobu Tanishige
* 31 Shunsuke Watanabe
* 40 Akinori Otsuka
* 41 Hiroyuki Kobayashi
* 47 Toshiya Sugiuchi
* 51 Ichiro Suzuki
* 52 Munenori Kawasaki
* 59 Ryoji Aikawa
* 61 Hirotoshi Ishii
* 61 Takahiro Mahara

* Manager 89 Sadaharu Oh
* Coach 84 Kazuhiro Takeda
* Coach 85 Hatsuhiko Tsuji
* Coach 86 Yoshitaka Katori
* Coach 87 Yasunori Oshima
* Coach 88 Sumio Hirota

#### 2009

[edit]

Japan also won the 2009 World Baseball Classic, hosting the Pool A games in the Tokyo Dome. Japan started the tournament opener with a 4–0 win over China. Japan then secured advancement into the second round with a 14–2 win in seven innings over arch-rival South Korea. The game was shortened due to the WBC's mercy rule. Japan then played South Korea again to determine seeding for the second round. In the rematch, the Koreans shut out Japan 1–0, making Japan advance as the Pool A runner-up. In Pool 1 of the WBC quarter-finals, Japan defeated Cuba 6–0, but lost to Korea again 4–1. In the elimination match that followed, Japan secured a spot in the semi-finals with a 5–0 win over Cuba. Japan defeated South Korea in the Finals 5–3 partly because of an Ichiro Suzuki base hit in the 10th inning.

##### 2009 WBC roster

[edit]

* v
* t
* e

Japan roster – 2009 World Baseball Classic champions (2nd title)

* 1 Kosuke Fukudome
* 2 Kenji Johjima
* 5 Kenta Kurihara
* 6 Hiroyuki Nakajima
* 7 Yasuyuki Kataoka
* 8 Akinori Iwamura
* 9 Michihiro Ogasawara
* 10 Shinnosuke Abe
* 11 Yu Darvish
* 14 Takahiro Mahara
* 15 Masahiro Tanaka
* 16 Hideaki Wakui
* 18 Daisuke Matsuzaka
* 19 Minoru Iwata
* 20 Hisashi Iwakuma
* 22 Kyuji Fujikawa
* 23 Nori Aoki
* 24 Seiichi Uchikawa
* 25 Shuichi Murata
* 26 Tetsuya Utsumi
* 28 Satoshi Komatsu
* 29 Yoshiyuki Ishihara
* 31 Shunsuke Watanabe
* 35 Yoshiyuki Kamei
* 39 Tetsuya Yamaguchi
* 41 Atsunori Inaba
* 47 Toshiya Sugiuchi
* 51 Ichiro Suzuki
* 52 Munenori Kawasaki

* Manager 83 Tatsunori Hara
* Coach 72 Tsutomu Itō
* Coach 71 Hisashi Yamada
* Coach 92 Tsuyoshi Yoda
* Coach 81 Kazunori Shinozuka
* Coach 63 Nobuhiro Takashiro
* Coach 73 Koichi Ogata

#### 2013: The end of the championship streak

[edit]

Japan, the two-time world defending champions, entered the 2013 World Baseball Classic, hosting Pool A games in the Fukuoka Dome, facing off against Cuba, China, and newcomers Brazil. Despite their first loss against the Cuban team, they secured their position for the second round in 2013 World Baseball Classic Pool 1 to face off the Netherlands and Chinese Taipei. The Japanese team narrowly won against Chinese Taipei 4–3, before proceeding to face off against the Dutch team, winning against them twice before proceeding to the semi-final round, along with the Netherlands, as they faced off against Puerto Rico. Despite Japan's efforts, they eventually lost 3–1 against the Puerto Rican team right after Alex Ríos scored two additional runs from a home run. Japan finished third in the 2013 WBC, as their two-time championship streak ended. The Japanese team bowed out to both the crowd and the Puerto Rican team as a gesture of respect.

##### 2013 WBC roster

[edit]

* v
* t
* e

Japan roster – 2013 World Baseball Classic

* 1 Takashi Toritani
* 2 Ryoji Aikawa
* 3 Hirokazu Ibata
* 5 Nobuhiro Matsuda
* 6 Hayato Sakamoto
* 7 Kazuo Matsui
* 9 Yoshio Itoi
* 10 Shinnosuke Abe
* 11 Hideaki Wakui
* 13 Sho Nakata
* 14 Atsushi Nohmi
* 15 Hirokazu Sawamura
* 16 Takeru Imamura
* 17 Masahiro Tanaka
* 18 Toshiya Sugiuchi
* 20 Kenta Maeda
* 21 Masahiko Morifuku
* 24 Seiichi Uchikawa
* 26 Tetsuya Utsumi
* 27 Ginjiro Sumitani
* 28 Kenji Otonari
* 34 Hisayoshi Chōno
* 35 Kazuhisa Makita
* 41 Atsunori Inaba
* 46 Yuichi Honda
* 47 Tetsuya Yamaguchi
* 50 Tadashi Settsu
* 61 Katsuya Kakunaka

* Manager 88 Koji Yamamoto
* Coach 75 Hideki Hashigami
* Coach 78 Osamu Higashio
* Coach 99 Masataka Nashida
* Coach 73 Koichi Ogata
* Coach 63 Nobuhiro Takashiro
* Coach 81 Kazuyoshi Tatsunami
* Coach 92 Tsuyoshi Yoda

#### 2017

[edit]

In the 2017 World Baseball Classic, Japan hosted Pool B games in the Tokyo Dome. They finished first round play with a 3–0 record and advanced to the second round.[4] After batting .364, outfielder Yoshitomo Tsutsugoh was named the Pool B MVP.[5] In the second round, Japan hosted Pool E games in the Tokyo Dome and again finished pool play with a 3–0 record, advancing to the championship round. However, Japan lost to the United States 2–1 in the semifinal. They finished the tournament in third place. Pitcher Kodai Senga was named to the All-World Baseball Classic Team.

##### 2017 WBC roster

[edit]

* v
* t
* e

Japan roster – 2017 World Baseball Classic

* 1 Seiichi Uchikawa
* 2 Kosuke Tanaka
* 3 Nobuhiro Matsuda
* 4 Ryosuke Kikuchi
* 6 Hayato Sakamoto
* 7 Nori Aoki
* 8 Ryosuke Hirata
* 9 Ginjiro Sumitani
* 10 Yuki Matsui
* 11 Tomoyuki Sugano
* 12 Ryo Akiyoshi
* 13 Sho Nakata
* 14 Takahiro Norimoto
* 15 Naoki Miyanishi
* 17 Shintaro Fujinami
* 19 Hirotoshi Masui
* 20 Ayumu Ishikawa
* 22 Seiji Kobayashi
* 23 Tetsuto Yamada
* 25 Yoshi Tsutsugo
* 27 Shōta Ōno
* 30 Shota Takeda
* 34 Toshiya Okada
* 35 Kazuhisa Makita
* 37 Motohiro Shima
* 41 Kodai Senga
* 51 Seiya Suzuki
* 55 Shogo Akiyama
* 66 Yoshihisa Hirano

* Manager 90 Hiroki Kokubo
* Coach 72 Hiroshi Gondoh
* Coach 73 Hiroshi Narahara
* Coach 79 Takayuki Ohnishi
* Coach 87 Toshihisa Nishi
* Coach 80 Atsunori Inaba
* Coach 84 Yoshinori Murata

#### 2023

[edit]

In the 2023 WBC, Japan again hosted Pool B games in the Tokyo Dome, going undefeated in four games with a 38–0 run differential. Shohei Ohtani was named the most valuable player of the pool.[6] In the quarterfinals, Japan hosted Italy and won 9–3.[7] According to the Nikkan Sports, 48 percent of all households in Japan watched the game, making it the most watched Samurai Japan game ever, beating the previous record set during the pool game against South Korea six days earlier.[8]

After traveling to the Miami, Japan faced Mexico in the semifinal. Thanks to a home run robbery and double from Randy Arozarena, Mexico led 5–3 after the top of the eighth inning. Japan scored once in the bottom of the eighth, then two decisive runs in the bottom of the ninth on a double by Munetaka Murakamifor a 6–5 win.[9] In the championship, Japan beat the United States, with Ohtani striking out his then-MLB teammate Mike Trout to end the game.[10] Ohtani was named the tournament MVP and the DH and a pitcher on the all-WBC team. Outfielder Masataka Yoshida was also selected to the all-WBC team.[11]

##### 2023 WBC roster

[edit]

* v
* t
* e

Japan roster – 2023 World Baseball Classic champions (3rd title)

* 1 Tetsuto Yamada
* 2 Sōsuke Genda
* 3 Shugo Maki
* 5 Taisei Makihara
* 7 Takumu Nakano
* 8 Kensuke Kondoh
* 9 Ukyo Shuto
* 10 Takuya Kai
* 11 Yu Darvish
* 12 Shosei Togo
* 13 Yuki Matsui
* 14 Roki Sasaki
* 15 Taisei Ota
* 16 Shohei Ohtani
* 17 Hiromi Itoh
* 18 Yoshinobu Yamamoto
* 20 Ryoji Kuribayashi
* 21 Shota Imanaga
* 22 Atsuki Yuasa
* 23 Lars Nootbaar
* 24 Takumi Ohshiro
* 25 Kazuma Okamoto
* 26 Yuki Udagawa
* 27 Yuhei Nakamura
* 28 Hiroto Takahashi
* 29 Hiroya Miyagi
* 33 Hotaka Yamakawa
* 34 Masataka Yoshida
* 47 Keiji Takahashi
* 55 Munetaka Murakami
* 63 Soichiro Yamazaki

Manager
89 Hideki Kuriyama

Coaches
Bench Coach 90 Kazuyuki Shirai
Hitting Coach 77 Sadaaki Yoshimura
Infield Coach 79 Noriyuki Shiroishi
Pitching Coach 81 Masato Yoshii
First Base Coach 87 Masaji Shimizu
Bullpen Coach 75 Kazuyuki Atsuzawa
Catching Coach 74 Yoshinori Murata

### Olympic Games

[edit]

Main article: Baseball at the Summer Olympics

#### 2008

[edit]

##### 2008 Summer Olympics roster

[edit]

* v
* t
* e

Japan roster – 2008 Summer Olympics

* 2 Masahiro Araki
* 3 Hiroyuki Nakajima
* 6 Shinya Miyamoto
* 7 Tsuyoshi Nishioka
* 10 Shinnosuke Abe
* 11 Kenshin Kawakami
* 13 Hitoki Iwase
* 15 Masahiro Tanaka
* 16 Hideaki Wakui
* 17 Yoshihisa Naruse
* 18 Yu Darvish
* 19 Koji Uehara
* 21 Tsuyoshi Wada
* 22 Tomoya Satozaki
* 23 Nori Aoki
* 25 Takahiro Arai
* 28 Kyuji Fujikawa
* 31 Masahiko Morino
* 39 Akihiro Yano
* 41 Atsunori Inaba
* 46 Takahiko Sato
* 47 Toshiya Sugiuchi
* 52 Munenori Kawasaki
* 55 Shuichi Murata

* Manager 77 Senichi Hoshino
* Hitting/Bench Coach 88 Koichi Tabuchi
* Defense /Base running Coach 80 Koji Yamamoto
* Pitching Coach 72 Yutaka Ohno

#### 2021

[edit]

Baseball was featured at the 2020 Summer Olympics, in Tokyo, for the first time since the 2008 Summer Olympics.[12] Six national teams are competing in the tournament: Israel, Japan (host), Mexico, South Korea, the United States, and the Dominican Republic. It will be held from July 28 to August 7, 2021.[13]

##### 2020 Summer Olympics roster

[edit]

* v
* t
* e

Japan roster – 2020 Summer Olympics gold medalists

* 1 Tetsuto Yamada
* 2 Sosuke Genda
* 3 Hideto Asamura
* 4 Ryosuke Kikuchi
* 6 Hayato Sakamoto
* 7 Ryutaro Umeno
* 8 Kensuke Kondo
* 9 Yuki Yanagita
* 10 Takuya Kai
* 12 Koyo Aoyagi
* 13 Suguru Iwazaki
* 15 Masato Morishita
* 16 Hiromi Itoh
* 17 Yoshinobu Yamamoto
* 18 Masahiro Tanaka
* 19 Yasuaki Yamasaki
* 20 Ryoji Kuribayashi
* 21 Kodai Senga
* 22 Yudai Ohno
* 31 Ryoya Kurihara
* 34 Masataka Yoshida
* 51 Seiya Suzuki
* 55 Munetaka Murakami
* 61 Kaima Taira

* Manager 80 Atsunori Inaba
* Hitting/Bench Coach 88 Makoto Kaneko
* First Base Coach 82 Hirokazu Ibata
* Third Base Coach 87 Masaji Shimizu
* Pitching Coach 81 Yoshinori Tateyama
* Battery Coach 84 Yoshinori Murata

### Baseball World Cup

[edit]

Main article: Baseball World Cup

### Intercontinental Cup

[edit]

Main article: Intercontinental Cup (baseball)

### Premier12 Tournament

[edit]

#### 2015

[edit]

Japan came in third in the 2015 WBSC Premier12 tournament.

#### 2019

[edit]

Japan won the 12-team 2019 WBSC Premier12 tournament, which was held from November 2 to 17, 2019.[14]

#### 2024

[edit]

Japan hosted the 2024 WBSC Premier12 tournament, with some group stage games held at the Vantelin Dome Nagoya and the Super Round and medal games held in the Tokyo Dome. After going undefeated in all five Group B games and all three Super Round games, Japan lost in the championship game to Chinese Taipei, finishing second in the tournament.[15] Three players made the All-World team, catcher Shōgo Sakakura, second baseman Kaito Kozono, and outfielder Shōta Morishita.[16]

## Competitive record

[edit]

### World Baseball Classic

[edit]

World Baseball Classic record |  | Qualification record

|
|

Year  | Result  | Position  | Pld | W | L | RS | RA | W | L | RS | RA
2006 | Champions | 1st | 8 | 5 | 3 | 60 | 21 | No qualifiers held
2009 | Champions | 1st | 9 | 7 | 2 | 50 | 16 | No qualifiers held
2013 | Third Place | 3rd | 7 | 5 | 2 | 44 | 27 | Automatically qualified
2017 | Third Place | 3rd | 7 | 6 | 1 | 47 | 24 | Automatically qualified
2023 | Champions | 1st | 7 | 7 | 0 | 56 | 18 | Automatically qualified
2026 | To be determined | Automatically qualified
Total  | 3 Titles  | 6/6  | 38  | 30  | 8  | 257  | 106  | —  | —  | —  | —

#### Record by opponent

[edit]

Japan World Baseball Classic record by opponent

Opponent  | Tournaments

met

| W-L

record

| Largest victory  | Largest defeat  | Current

streak

Score  | Tournament  | Score  | Tournament
Australia | 2  | 2–0  | 7–1  | Japan 2023 | –  | W2
Brazil | 1  | 1–0  | 5–3  | Japan 2013 | –  | W1
China | 5  | 5–0  | 18–2 (F/8) | Japan 2006 | –  | W5
Chinese Taipei | 2  | 2–0  | 14–3 (F/7) | Japan 2006 | –  | W2
Cuba | 4  | 5–1  | 6–0  | United States 2009 | 6–3  | Japan 2013 | W2
Czech Republic | 1  | 1–0  | 10–2  | Japan 2023 | –  | W1
Israel | 1  | 1–0  | 8–3  | Japan 2017 | –  | W1
Italy | 1  | 1–0  | 9–3  | Japan 2023 | –  | W1
Mexico | 2  | 2–0  | 6–1  | United States 2006 | –  | W2
Netherlands | 2  | 3–0  | 16–4 (F/7) | Japan 2013 | –  | W3
Puerto Rico | 1  | 0–1  | –  | 3–1  | United States 2013 | L1
South Korea | 3  | 5–4  | 14–2 (F/7) | Japan 2009 | 4–1  | United States 2009 | W3
United States | 4  | 2–2  | 9–4  | United States 2009 | 4–3  | United States 2006 | W1
Overall  | 5  | 30–8  | Against  China | Against  Cuba | W7
18–2 (F/8) | Japan 2006 | 6–3  | Japan 2013

### Olympic Games

[edit]

Summer Olympics record |  | Qualification record

|
|

Year  | Round  | Position  | W | L | RS | RA | Method
1964 | Exhibition only | 0 | 1 | 2 | 6 | No qualifiers held
1984 | Finals | 1st [a] | 4 | 1 | 33 | 11 | Invited
1988 | Finals | 2nd [a] | 4 | 1 | 27 | 17 |  1984 Summer Olympics
1992 | Bronze medal |  3rd | 6 | 3 | 70 | 22 |  1991 Asian Baseball Championship
1996 | Silver medal |  2nd | 5 | 4 | 77 | 59 |  1995 Asian Baseball Championship
2000 | Fourth Place  | 4th  | 4  | 5  | 42  | 29  |  1999 Asian Baseball Championship
2004 | Bronze medal |  3rd | 7 | 2 | 60 | 23 |  2003 Asian Baseball Championship
2008 | Fourth Place  | 4th  | 4  | 5  | 36  | 28  |  2007 Asian Baseball Championship
2020 | Gold medal |  1st | 5 | 0 | 25 | 15 | Qualified as hosts
Total [b] | 1 Title  | 6/6  | 31  | 19  | 310  | 176  |

1. ^ a b No medals awarded; tournament was a demonstration sport only
2. ^ Totals only include years 1992 to 2008 and 2020, during which baseball was an official medal sport.

### WBSC Premier 12

[edit]

WBSC Premier12 record

Year  | Round  | Position  | Pld | W | L | % | RS | RA | Ranking
2015 | Third Place |  3rd | 8 | 7 | 1 | .875 | 54 | 22 | 1st
2019 | Champions |  1st | 8 | 7 | 1 | .875 | 52 | 24 | 1st
2024 | Runners-up |  2nd | 9 | 8 | 1 | .889 | 63 | 33 | 1st
2027 | To be determined
Total  | 1 Title  | 3/3  | 25  | 22  | 3  | .880  | 169  | 79  |

### Baseball World Cup

[edit]

Main article: Baseball World Cup

* 1972 : 4th
* 1976 :  3rd
* 1978 : 4th
* 1980 :  3rd

|   |

* 1982 :  2nd
* 1984 : 4th
* 1986 : 5th
* 1988 : 4th
* 1990 : 5th
* 1994 :  3rd

|   |

* 1998 : 5th
* 2001 : 4th
* 2003 :  3rd
* 2005 : 5th
* 2007 :  3rd
* 2009 : 10th
* 2011 : 12th

|
|
|
|

### Intercontinental Cup

[edit]

Main article: Intercontinental Cup (baseball)

* 1973 :  1st
* 1975 :  2nd
* 1977 :  3rd
* 1979 :  2nd
* 1981 : 6th
* 1985 :  3rd

|   |

* 1987 :  3rd
* 1989 :  2nd
* 1991 :  2nd
* 1993 :  3rd
* 1995 :  2nd

|   |

* 1997 :  1st
* 1999 :  3rd
* 2002 : 5th
* 2006 : 4th
* 2010 : 5th

|
|
|
|

### Asian Baseball Championship

[edit]

Main article: Asian Baseball Championship

* 1954 :  2nd
* 1955 :  1st
* 1959 :  1st
* 1962 :  1st
* 1963 :  2nd
* 1965 :  1st
* 1967 :  1st
* 1969 :  1st
* 1971 :  2nd

|   |

* 1973 :  1st
* 1975 :  2nd
* 1983 :  2nd
* 1985 :  1st
* 1987 :  2nd
* 1989 :  2nd
* 1991 :  1st
* 1993 :  1st
* 1995 :  1st

|   |

* 1997 :  2nd
* 1999 :  2nd
* 2001 :  3rd
* 2003 :  1st
* 2005 :  1st
* 2007 :  1st
* 2009 :  1st
* 2012 :  1st
* 2015 :  3rd

|   |

* 2017 :  1st
* 2019 :  2nd
* 2023 :  1st

|
|
|
|
|
|

### Far Eastern Championships

[edit]

Main article: Baseball at the Far Eastern Championship Games

* 1913 :  1st
* 1915 :  2nd
* 1917 :  1st
* 1919 :  2nd
* 1921 :  2nd

|   |

* 1923 :  2nd
* 1925 :  2nd
* 1927 :  1st
* 1930 :  1st
* 1934 :  2nd

|
|

## See also

[edit]

* Sports in Japan
* Baseball in Japan
* Japan national under-18 baseball team
* Japan women's national baseball team
* Japan–South Korea baseball rivalry

## References

[edit]

1. ^ a b "The WBSC World Ranking". WBSC. 31 December 2024. Retrieved 31 December 2024.
2. ^ "Samurai Japan sets roster for 2013 World Baseball Classic". 21 February 2013.
3. ^ "Japan in the WBSC Ranking (Men's baseball)". World Baseball Softball Confederation. Retrieved 12 August 2021.
4. ^ "World Baseball Classic: Cuba, Japan advance to 2nd round" – CBC Sports – Baseball – MLB
5. ^ "Tsutsugoh named MVP of WBC '17 Pool B". MLB.com.
6. ^ Murphy, Brian (March 14, 2023). "Dominant Ohtani named Classic Pool B MVP". Major League Baseball. Retrieved March 15, 2023.
7. ^ "MLB Gameday: Italy 3, Japan 9 Final Score (03/16/2023)". MLB.com. Retrieved 2025-01-31.
8. ^ "【WBC】日本－イタリア戦、大会史上最高視聴率48・0% 瞬間最高は源田適時打54・5%" (in Japanese). nikkansports.com. March 17, 2023. Retrieved March 19, 2023.
9. ^ Anderson, R.J. (March 21, 2023). "Japan vs. Mexico score: Shohei Ohtani sparks late rally to set up World Baseball Classic championship vs. USA". CBSSports.com. Retrieved 2023-03-21.
10. ^ "Shohei vs. Trout for the Classic title? A strikeout heard 'round the world". MLB.com. Retrieved 2025-01-31.
11. ^ Clair, Michael (March 22, 2023). "Ohtani's MVP performance leads '23 All-Classic Team". MLB.com. Retrieved 2025-01-31.
12. ^ 野球・ソフトボール 競技紹介. Olympics.com (in Japanese). Retrieved August 4, 2021.
13. ^ オリンピックスケジュール&結果 – 野球・ソフトボール. Olympics.com (in Japanese). Retrieved August 4, 2021.
14. ^ "Two teams from WBSC Premier12 2019 to qualify for 2020 Tokyo Olympic Baseball". WBSC.org. December 19, 2018. Archived from the original on September 13, 2020. Retrieved February 13, 2019.
15. ^ "Standings". World Baseball Softball Confederation. Retrieved 2025-01-31.
16. ^ "Chieh-Hsien Chen is the WBSC Premier12 2024 MVP". World Baseball Softball Confederation. November 24, 2024. Retrieved 2025-01-31.

## External links

[edit]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Japan national baseball team.

* Official website (in English)
* 野球日本代表 侍ジャパンオフィシャルサイト (in Japanese)
* 侍ジャパン公式 on Instagram
* 侍ジャパン on Facebook
* 野球日本代表 侍ジャパン on Twitter

* v
* t
* e

World Baseball Classic winners

* 2006:  Japan
* 2009:  Japan
* 2013:  Dominican Republic
* 2017:  United States
* 2023:  Japan

* v
* t
* e

Asian Games baseball men's tournament winners

* 1994  Japan
* 1998  South Korea
* 2002  South Korea
* 2006  Chinese Taipei
* 2010  South Korea
* 2014  South Korea
* 2018  South Korea
* 2022  South Korea

Japan World Baseball Classic rosters

* v
* t
* e

Japan roster – 2006 World Baseball Classic champions (1st title)

* 1 Akinori Iwamura
* 2 Michihiro Ogasawara
* 3 Nobuhiko Matsunaka
* 5 Kazuhiro Wada
* 6 Hitoshi Tamura
* 7 Tsuyoshi Nishioka
* 8 Toshiaki Imae
* 9 Tatsuhiko Kinjō
* 10 Shinya Miyamoto
* 11 Naoyuki Shimizu
* 12 Soichi Fujita
* 15 Tomoyuki Kubota
* 17 Kosuke Fukudome
* 18 Daisuke Matsuzaka
* 19 Koji Uehara
* 20 Yasuhiko Yabuta
* 21 Tsuyoshi Wada
* 22 Tomoya Satozaki
* 23 Nori Aoki
* 24 Kyuji Fujikawa
* 25 Takahiro Arai
* 27 Motonobu Tanishige
* 31 Shunsuke Watanabe
* 40 Akinori Otsuka
* 41 Hiroyuki Kobayashi
* 47 Toshiya Sugiuchi
* 51 Ichiro Suzuki
* 52 Munenori Kawasaki
* 59 Ryoji Aikawa
* 61 Hirotoshi Ishii
* 61 Takahiro Mahara

* Manager 89 Sadaharu Oh
* Coach 84 Kazuhiro Takeda
* Coach 85 Hatsuhiko Tsuji
* Coach 86 Yoshitaka Katori
* Coach 87 Yasunori Oshima
* Coach 88 Sumio Hirota

* v
* t
* e

Japan roster – 2009 World Baseball Classic champions (2nd title)

* 1 Kosuke Fukudome
* 2 Kenji Johjima
* 5 Kenta Kurihara
* 6 Hiroyuki Nakajima
* 7 Yasuyuki Kataoka
* 8 Akinori Iwamura
* 9 Michihiro Ogasawara
* 10 Shinnosuke Abe
* 11 Yu Darvish
* 14 Takahiro Mahara
* 15 Masahiro Tanaka
* 16 Hideaki Wakui
* 18 Daisuke Matsuzaka
* 19 Minoru Iwata
* 20 Hisashi Iwakuma
* 22 Kyuji Fujikawa
* 23 Nori Aoki
* 24 Seiichi Uchikawa
* 25 Shuichi Murata
* 26 Tetsuya Utsumi
* 28 Satoshi Komatsu
* 29 Yoshiyuki Ishihara
* 31 Shunsuke Watanabe
* 35 Yoshiyuki Kamei
* 39 Tetsuya Yamaguchi
* 41 Atsunori Inaba
* 47 Toshiya Sugiuchi
* 51 Ichiro Suzuki
* 52 Munenori Kawasaki

* Manager 83 Tatsunori Hara
* Coach 72 Tsutomu Itō
* Coach 71 Hisashi Yamada
* Coach 92 Tsuyoshi Yoda
* Coach 81 Kazunori Shinozuka
* Coach 63 Nobuhiro Takashiro
* Coach 73 Koichi Ogata

* v
* t
* e

Japan roster – 2013 World Baseball Classic

* 1 Takashi Toritani
* 2 Ryoji Aikawa
* 3 Hirokazu Ibata
* 5 Nobuhiro Matsuda
* 6 Hayato Sakamoto
* 7 Kazuo Matsui
* 9 Yoshio Itoi
* 10 Shinnosuke Abe
* 11 Hideaki Wakui
* 13 Sho Nakata
* 14 Atsushi Nohmi
* 15 Hirokazu Sawamura
* 16 Takeru Imamura
* 17 Masahiro Tanaka
* 18 Toshiya Sugiuchi
* 20 Kenta Maeda
* 21 Masahiko Morifuku
* 24 Seiichi Uchikawa
* 26 Tetsuya Utsumi
* 27 Ginjiro Sumitani
* 28 Kenji Otonari
* 34 Hisayoshi Chōno
* 35 Kazuhisa Makita
* 41 Atsunori Inaba
* 46 Yuichi Honda
* 47 Tetsuya Yamaguchi
* 50 Tadashi Settsu
* 61 Katsuya Kakunaka

* Manager 88 Koji Yamamoto
* Coach 75 Hideki Hashigami
* Coach 78 Osamu Higashio
* Coach 99 Masataka Nashida
* Coach 73 Koichi Ogata
* Coach 63 Nobuhiro Takashiro
* Coach 81 Kazuyoshi Tatsunami
* Coach 92 Tsuyoshi Yoda

* v
* t
* e

Japan roster – 2017 World Baseball Classic

* 1 Seiichi Uchikawa
* 2 Kosuke Tanaka
* 3 Nobuhiro Matsuda
* 4 Ryosuke Kikuchi
* 6 Hayato Sakamoto
* 7 Nori Aoki
* 8 Ryosuke Hirata
* 9 Ginjiro Sumitani
* 10 Yuki Matsui
* 11 Tomoyuki Sugano
* 12 Ryo Akiyoshi
* 13 Sho Nakata
* 14 Takahiro Norimoto
* 15 Naoki Miyanishi
* 17 Shintaro Fujinami
* 19 Hirotoshi Masui
* 20 Ayumu Ishikawa
* 22 Seiji Kobayashi
* 23 Tetsuto Yamada
* 25 Yoshi Tsutsugo
* 27 Shōta Ōno
* 30 Shota Takeda
* 34 Toshiya Okada
* 35 Kazuhisa Makita
* 37 Motohiro Shima
* 41 Kodai Senga
* 51 Seiya Suzuki
* 55 Shogo Akiyama
* 66 Yoshihisa Hirano

* Manager 90 Hiroki Kokubo
* Coach 72 Hiroshi Gondoh
* Coach 73 Hiroshi Narahara
* Coach 79 Takayuki Ohnishi
* Coach 87 Toshihisa Nishi
* Coach 80 Atsunori Inaba
* Coach 84 Yoshinori Murata

* v
* t
* e

Japan roster – 2023 World Baseball Classic champions (3rd title)

* 1 Tetsuto Yamada
* 2 Sōsuke Genda
* 3 Shugo Maki
* 5 Taisei Makihara
* 7 Takumu Nakano
* 8 Kensuke Kondoh
* 9 Ukyo Shuto
* 10 Takuya Kai
* 11 Yu Darvish
* 12 Shosei Togo
* 13 Yuki Matsui
* 14 Roki Sasaki
* 15 Taisei Ota
* 16 Shohei Ohtani
* 17 Hiromi Itoh
* 18 Yoshinobu Yamamoto
* 20 Ryoji Kuribayashi
* 21 Shota Imanaga
* 22 Atsuki Yuasa
* 23 Lars Nootbaar
* 24 Takumi Ohshiro
* 25 Kazuma Okamoto
* 26 Yuki Udagawa
* 27 Yuhei Nakamura
* 28 Hiroto Takahashi
* 29 Hiroya Miyagi
* 33 Hotaka Yamakawa
* 34 Masataka Yoshida
* 47 Keiji Takahashi
* 55 Munetaka Murakami
* 63 Soichiro Yamazaki

Manager
89 Hideki Kuriyama

Coaches
Bench Coach 90 Kazuyuki Shirai
Hitting Coach 77 Sadaaki Yoshimura
Infield Coach 79 Noriyuki Shiroishi
Pitching Coach 81 Masato Yoshii
First Base Coach 87 Masaji Shimizu
Bullpen Coach 75 Kazuyuki Atsuzawa
Catching Coach 74 Yoshinori Murata

Japan WBSC Premier12 rosters

* v
* t
* e

Japan roster – 2015 WBSC Premier12

* 2 Kenta Imamiya
* 3 Nobuhiro Matsuda
* 5 Shingo Kawabata
* 6 Hayato Sakamoto
* 7 Akira Nakamura
* 8 Ryosuke Hirata
* 9 Takuya Nakashima
* 10 Yuki Matsui
* 11 Tomoyuki Sugano
* 13 Sho Nakata
* 14 Takahiro Norimoto
* 15 Hirokazu Sawamura
* 16 Shohei Ohtani
* 18 Kenta Maeda
* 19 Hirotoshi Masui
* 21 Yuki Nishi
* 22 Yūdai Ōno
* 23 Tetsuto Yamada
* 24 Yasuaki Yamasaki
* 25 Yoshi Tsutsugo
* 27 Ginjiro Sumitani
* 29 Yasuhiro Ogawa
* 30 Shota Takeda
* 35 Kazuhisa Makita
* 37 Motohiro Shima
* 52 Yuhei Nakamura
* 55 Shogo Akiyama
* 60 Takeya Nakamura

* Manager 90 Hiroki Kokubo
* Coach 73 Hiroshi Narahara
* Coach 79 Takayuki Ohnishi
* Coach 80 Atsunori Inaba
* Coach 87 Toshihisa Nishi
* Coach 88 Akihiro Yano
* Coach 89 Yoshitaka Katori

* v
* t
* e

Japan roster – 2019 WBSC Premier12 – Champions

* 1 Tetsuto Yamada
* 2 Sōsuke Genda
* 3 Hideto Asamura
* 4 Ryosuke Kikuchi
* 5 Shuta Tonosaki
* 6 Hayato Sakamoto
* 7 Nobuhiro Matsuda
* 8 Kensuke Kondo
* 9 Yoshihiro Maru
* 10 Seiji Kobayashi
* 11 Takayuki Kishi
* 13 Taisuke Yamaoka
* 17 Kan Otake
* 18 Shun Yamaguchi
* 19 Yasuaki Yamasaki
* 20 Hiroshi Kaino
* 21 Shota Imanaga
* 22 Yūdai Ōno
* 23 Ukyo Shuto
* 27 Tsubasa Aizawa
* 28 Rei Takahashi
* 34 Masataka Yoshida
* 43 Yoshinobu Yamamoto
* 47 Kota Nakagawa
* 51 Seiya Suzuki
* 57 Shinya Kayama
* 62 Takuya Kai
* 90 Kazuto Taguchi

* Manager 80 Atsunori Inaba
* Coach 88 Makoto Kaneko
* Coach 81 Yoshinori Tateyama
* Coach 84 Yoshinori Murata
* Coach 82 Hirokazu Ibata
* Coach 87 Masaji Shimizu

Japan Summer Olympics rosters

* v
* t
* e

Japan roster – 2020 Summer Olympics gold medalists

* 1 Tetsuto Yamada
* 2 Sosuke Genda
* 3 Hideto Asamura
* 4 Ryosuke Kikuchi
* 6 Hayato Sakamoto
* 7 Ryutaro Umeno
* 8 Kensuke Kondo
* 9 Yuki Yanagita
* 10 Takuya Kai
* 12 Koyo Aoyagi
* 13 Suguru Iwazaki
* 15 Masato Morishita
* 16 Hiromi Itoh
* 17 Yoshinobu Yamamoto
* 18 Masahiro Tanaka
* 19 Yasuaki Yamasaki
* 20 Ryoji Kuribayashi
* 21 Kodai Senga
* 22 Yudai Ohno
* 31 Ryoya Kurihara
* 34 Masataka Yoshida
* 51 Seiya Suzuki
* 55 Munetaka Murakami
* 61 Kaima Taira

* Manager 80 Atsunori Inaba
* Hitting/Bench Coach 88 Makoto Kaneko
* First Base Coach 82 Hirokazu Ibata
* Third Base Coach 87 Masaji Shimizu
* Pitching Coach 81 Yoshinori Tateyama
* Battery Coach 84 Yoshinori Murata

* v
* t
* e

Baseball in Japan

WBSC Asia

Governing bodies|

* Baseball Federation of Japan

National teams
(Samurai Japan)|

* Men's
* U-18
* Women
* Baseball5

Competitions|

| Professional|

* Nippon Professional Baseball
* Central League
* Pacific League

|

Minor|

* Eastern League
* Western League
* Miyazaki Phoenix League

Collegiate|

* Tokyo Big Six
* Kansai Big Six
* Tohto

Independent|

* Baseball Challenge League
* Shikoku Island League Plus
* Intercity Baseball Tournament
* High school baseball
* Spring Kōshien
* Summer Kōshien

Awards & honors|

* Most Valuable Player
* NPB
* Japan Series
* NPB Rookie of the Year
* NPB Comeback Player of the Year
* Eiji Sawamura Award
* Matsutaro Shoriki Award
* Mitsui Golden Glove
* Best Nine

Hosted events|

* World Baseball Classic
* 2006
* 2009
* 2013
* 2017 B and E
* 2023
* Olympic Games
* 1964
* 2020
* WBSC Premier12
* 2015
* 2019
* 2024
* Asian Baseball Championship
* 1959
* 1967
* 1987
* 2003
* 2005
* 2009
* Asia Series
* 2005
* 2006
* 2007
* 2008
* Women's Baseball World Cup
* 2008
* 2014
* 1994 Asian Games
* 1934 MLB Tour
* 1980 Amateur World Series
* 2010 World University Championship

Related articles|

* Gyroball
* Shuuto
* Japan–South Korea baseball rivalry
* Major League Baseball players from Japan
* Comparison of MLB and NPB

* Japanese-style baseball

* v
* t
* e

National baseball teams of Asia (WBSC Asia)

* Afghanistan
* Cambodia
* China
* Hong Kong
* India
* Indonesia
* Iran
* Iraq
* Japan
* Laos
* North Korea
* South Korea
* Malaysia
* Mongolia
* Myanmar
* Nepal
* Pakistan
* Palestine
* Philippines
* Singapore
* Sri Lanka
* Taiwan1
* Thailand
* United Arab Emirates
* Uzbekistan
* Vietnam

* * *

1Officially known as 'Republic of China'; competing as 'Chinese Taipei'

* v
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* e

Japan Professional Sports Grand Prize

* 1968: Shozo Saijo
* 1969: Yomiuri Giants
* 1970: Taihō Kōki
* 1971: Shigeo Nagashima
* 1972: Katsuaki Matsumoto
* 1973: Tadashi Sawamura
* 1974: Sadaharu Oh
* 1975: Hiroshima Toyo Carp
* 1976: Sadaharu Oh
* 1977: Sadaharu Oh
* 1978: Yakult Swallows
* 1979: Yoko Gushiken
* 1980: Yoko Gushiken
* 1981: Koichi Nakano
* 1982: Hiromitsu Ochiai
* 1983: Tatsuro Hirooka
* 1984: Sachio Kinugasa
* 1985: Randy Bass
* 1986: Hiromitsu Ochiai
* 1987: Ayako Okamoto
* 1988: Chiyonofuji Mitsugu
* 1989: Chiyonofuji Mitsugu
* 1990: Hideo Nomo
* 1991: Joichiro Tatsuyoshi
* 1992: Takanohana Kōji
* 1993: Kazuyoshi Miura
* 1994: Ichiro Suzuki
* 1995: Ichiro Suzuki
* 1996: Masashi Ozaki
* 1997: Hidetoshi Nakata
* 1998: Kazuhiro Sasaki
* 1999: Daisuke Matsuzaka
* 2000: Hideki Matsui
* 2001: Ichiro Suzuki
* 2002: Japan men's football team
* 2003: Hideki Matsui
* 2004: Asashōryū Akinori
* 2005: Asashōryū Akinori
* 2006: Japan national baseball team
* 2007: Urawa Red Diamonds
* 2008: Ryo Ishikawa
* 2009: Ryo Ishikawa
* 2010: Hakuhō Shō
* 2011: Japan women's football team
* 2012: Shinnosuke Abe
* 2013: Masahiro Tanaka
* 2014: Kei Nishikori
* 2015: Japan national rugby union team
* 2016: Shohei Ohtani
* 2017: Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks
* 2018: Shohei Ohtani
* 2022: Naoya Inoue
* 2023: Japan national baseball team
* 2024: Haruka Kitaguchi

* v
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* e

National sports teams of Japan

Men|

* A1GP
* American football
* Australian rules football
* Bandy
* Baseball
* U-18
* Basketball
* U-17
* U-19
* 3x3
* U-23 3x3
* Wheelchair
* Boxing
* Cricket
* U-19
* Field hockey
* U-21
* Floorball
* U-19
* Football
* U-23
* U-20
* U-17
* Futsal
* U-23
* U-20
* Beach soccer
* eFootball
* Cerebral palsy
* Goalball
* Gymnastics
* Handball
* MJ
* MY
* Ice hockey
* Junior
* U-18
* Kabaddi
* Korfball
* Lacrosse
* Roller hockey
* Rugby league
* Rugby union
* 7s
* U-20
* Wheelchair
* Softball
* U-19
* Squash
* Tennis
* Volleyball
* U-21
* U-19
* Water polo

Women|

* Baseball
* Basketball
* U-19
* U-17
* 3x3
* U-23 3x3
* Wheelchair
* Beach handball
* Cricket
* Field hockey
* U-21
* Floorball
* Flag football
* Football
* U-23
* U-20
* U-17
* Futsal
* Goalball
* Gymnastics
* Handball
* W-J
* Ice hockey
* F U-18
* Rugby union
* 7s
* Softball
* U-18
* Squash
* Tennis
* Volleyball
* U-23
* U-21
* U-19
* Water polo

Mixed|

* Badminton
* Baseball5
* Boxing
* Tennis
* Wheelchair handball

* Olympics
* Paralympics
* Asian Games
* Asian Para Games
* Universiade
* Youth Olympics

*[v]: View this template
*[t]: Discuss this template
*[e]: Edit this template
*[Pld]: Games Played
*[W]: Won
*[L]: Lost
*[RS]: Runs scored
*[RA]: Runs allowed