Saitama Seibu Lions

The Saitama Seibu Lions (埼玉西武ライオンズ, Saitama Seibu Raionzu) are a professional baseball team based in Tokorozawa, Saitama Prefecture.

Contents [hide]

1 Profile

2 Introduction

3 Related Tags

Profile

Affiliation	Pacific League
Ballpark	Belluna Dome
Japan Series Title	13
PL Pennant	23

Introduction

Before 1979, they were based in Fukuoka, Fukuoka Prefecture in Kyushu. The team is owned by a subsidiary of Seibu Railway, which in turn is owned by the Seibu Holdings. The team experienced a recent period of financial difficulty, but the situation brightened when the team received a record ¥6 billion (about $51.11 million) posting fee from the Boston Red Sox for the right to negotiate a contract with Daisuke Matsuzaka. Between 1978 and 2008, the team logo and mascot were based on the adult version of Kimba the White Lion, a classic Japanese anime and manga series by Osamu Tezuka. In 2004, former Seibu Lions player Kazuo Matsui became the first Japanese infielder to play in Major League Baseball.