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APBA JAPANESE BASEBALL

1953 Japan Series

Yomiuri Giants vs Nankai Hawks

In 1953, the Yomiuri Giants and the Nankai Hawks met for the third straight year in the Japan Series. The Giants' phenomenal pitching staff boasted a 2.48 ERA, three future Hall of Famers (Hideo Fujimoto, Takehiko Bessho, and Hiroshi Nakao), and the Central League's MVP and Sawamura Award winner, Takumi Otomo. The Giants' offense was led by the "God of Batting", Tetsuharu Kawakami, and was bolstered by future Hall of Famers Shigeru Chiba and Hawain-born Wally Yonamine.

The Hawks' team was built around speed, defense, and timely hitting. Five Hawks were among the top seven qualifiers for the Pacific League batting title, and six Hawks reached double figures in stolen bases. The team included Pacific League batting champ, Isami Okamoto, and future Hall of Famer Tokuji Iida.

The series was a classic with the Giants winning in seven games. All but one of the games were close, there were three shutouts, and even a tie!

Schedule

Game	Date	Giants Starter	Hawks Starter	Home Team
1	10/10	Otomo	Okami	Hawks
2	10/11	Fujimoto	Nakamura	Hawks
3	10/12	Bessho	Nakahara	Giants
4	10/13	Otomo	Nakatani	Giants
5	10/14	Iritani	Yuki	Hawks
6	10/15	Fujimoto	Okami	Hawks
7	10/16	Bessho	Obata	Giants

Suggested Lineups

Giants	Pos.	Hawks	Pos.
yonamine	8	Kageyama	5
Chiba	4	Shimabara	9
Minamimura	9	Okamoto	4
Kawakami	3	Iida	3
Uno/Kashiwada	5	Horii	7
Hirai	6	Kuroda	8
Platoon	7	Matsui	2
Hirota	2	Pitcher	1
Pitcher	1	Kizuka	6

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