The is one of the two
minor leagues of Japanese professional baseball. The league is owned and managed by the
Pacific League.
History
The league was created in 1952 as the Kansai Farm League, and contained the minor league teams of the seven professional teams that had their homefields in the western region of Japan. The original teams in the league were, the
Osaka Tigers,
Hankyu Braves,
Nankai Hawks,
Nagoya Dragons,
Nishitetsu Lions,
Shochiku Robins, and Sanyo Crowns. The league was initially completely separate from the workings of the
NPB. The
Sanyo Crowns were dissolved in 1952, and the
Shochiku Robins merged with the
Taiyo Whales in 1953, to cut the number of teams down to five. The
Kintetsu Pearls joined in 1953, but the six teams of the
Central League decided to form their own minor league in 1954, and the
Chunichi Dragons and
Hanshin Tigers dropped out of the league to leave only four teams in the league.
The league decided to join the
NPB in 1955, and the 14 minor league teams of the
Central League and
Pacific League were split up to create the
Western League and
Eastern League. The new league consisted of the minor league teams of, the
Hanshin Tigers,
Hankyu Braves,......
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