NPB Farm League
| Classification |
|
|---|---|
| Sport | Baseball |
| Founded | 2026 |
| No. of teams | 14 |
| Country | Japan |
| Website | npb.jp/farm[1] |
The NPB Farm League is the main minor league of Japanese professional baseball.[2] The league was formed from a merger of the Eastern League and Western League in 2026, following a restructure of Japanese professional baseball, with six independent baseball leagues forming Japan Regional Professional Baseball being the other significant restructure in 2026.[3][4]
The restructure was deemed necessary to improve financial stability amongst farm teams, by having reduced expenses for travel by having more games locally. The divisions are not permanent, with teams able to move between them as NPB farm teams start to relocate to their new facilities (e.g. Fighters farm team moving to Hokkaido by 2030).[5]
Structure and season
The league consists of 14 teams, 12 farm teams from the 12 NPB clubs, plus first teams from 2 unaffiliated clubs: Oisix Niigata Albirex and HAYATE Ventures Shizuoka. The 12 farm teams consist of the 42 players on the 70-man roster not on the first team, plus any registered development players. The other teams consist of players signed directly to the clubs: as these teams are not affiliated to clubs in the NPB, players cannot accrue NPB professional service days, and remain eligible for the NPB draft, the same way JRPB players are.[6]
The league is currently based on a round robin system with teams playing a maximum of 146 games in a season. The number of scheduled games will vary from team to team, and games that are cancelled will not be replaced. The league championship is thus decided on winning percentage. In the two weeks preceding the season, 40 educational games are played in the Spring Educational League.[7]
The league is divided into three regional divisions: East, Central, and West. The East and Central divisions each have five teams, while the West has four, with playing blocks of six intra-divisional series, followed by two series of inter-divisional games. This cycle repeats across the season.[8]
An All-Star game is held between Central League and Pacific League Select teams, with players playing for the select team their parent club aligns with. The two non-affiliated clubs will be aligned with either Central or Pacific to allow their players to enter the All-Star game.[9]
The champion of the league is determined by the Farm Japan Championship after the regular season. The three division winners qualify automatically with the second-place team with the highest winning percentage across the three divisions earning a wild-card berth, for a total of four teams. At the end of each season, individual awards are given to players in each division.[10]
Current teams
| Team | Location | Stadiums | Capacity | Joined league | Manager | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| East Divison | ||||||
| Chiba Lotte Marines (2nd team) | Saitama, Saitama | Lotte Urawa Baseball Stadium | 300 | 2026 | Kazuya Fukuura | |
| Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters (2nd team) | Kamagaya, Chiba | Fighters Kamagaya Stadium | 2,400 | 2026 | Atsunori Inaba | |
| Oisix Niigata Albirex | Niigata, Niigata | HARD OFF ECO Stadium Niigata | 30,000 | 2026 | Masaru Takeda | |
| Tohoku Rakuten Golden Eagles (2nd team) | Sendai, Miyagi | Rakuten Eagles Izumi Ground | 200 | 2026 | Naoto Watanabe | |
| Tokyo Yakult Swallows (2nd team) | Toda, Saitama | Yakult Toda Baseball Stadium | 250 | 2026 | Noriyuki Shiroishi | |
| Central Divison | ||||||
| Chunichi Dragons (2nd team) | Nagoya, Aichi | Nagoya Stadium | 4,495 | 2026 | Yuji Iiyama | |
| HAYATE Ventures Shizuoka | Shizuoka, Shizuoka | Chu〜Ru Stadium Shimizu | 10,000 | 2026 | Motoyuki Akahori | |
| Saitama Seibu Lions (2nd team) | Tokorozawa, Saitama | Seibu Second Baseball Stadium | 300 | 2026 | Tatsuya Koseki | |
| Yokohama DeNA Baystars (2nd team) | Yokosuka, Kanagawa | Yokosuka Stadium | 5,000 | 2026 | Shuichi Murata | |
| Yomiuri Giants (2nd team) | Inagi, Tokyo | GIANTS TOWN STADIUM | 2,900 | 2026 | Takuro Ishii | |
| West Divison | ||||||
| Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks (2nd team) | Chikugo, Fukuoka | HAWKS Baseball Park Chikugo | 3,113 | 2026 | Kazumi Saito | |
| Hanshin Tigers (2nd team) | Amagasaki, Hyōgo | SGL Stadium | 3,600 | 2026 | Katsuo Hirata | |
| Hiroshima Toyo Carp (2nd team) | Iwakuni, Yamaguchi | Hiroshima Toyo Carp Yu Training Ground | 3,500 | 2026 | Shinji Koh | |
| Orix Buffaloes (2nd team) | Osaka, Osaka | Maishima Baseball Stadium | 8,000 | 2026 | Naoyuki Kazaoka | |
References
- ↑ https://npb.jp/farm/
- ↑ "新球団「オイシックス」「くふうハヤテ」ファームの公式記録の対象もプロ野球在籍年数には含まず". Nikkan Sports. 26 January 2024. Retrieved 9 August 2026.
- ↑ "独立リーグが新愛称「チ・リーグ」に 機構が名称変更を決議...「役割をより一層明確に」". Full-Count. 1 April 2026. Retrieved 9 August 2026.
- ↑ "一般社団法人日本独立リーグ野球機構の名称変更について". Japan Regional Professional Baseball Organization. 1 April 2026. Retrieved 6 August 2026.
- ↑ Karasawa, Yuri (26 January 2026). "NPB Enacts Minor League Realignment". JapanBall. Retrieved 9 August 2026.
- ↑ "NPBトレード期限終了 9球団が「70」枠埋める...最少は広島の「68」、保有選手100人以上は3球団". Full-Count. 31 July 2026. Retrieved 9 August 2026.
- ↑ Sumimoto, Fidel (10 April 2026). "NPBファーム・リーグが開幕 ～三地区制に再編～". Sports IT Solutions. Retrieved 9 August 2026.
- ↑ "NPB Farm Realignment: From 2026, a Single League with Three Divisions – East, Central, West and the New Schedule Explained". Gem Search. 24 January 2026. Retrieved 6 August 2026.
- ↑ "NPBが今季導入ファーム新制度「１リーグ３地区制」の日程発表 優勝決定方式も刷新". Nikkan Sports. 22 January 2026. Retrieved 9 August 2026.
- ↑ "ＮＰＢ １リーグ３地区制で再編のファーム 日本一は各地区Ｖチームとワイルドカード４球団のファーム日本選手権で決定". Daily Sports Co. 22 January 2026. Retrieved 9 August 2026.