- Shikoku-Kyūshū Island League
Infobox sports league
sport=Baseball
founded=2005
teams=6
country=JPN
champion=Kagawa Olive Guyners The nihongo|Shikoku-Kyūshū Island League|四国・九州アイランドリーグ|Shikoku-Kyūshū Airando Rīgu is a
baseball league on the islands ofShikoku andKyūshū inJapan . Neither the Central nor thePacific League has a team based in Shikoku.IBLJ Inc. operates the league. IBLJ (which chose its name as an abbreviation of "Independent Baseball League of Japan"), founded by commentator and former professional baseball player
Hiromichi Ishige , initially held all the rights to the teams, leadership, and players, but in 2006 established separate corporations for the teams. The company has its headquarters in Takamatsu.Prior to December 2007, the league was known as the Shikoku Island League. On
December 1 ,2007 , it expanded to include franchises in Kyūshū, and changed its name accordingly.Teams
The six teams in the league are the
*Ehime Mandarin Pirates
*Kagawa Olive Guyners
*Kochi Fighting Dogs
*Tokushima Indigo Socks
*Fukuoka Red Warblers
*Nagasaki Saints Each team has 22 players, two coaches, and one manager.
League play
Each team plays 90 games annually, 45 at home and 45 away. With the 2008 expansion, each team's schedule changed to 80 games a year, 40 at home and 40 away, so the season consists of 240 games. Teams attempt to schedule games for Fridays, Saturdays, and Sundays. Except in Kōchi, which lacks the necessary lighting equipment, Friday games are nighters.
The Shikoku Island League uses
designated hitter s.One technique the league uses to strengthen its ties to the locales where it plays is to have those players who come from Shikoku play for their home teams. Even if they are not regulars, they often appear as designated hitters, pinch hitters, relief pitchers, and substitutes.
ponsors
The Shikoku Island League has two principal sponsors. They are the
Shikoku Railway Company (JR Shikoku) and the ShikokuCoca Cola Bottling Company. Other sponsors includeTaiyo Oil Company, ShikokuMeiji Dairies ,Japan Airlines , sporting goods makerMizuno Corp. ,Internet service provider Biglobe ,convenience store chainFamilyMart , and NihonMcDonald's .History
The first game in the league took place on
April 29 ,2005 . OnNovember 10 ,2005 , the Kochi Fighting Dogs won the first league championship.External links
* [http://www.iblj.co.jp/ Shikoku-Kyūshū Island League] Official Site (in Japanese)
* [http://island-league.net/ Shikoku Island League] Information Bureau (in Japanese)
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