1956 Nippon Professional Baseball season
# 1956 Nippon Professional Baseball season

The 1956 Nippon Professional Baseball season was the seventh season of operation of Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB).

## Regular season

### Standings

Central League regular season standings :

| Team | G | W | L | T | Pct. | GB |
| - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| Yomiuri Giants | 130 | 82 | 44 | 4 | .646 | — |
| Osaka Tigers | 130 | 79 | 50 | 1 | .612 | 4.5 |
| Chunichi Dragons | 130 | 74 | 56 | 0 | .569 | 10.0 |
| Kokutetsu Swallows | 130 | 61 | 65 | 4 | .485 | 21.0 |
| Hiroshima Carp | 130 | 45 | 82 | 3 | .358 | 27.5 |
| Taiyo Whales | 130 | 43 | 87 | 0 | .331 | 41.0 |

Pacific League regular season standings :

| Team | G | W | L | T | Pct. | GB |
| - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| Nishitetsu Lions | 154 | 96 | 51 | 7 | .646 | — |
| Nankai Hawks | 154 | 96 | 52 | 6 | .643 | 0.5 |
| Hankyu Braves | 154 | 88 | 64 | 2 | .578 | 10.5 |
| Mainichi Orions | 154 | 84 | 66 | 4 | .558 | 13.5 |
| Kintetsu Pearls | 154 | 68 | 82 | 4 | .455 | 29.5 |
| Toei Flyers | 154 | 58 | 92 | 4 | .390 | 39.5 |
| Daiei Stars | 154 | 57 | 94 | 3 | .380 | 41.0 |
| Takahashi Unions | 154 | 52 | 98 | 4 | .351 | 45.5 |

## Postseason

### Japan Series

PL Nishitetsu Lions (4) vs. CL Yomiuri Giants (2)

| Game | Date | Score | Location | Time | Attendance |
| - | - | - | - | - | - |
| 1 | October 10 | Nishitetsu Lions – 0, Yomiuri Giants – 4 | Korakuen Stadium | 2:07 | 24,632 |
| 2 | October 11 | Nishitetsu Lions – 6, Yomiuri Giants – 3 | Korakuen Stadium | 2:18 | 19,108 |
| 3 | October 13 | Yomiuri Giants – 4, Nishitetsu Lions – 5 | Heiwadai Stadium | 2:41 | 23,528 |
| 4 | October 14 | Yomiuri Giants – 0, Nishitetsu Lions – 4 | Heiwadai Stadium | 1:55 | 24,459 |
| 5 | October 15 | Yomiuri Giants – 12, Nishitetsu Lions – 7 | Heiwadai Stadium | 3:16 | 19,042 |
| 6 | October 17 | Nishitetsu Lions – 5, Yomiuri Giants – 1 | Korakuen Stadium | 2:13 | 27,994 |

## League leaders

### Central League

Batting leaders :

| Stat | Player | Team | Total |
| - | - | - | - |
| Batting average | Wally Yonamine | Yomiuri Giants | .338 |
| Home runs | Noboru Aota | Taiyo Whales | 25 |
| Runs batted in | Andy Miyamoto | Yomiuri Giants | 69 |
| Runs | Wally Yonamine | Yomiuri Giants | 86 |
| Hits | Tetsuharu Kawakami | Yomiuri Giants | 160 |
| Stolen bases | Yoshio Yoshida | Osaka Tigers | 50 |

Pitching leaders :

| Stat | Player | Team | Total |
| - | - | - | - |
| Wins | Takehiko Bessho | Yomiuri Giants | 27 |
| Losses | Noboru Akiyama | Taiyo Whales | 25 |
| Earned run average | Shozo Watanabe | Osaka Tigers | 1.45 |
| Strikeouts | Masaichi Kaneda | Kokutetsu Swallows | 316 |
| Innings pitched | Noboru Akiyama | Taiyo Whales | 3792⁄3 |

### Pacific League

Batting leaders :

| Stat | Player | Team | Total |
| - | - | - | - |
| Batting average | Yasumitsu Toyoda | Nishitetsu Lions | .325 |
| Home runs | Futoshi Nakanishi | Nishitetsu Lions | 29 |
| Runs batted in | Futoshi Nakanishi | Nishitetsu Lions | 95 |
| Runs | Chico Barbon | Hankyu Braves | 94 |
| Hits | Shinya Sasaki | Takahashi Unions | 180 |
| Stolen bases | Akiteru Kono | Hankyu Braves | 85 |

Pitching leaders :

| Stat | Player | Team | Total |
| - | - | - | - |
| Wins | Masayoshi Miura | Daiei Stars | 29 |
| Losses | Yasuo Yonekawa | Toei Flyers | 21 |
| Earned run average | Kazuhisa Inao | Nishitetsu Lions | 1.06 |
| Strikeouts | Takao Kajimoto | Hankyu Braves | 327 |
| Innings pitched | Yukio Shimabara | Nishitetsu Lions | 3732⁄3 |

## Awards

* Most Valuable Player
   * Takehiko Bessho, Yomiuri Giants (CL)
   * Futoshi Nakanishi, Nishitetsu Lions (PL)
* Rookie of the Year
   * Noboru Akiyama, Taiyo Whales (CL)
   * Kazuhisa Inao, Nishitetsu Lions (PL)
* Eiji Sawamura Award
   * Masaichi Kaneda, Kokutetsu Swallows (CL)

Central League Best Nine Award winners :

| Position | Player | Team |
| - | - | - |
| Pitcher | Takehiko Bessho | Yomiuri Giants |
| Catcher | Shigeru Fujio | Yomiuri Giants |
| First baseman | Tetsuharu Kawakami | Yomiuri Giants |
| Second baseman | Noboru Inoue | Chunichi Dragons |
| Third baseman | Toshikazu Kodama | Chunichi Dragons |
| Shortstop | Yoshio Yoshida | Osaka Tigers |
| Outfielder | Wally Yonamine | Yomiuri Giants |
| Outfielder | Kenjiro Tamiya | Osaka Tigers |
| Outfielder | Noboru Aota | Taiyo Whales |

Pacific League Best Nine Award winners :

| Position | Player | Team |
| - | - | - |
| Pitcher | Takao Kajimoto | Hankyu Braves |
| Catcher | Katsuya Nomura | Nankai Hawks |
| First baseman | Kihachi Enomoto | Mainichi Orions |
| Second baseman | Shinya Sasaki | Takahashi Unions |
| Third baseman | Futoshi Nakanishi | Nishitetsu Lions |
| Shortstop | Yasumitsu Toyoda | Nishitetsu Lions |
| Outfielder | Kazuhiro Yamauchi | Mainichi Orions |
| Outfielder | Katsuki Tokura | Hankyu Braves |
| Outfielder | Kohei Sugiyama | Nankai Hawks |
