TBS Era Decline
After their 1998 Japan Series title, the Yokohama BayStars finished last 9 times in 10 years from 2002-2011 under TBS ownership. Attendance fell below 15,000 per game with the lowest payroll in NPB.
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DeNA Acquisition
In 2012, mobile game company DeNA acquired the team. President Jun Ikeda applied IT marketing to baseball, renovating Yokohama Stadium with diverse seating options and enhanced food services, shifting the experience from watching baseball to visiting the stadium.
Attendance Recovery
Attendance doubled from 1.1 million in 2011 to 2.28 million in 2019. Average attendance exceeded 31,000 with 95% stadium capacity. SNS marketing, women-focused events, and local business partnerships drove the transformation.
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Team Improvement
Under manager Ramirez from 2015, the team improved with Yoshitomo Tsutsugo as cleanup. They reached the 2017 Japan Series. In 2024 under manager Miura, they won the Japan Series against SoftBank for their first title in 26 years.