The 2008 Pennant Race

Central League

Champion Yomiuri Giants

Pacific League

Champion Saitama Seibu Lions

A season archive covering the standings and game results. Rows follow the official final standings.

Final standings (official)

Central League

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RankTeamGWLTPCTGB
1Yomiuri Giants Champion14484573.596—
2Hanshin Tigers14482593.5822.0
3Chunichi Dragons14471685.51112.0
4Hiroshima Toyo Carp14469705.49614.0
5Tokyo Yakult Swallows14466744.47117.5
6Yokohama BayStars14448942.33836.5

Pacific League

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RankTeamGWLTPCTGB
1Saitama Seibu Lions Champion14476644.543—
2ORIX Buffaloes14475681.5242.5
3Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters14473692.5144.0
4Chiba Lotte Marines14473701.5104.5
5Tohoku Rakuten Golden Eagles14465763.46111.5
6Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks14464773.45412.5

Season highlights

Central League Longest win streak: Yomiuri Giants, 12 in a row Best games over .500 (in-season peak): Hanshin Tigers at +29 Days in first place: Hanshin Tigers (172 days)

At the end of August, eventual champion Yomiuri Giants stood at 4.2% in this model.

Eventual champion Yomiuri Giants bottomed out at 0% in this model (as of Jul 16, 2008).

Pacific League Longest win streak: ORIX Buffaloes, 7 in a row Best games over .500 (in-season peak): Saitama Seibu Lions at +19 Days in first place: Saitama Seibu Lions (163 days)

At the end of August, eventual champion Saitama Seibu Lions stood at 99.3% in this model.

Eventual champion Saitama Seibu Lions bottomed out at 4.4% in this model (as of Mar 25, 2008).

Days in first place are counted per day with games played.

Games over .500

Balance = wins minus losses. The horizontal zero line is the .500 mark. The ▼ marks along the top of the plot show the days the lead changed hands, colored for the new leader.

Central League Games over .5002008 seasonnpbc.mediaInterleague−40−20±0+20MarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctG +27T +23D +3C −1S −8DB −46T best balance +29G
Central League Games over .5002008 seasonnpbc.mediaInterleague−40−20±0+20MarMayJunJulAugSepOctG +27T +23D +3C −1S −8DB −46T best balance +29G
Pacific League Games over .5002008 seasonnpbc.mediaInterleague−10±0+10+20MarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctL +12B +7F +4M +3E −11H −13L best balance +19EL
Pacific League Games over .5002008 seasonnpbc.mediaInterleague−10±0+10+20MarMayJunJulAugSepOctL +12B +7F +4M +3E −11H −13L best balance +19EL

Standings over time

Daily standings ordered by winning percentage (wins over decisions) at the end of each day. Teams tied on percentage share the same rank, so lines can overlap. Official tiebreakers such as head-to-head records are not applied to the daily series.

Central League Standings over time2008 seasonnpbc.media123456AprMayJunJulAugSepOctG #1T #2D #3C #4S #5DB #6
Central League Standings over time2008 seasonnpbc.media123456AprMayJunJulAugSepOctG #1T #2D #3C #4S #5DB #6
Pacific League Standings over time2008 seasonnpbc.media123456MarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctL #1B #2F #3M #4E #5H #6
Pacific League Standings over time2008 seasonnpbc.media123456MarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctL #1B #2F #3M #4E #5H #6

Win-loss calendar

A tall dark cell is a win, a short light cell a loss, and a thin line a tie - the heights keep the chart readable even without color. Doubleheaders split the day's cell vertically.

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Central League Win-loss calendar2008 seasonnpbc.mediaWinLossTieYomiuri Giants84 - 57 - 3Hanshin Tigers82 - 59 - 3Chunichi Dragons71 - 68 - 5Hiroshima Toyo Carp69 - 70 - 5Tokyo Yakult Swallows66 - 74 - 4Yokohama BayStars48 - 94 - 2MarAprMayJunJulAugSepOct

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Pacific League Win-loss calendar2008 seasonnpbc.mediaWinLossTieSaitama Seibu Lions76 - 64 - 4ORIX Buffaloes75 - 68 - 1Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters73 - 69 - 2Chiba Lotte Marines73 - 70 - 1Tohoku Rakuten Golden Eagles65 - 76 - 3Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks64 - 77 - 3MarAprMayJunJulAugSepOct

Pennant odds over time

Estimates from re-running the current board's model on each day's data. Probabilities do not guarantee outcomes.

Central League Pennant odds over time2008 seasonnpbc.mediaInterleague0%20%40%60%80%100%MarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctG 100%C 0%D 0%DB 0%S 0%T 0%
Central League Pennant odds over time2008 seasonnpbc.mediaInterleague0%20%40%60%80%100%MarMayJunJulAugSepOctG 100%C 0%D 0%DB 0%S 0%T 0%
Pacific League Pennant odds over time2008 seasonnpbc.mediaInterleague0%20%40%60%80%100%MarAprMayJunJulAugSepOctL 100%B 0%E 0%F 0%H 0%M 0%
Pacific League Pennant odds over time2008 seasonnpbc.mediaInterleague0%20%40%60%80%100%MarMayJunJulAugSepOctL 100%B 0%E 0%F 0%H 0%M 0%

Interleague records

Interleague results only (rows in league and official-standings order, not by winning percentage).

Central League

TeamW - L - T
Yomiuri Giants14 - 10 - 0
Hanshin Tigers15 - 9 - 0
Chunichi Dragons12 - 12 - 0
Hiroshima Toyo Carp13 - 11 - 0
Tokyo Yakult Swallows11 - 13 - 0
Yokohama BayStars6 - 18 - 0

Pacific League

TeamW - L - T
Saitama Seibu Lions10 - 14 - 0
ORIX Buffaloes11 - 13 - 0
Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters14 - 10 - 0
Chiba Lotte Marines10 - 14 - 0
Tohoku Rakuten Golden Eagles13 - 11 - 0
Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks15 - 9 - 0

Season rules and notes

  • Rows follow the official final standings (not necessarily in order of winning percentage).
  • Beyond the league schedule, "オールスター" (All-Star Series) was held this season (2 games, 2008-07-31 to 2008-08-01). The standings and charts on this page cover the league schedule only.
  • Beyond the league schedule, "パ CS 第1S" (Pacific League Climax Series First Stage) was held this season (2 games, 2008-10-11 to 2008-10-12). The standings and charts on this page cover the league schedule only.
  • Beyond the league schedule, "パ CS 第2S" (Pacific League Climax Series Second Stage) was held this season (5 games, 2008-10-17 to 2008-10-22). The standings and charts on this page cover the league schedule only.
  • Beyond the league schedule, "セ CS 第1S" (Central League Climax Series First Stage) was held this season (3 games, 2008-10-18 to 2008-10-20). The standings and charts on this page cover the league schedule only.
  • Beyond the league schedule, "セ CS 第2S" (Central League Climax Series Second Stage) was held this season (4 games, 2008-10-22 to 2008-10-25). The standings and charts on this page cover the league schedule only.
  • Beyond the league schedule, "日本シリーズ" (Japan Series) was held this season (7 games, 2008-11-01 to 2008-11-09). The standings and charts on this page cover the league schedule only.
  • Beyond the league schedule, "アジアシリーズ" (Asia Series) was held this season (7 games, 2008-11-13 to 2008-11-16). The standings and charts on this page cover the league schedule only.

This page is reference material. Where it differs from the official records, the official records take precedence.