China Baseball League
| Sport | Baseball |
|---|---|
| Founded | 2002 |
| No. of teams | 7 |
| Country |  China |
| Continent | Asia |
| Most recent champion(s) | Beijing Tigers (4th title) |
| Most titles | Beijing Tigers Tianjin Lions (4 titles each) |
| Official website | www.cbl.org.cn |
The China Baseball League or Chinese Baseball League (Chinese: 中国棒球联赛) or CBL is a fledgling professional baseball league under the administration of Chinese Baseball Association, founded in 2002. It should not be confused with the Chinese Professional Baseball League of Taiwan. There is also a basketball CBL in China, the Chinese Basketball League, which is a minor league for the Chinese Basketball Association (CBA).
Teams
| Division | Team | Location | Stadium |
|---|---|---|---|
| West/North | Beijing Tigers (北京猛虎) | Beijing | Lucheng Field |
| Sichuan Dragons (四川蛟龙) | Chengdu, Sichuan | Jinniu Stadium | |
| Tianjin Lions (天津雄狮) | Tianjin | Tian Ti Dodger Stadium | |
| East/South | Guangdong Leopards (广东猎豹) | Guangzhou, Guangdong | Zhongshan Stadium |
| Jiangsu Hopestars (江苏希望之星) | Wuxi, Jiangsu | Wuxi Baseball Stadium | |
| Shanghai Golden Eagles (上海金鹰) | Shanghai | Shanghai Sports Palace | |
| Henan Elephants (河南吉象) | Zhengzhou, Henan | Henan Ball Games Administration Center Baseball Field |
The original four teams were the Beijing Tigers, Tianjin Lions, Shanghai Eagles and Guangzhou Lightning. The Hope Stars and Dragons joined them in 2005. The Hope Stars are an under-21 team of promising players from around the country. Henan Elephants entered CBL as an expansion team in 2009.
Earlier seasons
The first season ran from April 26 to May 25, 2002 with a one-game championship.
In the 2004 season, the defending champion Beijing Tigers once again defeated the Tianjin Lions in the best-of-five finals. They came back from an 0-2 deficit to win the series 3 games to 2.
The opening day of the 2005 season was April 1, 2005. The regular season ended on June 26. In the 2005 best-of-five championship series, the Beijing Tigers swept the Tianjin Lions, three games to none, giving the Tigers their third straight title. (The 2005 championship series was abbreviated to three games due to SARS.)
| Year | Winner | Games | Runner-up | Games |
| 2002 | Tianjin Lions | 1 | Beijing Tigers | 0 |
| 2003 | Beijing Tigers | 3 | Tianjin Lions | 2 |
| 2004 | Beijing Tigers | 3 | Tianjin Lions | 2 |
| 2005 | Beijing Tigers | 2 | Tianjin Lions | 0 |
| 2006 | Tianjin Lions | 3 | Guangdong Leopards | 0 |
| 2007 | Tianjin Lions | 3 | Guangdong Leopards | 1 |
| 2008 | Tianjin Lions | 3 | Beijing Tigers | 0 |
| 2009 | Beijing Tigers | 1 | Guangdong Leopards | 0 |
Partnership with Nippon Professional Baseball
In 2007, the CBL began a support relationship with Nippon Professional Baseball, Japan's baseball league. The agreement allows the Japanese clubs to send coaches and players to China and Chinese players to train at the Japanese facilities.
All teams will have a Japanese team as a partner. Beijing will pair with the Yomiuri Giants, Sichuan with the Softbank Hawks, Shanghai with the Hanshin Tigers, Jiangsu with the Chiba Lotte Marines and Guangdong with the Hiroshima Toyo Carp. Tianjin will continue its existing relationship with the Yokohama BayStars which began in 2005. [1]
See also
- China Stars
- MLB China Series
- Baseball awards#China (People's Republic of China): Chinese Baseball Association
References
External links
- Official site (in Chinese)
- National baseball league newcomers
- VOA: MLB, China Baseball League Team to Tour China
- Opening day 2005 image gallery
- Shanghai Diaries: In Search of Baseball's Yao Ming (November 30, 2004)
- First season 2002
- 2004 championship
- 2004 championship
- MLB.com article on baseball in China, July 2005
- Base Beginnings: The China Baseball League makes a pitch for popularity (June 14, 2005)
- China's Slow Emergence into Baseball, Part I (February 28, 2008)
- Fastball to Nowhere (December 19, 2008)