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Defending Japan League champ Sendai finished with the best record in the league in 1954 at 101-61, beating Sapporo by eight games atop the North Division. Kitakyushu again claimed the South Division title as their 97-65 finish placed them six games better than Fukuoka. It is the fourth playoff appearance for the Kodiaks all-time and second for the Samurai with both franchises only recently finding sustained success.

Fukuoka RF Takashi Ishihara won his fifth league MVP, the first five-time winner in EAB history. The 34-year old slugger smacked a league-best 52 home runs and 122 RBI, also leading Japan in runs (106), slugging (.632), and OPS (.971) while adding 8.1 WAR. Ishihara also became the eighth player to reach 500 career home runs in EAB. Kyoto’s Nobuyuki Matsui won Pitcher of the Year, a highlight in an otherwise unremarkable career. The 26-year old led in ERA (2.11) and WHIP (0.80) with 26 quality starts. However, his 4.8 WAR was the lowest-ever by a good margin for a Pitcher of the Year winner.



Defending East Asia Baseball Champ Daegu had the best record in Korea in 1954 and made it fourth straight South Division titles. The Diamondbacks finished 103-59 but had to earn their crown, outracing a 100-62 Yongin squad. Incheon at 102-60 picked up the North Division title, 12 games better than second place Hamhung.

Korea League MVP went to Gold Sox 2B San Chai. The 25-year old set a single-season record with 142 runs scored, while also leading the league in hits (228), doubles (49), RBI (137), average (.356), slugging (.684), OPS (1.092), and WAR (9.9). Daegu’s Young-Gwon Shin became a two-time Pitcher of the Year winner. The 26-year old Shin was one win shy of a Triple Crown with a 21-4 record, 1.84 ERA, and 363 strikeouts. He also had the top mark in WHIP (0.77), FIP- (40), and WAR (11.4). Shin was also the second EAB pitcher to have a 20 strikeout game, doing it on August 9 against Changwon.

The result was switched in a Japan League Championship Series rematch. Sendai won it in seven last year, but this time Kitakyushu cruised to a sweep for the Kodiaks’ first-ever league title. The Korea League Championship Series ended up a seven-game classic that saw Incheon prevail over Daegu, denying a Diamondbacks three-peat. It is the second Korean title for the Inferno, who ultimately added their second EAB Championship win as well with a 4-2 win over Kitakyushu.





Other notes: Beom-Kyung Kim crossed 3500 career strikeouts. Han-Yul Jeong became a seven-time Gold Glove winner at SS. Takashi Ishihara added his eighth Silver Slugger in his MVP season, while 3B Nariyuki Yanagisawa earned his seventh.