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The Yakult Swallows (ヤクルトスワローズ Yakuruto Suwarozu) are a professional baseball team in Japan's Central League.
- Founded: 1950
- Formerly known as: Kokutetsu Swallows (1950-1965), Sankei Swallows (1965), Sankei Atoms (1966-1968), Atoms (1969), Yakult Atoms (1970-1973), Yakult Swallows (1974-)
- Home ballpark: Meiji-Jingu Stadium
- Uniform colors: White, Red and Navy
- Logo design: "Yakult Swallows" written in red and navy
- League championships won (6): 1978, 1992, 1993, 1995, 1997, 2001
- Japan Series championships won (5): 1978, 1993, 1995, 1997, 2001
The Swallows are named after their corporate owners, the Yakult Corporation. From 1950 to 1965, the company was owned by Japan National Railways and called the Kokutetsu Swallows; the team was then owned by the Sankei Shimbun from 1965 to 1968 and called the Sankei Atoms. Yakult purchased the team in 1970 and restored its original Swallows name in 1974.
Famous players of Yakult Swallows past and present are Masaichi Kaneda, Kazushige Nayashima, Dave Roberts, Tsutomu Wakamatsu, Hiromi Matsuoka, Charlie Manuel, Bob Horner, Tom O'Malley, Terry Bross, Masato Yoshii, Kazuhisa Ishii, Shingo Takatsu, Atsuya Furuta and Takehiro Ikeyama.
Players of note
Current stars
- Atsuya Furuta
- Ryota Igarashi
- Hirotoshi Ishii
- Masanori Ishikawa
- Akinori Iwamura
- Alex Ramirez
Retired numbers
none
External links
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