one of the two leagues of professional baseball teams in Japan (the other being the Central League). The Pacific League was founded in 1950. It has six teams, some of whose names and hometown designations have changed over the years. The league consists of the Chiba Lotte Marines, Fukuoka Softbank Hawks, Hokkaido Nippon Ham Fighters, Orix Buffaloes, Seibu Lions, and Tohoku Rakuten Golden Eagles. The regular playing season culminates in the Japan Series, a seven-game series between the respective champion teams of the Pacific and Central leagues.