After winning the 1963 Central League pennant by 2 1/2 games over the Chunichi Dragons, the Yomiuri Giants faced the Pacific League Champion Nishitetsu Lions in the Japan Series. It was a grueling seven game set, with the Giants winning Game 7 in an 18-4 blowout over Lions HOFer Kazuhisa Inao. Sadaharu Oh smashed two homers in the rout and Golden Player Isao Shibata also homered.

Oh homered four times during the series and won the Most Outstanding Player award, while Shigeo Nagashima was named series MVP. Tetsuharu Kawakami managed the Giants to their second Japan Series championship in his first three years at the helm. Ultimately, during Kawakami's 15 years in charge of the Giants, the team won an astounding 12 Japan Series titles, including nine consecutive wins from 1965-1973!

This large panoramic color photo was produced by the Hochi Shimbun (newspaper). Kawakami is seen at bottom row center, directly above a large trophy. A young Sadaharu Oh can be found in the front row second from left (uniform #1) waving his hat. Shigeo Nagashima (#3) can be seen just over Kawakami's left shoulder. In all, there are nine Japan Hall of Fame members/Golden Players in this photo. Others include active players Masahiko Mori, Isao Shibata, Motoshi Fujita and Tatsuro Hirooka, with coaches Hiroshi Nakao and Shigeru Makino.

The lot also includes a thin, semi-transparent page containing a listing and diagram indicating the positions of all team members pictured in the photo. Japanese Text.

Size: 19 7/8" x 9 3/4"

Condition: Ex.  The photo shows evidence of having been rolled up at one time.  There is a vertical crease on the thin, semi-transparent page which does not appear on the photo itself.