| 2018 Japan Series | ||||||||||
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| Dates | October 27 – November 3 | |||||||||
| MVP | Takuya Kai (SoftBank) | |||||||||
| FSA | Seiya Suzuki (Hiroshima) | |||||||||
| Broadcast | ||||||||||
| Television | TV Asahi (Games 1, 5) Fuji TV (Game 2) TBS (Games 3, 6) NTV (Games 4) NHK BS-1 (Games 3–5) | |||||||||
| Radio | RCC, RKB Mainichi, Kyushu Asahi, JOLF, NHK Radio 1 | |||||||||
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The 2018 Japan Series (known as the SMBC Nippon Series 2018 for sponsorship reasons) was the championship series of Nippon Professional Baseball's (NPB) 2018 season. The 69th edition of the Japan Series, it was a best-of-seven playoff between the Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks, the Pacific League's (PL) Climax Series champion and defending Japan Series champions, and the Hiroshima Toyo Carp, the Central League's (CL) Climax Series champion. The Hawks defeated the Carp, 4–1–1, in six games, to win their second consecutive Japan Series championship and their fifth in eight years.
The Hawks finished the 2018 regular season in second place in the Pacific League. They advanced to the Japan Series after defeating the Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters and the Saitama Seibu Lions in the Climax Series. The Carp finished in first place in the Central League for the third consecutive year, earning a bye in the first stage of the Climax Series. They defeated the Yomiuri Giants in Climax Series to reach the Japan Series.
At Mazda Stadium in Hiroshima, the Hawks and Carp tied in Game 1, and the Carp won Game 2. The Hawks then won the next four games, including Games 3 through 5 at Fukuoka Yahuoku! Dome in Fukuoka, to win the series. Takuya Kai won the Japan Series Most Valuable Player Award.