1992 BBM Ballparks Subset

The 1992 BBM set contained a subset that featured all the ballparks that were in use in NPB at the time.  I believe it was the first and only time that a Japanese card set included cards of all the ballparks.  There had been cards for Korakuen and Hiroshima Stadiums in the 1975/76/77 Calbee set and some cards for the newly opened Tokyo Dome in the 1988 Calbee set but really nothing for any other ballparks.  BBM also did an insert set called "Franchise Builder" for the 2019 2nd Version set that had the ballparks in the background but didn't have any information about them.  I thought it'd be interesting to take a look at these cards and talk a little about the changes in the NPB ballparks over the past 30 years.

There were only eleven ballparks in use by the twelve NPB teams in 1992 - the Yomiuri Giants and the Nippon-Ham Fighters shared the Tokyo Dome at the time and would until the Fighters moved north to Sapporo after the 2003 season.  Of those eleven, only four are still the main ballparks used by a team and are largely unchanged since 1992 - the Tokyo Dome (Giants), Koshien Stadium (Tigers), Meiji Jingu Stadium (Swallows) and Chiba Marine Stadium (Marines):

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Two more of the 1992 stadiums are still their team's main stadium but the ballparks have had somewhat changes made to them.  Seibu Stadium, home of the Lions, was transformed into the Seibu Dome when a roof was built over it in the late 90's:

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The Yokohama DeNA Baystars have done some extensive renovations in recent years to Yokohama Stadium, including extending the stands upward to add additional seating:

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The Orix BlueWave called Green Stadium in Kobe home in 1992.  The Orix Buffaloes play in Osaka at the Osaka Dome these days but they still play a handful of games at the ballpark in Kobe (which is now named for a fast food chain):

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The Dragons called Nagoya Stadium home for 48 years from 1949 to 1996 before they moved into the Nagoya Dome.  The stadium is still in use by the Dragons, however, as their farm team now plays there.  The ballpark has been significantly reduced in size however:

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The other three stadiums in the subset have all been torn down.  1992 was the last year that the Hawks played in Heiwadai Stadium in Fukuoka - they moved into the Fukuoka Dome the following year.  The ballpark was demolished in 1998 although some of the outfield stands remained for another ten years:

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The Kintetsu Buffaloes left Fujidera Stadium for the Osaka Dome after the 1996 season.  The stadium remained standing until 2005 when it was torn down to make way for an elementary school:

#109

The Carp moved out of Hiroshima Municipal Stadium to Mazda Stadium in 2009.  The ballpark was torn down over the next few years although a section of the outfield seats has been left standing:

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