The team was founded in 1949 and began play in 1950 in the newly organized NPB. Owned by Kinki Nippon Railway Co. (later known as Kintetsu Railway ), the franchise was known as the Kintetsu Pearls from 1950 to 1958, Kintetsu Buffalo from 1959 to 1961, the Kintetsu Buffaloes from 1962 to 1998, and the Osaka Kintetsu Buffaloes from 1999 to 2004. In 1961, the Buffaloes lost 103 games that year. As of 2022, it is NPB's only 100 loss season.