A Surprising Managerial Candidate Emerges as the ‘Next’ Manager of the Yomiuri Giants

I’ve been given three years, and I’ll do my best.

On November 15, manager Tatsunori Hara (63) reported the end of the season to owner Juichi Yamaguchi at the Yomiuri Shimbun’s Tokyo headquarters in Otemachi, Tokyo. After the meeting, he told the press that he had been asked to sign a new three-year contract, which he accepted without hesitation. This season is the last year of his three-year contract. This is the last year of his three-year contract, which means he will be in charge of the Yomiuri Giants for 18 years, including the first administration from 2002 and the second administration from 2006.

He has been in charge of the Yomiuri Giants for 18 years, including the first administration from 2002 and the second administration from 2006, but he is not sure if he will complete his term next season. This season, the team stalled in the second half, and instead of winning the championship, they ended the season on a losing note. the Yomiuri Giants have now been away from the top spot in Japan for nine years since 2012. It is true that manager Hara has been blamed for this season as well. If he does not perform well next season and beyond, he may step down in the middle of his term.

As an all-powerful manager, I can see the negative effects of the concentration of power. Sho Nakata, who was involved in a violent incident at Nippon Ham, was acquired in the middle of the season at the request of manager Hara, but as you know, the result was very poor. The result, as you know, was a huge slump with a batting average in the 10% range, completely stopping the flow of the batting line.

Two chief coaches competing with each other

Manager Hara is not bragging just because he has been in power for a long time. He is also working hard to develop his own “next leaders.

The “post-Hara” is Shin Abe. Most people think that Shinnosuke Abe (who will be the defense chief coach next season) will be the “post-Hara. However After retiring in 19 However, since retiring in 2007, I have worked as a second-team manager, and there are many uncertainties about my abilities as a leader. Mr. Hara said, “You have to become a much better leader than I am,” and urged him to do so.

If Abe proves to be inadequate as a leader, he will have to find another candidate. The next most likely candidate is Daisuke Motoki, the offensive chief coach. Both men are passionate and unreserved toward their players. By appointing them as chief coaches of the offense and defense, Coach Hara probably intends to have them compete for the position of ‘next leader.

Abe and Motoki are coach Hara’s “favorites. Abe and Motoki are the “favorites” of Manager Hara. If the team fails to win the championship next season and beyond and loses more games than it has in the past, the argument that Manager Hara is responsible will flare up again, and it is possible that his wishes will not be reflected. Then, the name of an unexpected person surfaced.

It is Yoshinobu Takahashi, 46, who currently holds the title of ‘Special Advisor to the Baseball Team. He recorded a .395 batting average as a substitute in 2003 and intended to continue his career the following year, but Tsuneo Watanabe, the team’s chief advisor, and Kojiro Shiraishi, the team’s director and owner (both at the time), wanted him to become manager. Mr. Takahashi, who had never coached before, led the Yomiuri Giants for three years, winning 210 games and losing 208. He resigned after the team failed to win a single championship.

At the time of his resignation, he said, “I have no plans for the future. I have to look back at my lack of power,’ he said depressedly. Recently, however, he has been different. At a TOKYO FM sports event held in January 2007, he said, “I lost the game. In a sports event for TOKYO FM in January 2007, he said, “I lost the game. I don’t want to end up with a loss.

There are many baseball team executives who want Mr. Takahashi to be the manager again. He is a graduate of Keio University and has a fresh impression. He’s a perfect fit for the Yomiuri Giants, who advocate a ‘gentleman’s team’,” said a sports reporter.

Mr. Takahashi is still young as a leader. He is still young as a leader, and if Hara’s long term regime stagnates, there is a good chance that he will be asked to take over again in an emergency.