Understanding Manager Abe’s Harsh Criticism: The Reason Behind Giants’ Akihiro’s Comments on Baseball

I’m not going to raise him because he’s good. I don’t expect much from him at all.

Giants manager Shinnosuke Abe made harsh comments about Masato Akihiro, 21, who was promoted to the first team for the first time this season on May 7. I wonder if Abe meant what he said. In the game against Chunichi on the same day, Akihiro was not on the starting lineup.

Last season, Akihiro hit .273 with 10 home runs, but this season he has been in a slump since the beginning of spring. He batted .125 in the opening game and hit .216 with no home runs in the second game. Manager Abe, who removed Akihiro from the opening day lineup, dismissed him, saying, “Because he didn’t produce any results. That’s all.

Maybe he was watching the cheerleaders.

This is not the first time that manager Abe has been harsh on Akihiro. He has been saying this for a long time.

He has said in the past, “I don’t think he knows anything about baseball.

He was not reacting well to the ball because he was watching the cheerleaders, wasn’t he?

Abe does not treat all players harshly. But why does he use language and behavior that could be construed as power harassment against Akihiro?

There are two reasons.

One reason may be that manager Abe, who emphasizes discipline with themes such as “self-sacrifice” and “dedication,” wants Akihiro to change his fast-paced attitude. Last offseason, Akihiro overslept and was late twice for official events, and when he was promoted to the first team on May 7, he spent 20 minutes chatting with his “mentor” Sho Nakata, with whom he trains in front of the opposing team’s Nakata bench. Manager Abe expressed his displeasure immediately after Akihiro’s late arrival, saying, “I think I’ll put him on the third team.

Another reason is his expectations as a main gunner. The fact that Akihiro wears the same “55” number as Giants legend Hideki Matsui shows the high expectations for him. They want him to develop a mentality that will not be affected by any situation, and they want him to grow up strictly as the Giants’ main gunner. He must not be depressed by harsh words. I feel that this is Abe’s parental love for his player, who he hopes will become the next No. 4 of the Giants, and aim higher both mentally and physically.

Will Abe’s “true intentions” be conveyed to Akihiro? Akihiro is expected to awaken far more than he did last season.