New Chunichi Manager Kazuki Inoue Praised as ‘Good Guy’ but Faces Challenge of Drawing Crowds

A secretive alumnus is approached.

On October 10, Chunichi announced that Kazuki Inoue, 53, will be promoted to manager of the second team for the upcoming season.

On the morning of the 10th, new manager Kazuki Inoue held a press conference in Nagoya, stating, “We have to become a winning team. I want to make this a team that is loved.” During the era of former manager Kazuyoshi Tatsunami (55), coaching methods that could be seen as outdated, black humor, and the attitudes of senior staff members who deferred to these practices reportedly drove many young players away. The atmosphere on the field was often somber, but owner Uichiro Oshima (60) is now hoping that Inoue’s cheerful disposition will help build a winning group.

Three offseasons ago, the club officially requested Tatsunami to become manager despite rumors of personal issues that might make a return challenging. The comeback of “Mr. Dragons” created quite a stir in Nagoya.

“A host of former players, led by Eiji Ochiai (55) and known as the ‘Tatsunami faction,’ joined the staff, saying they were called in by Tatsunami himself. However, over these three years, not only did the results fail to show, but incidents like the ‘Reiwa Rice Riot’ also worsened the team’s image,” said a club alumnus.

When the club decided to part ways with Tatsunami, they struggled to find a suitable successor and secretly contacted several other alumni.

“There were capable alumni outside the organization who could potentially take on the managerial role, such as Masahiro Yamamoto (59), Takeshi Yamasaki (55), and Kosuke Fukudome (47), but each was busy with other commitments and lacked coaching experience, making it challenging to appoint any of them. That’s when they set their sights on Akihiro Yano (55).

 

After starting his pro baseball career with Chunichi out of Tohoku Fukushi University, Yano moved to Hanshin, where he contributed to two league championships as the starting catcher. Following retirement, he worked as a commentator and then took on roles at Hanshin, including as a first-team battery coach, second-team manager, and first-team manager. His wife, whom he married while with Chunichi in his younger years, is also from the Tokai region, giving him a personal connection to the area. Most importantly, appointing a non-Chunichi OB as manager would send a strong message that ‘Chunichi has changed!’ to both internal and external audiences,” the same source added.

However, they were unable to secure Yano’s agreement, as he was firmly settled in Kansai. This led to the eventual appointment of Kazuki Inoue as the new manager.

Concerns of OBs

A former club alumnus sighed and revealed his true feelings.

“Kazuki [Inoue] is certainly a person of character, with a bright personality that makes him well-liked by the players. But if you ask whether he can draw a crowd (laughs). Tatsunami couldn’t lead the team to victory, but he did bring in the fans. It’s like how a kind man isn’t necessarily popular—having character and attracting fans are two different things. If it had been Yano, with his experience as a manager of a popular team, it might have been a different story.”

Many club executives still fantasize about what it would have been like if Yano, who had managed a rival team with reasonable success, had taken the helm, thinking about potential revenue. We hope that Manager Inoue can silence these heartless opinions with results.