Giants’ Manager Abe Faces Criticism from Young Players as Maru’s Injury Presents Unexpected Opportunity

A “change” in Manager Abe

Last season, the Giants’ manager, Shin’nosuke Abe (46), led the team to a league championship while actively utilizing young players, but it is said that an unusual change has occurred.

“Last year, it was expected that he would struggle under the pressure of being compared to former manager Tatsunori Hara (66), but in a good way, he surprised us by exceeding our expectations. I’m looking forward to seeing what kind of surprises he will show us this year,” said a former club member.

However, in his second season as manager, this year, young players have been complaining about Manager Abe’s player selection, according to this former club member.

“In the infield, there has been fierce competition for regular spots between Makoto Kadowaki (24), Reito Nakayama (22), and rookie Yuu Aramaki (22), who was drafted in the third round from Joba University. However, Aramaki took a step back after injuring his left shoulder while trying to catch a ball in the Eastern League game on the 20th. Even so, the competition is happening in a purely competitive manner, which is ‘normal.’ The problem is the outfield.”

Manager Abe has already hinted at prioritizing the use of Trey Cabbage (27), Elier Hernandez (30), and Yoshihiro Maru (35), leaving young players with very few opportunities to play.

“Initially, Shogo Asano (20), Yuki Okada (25), and Yuto Akihiro (22) were told ‘There will be a competition until the opening day!’ and were pushed hard. However, by the end of the spring camp, the regular three outfielders were already decided, and the competition was over.

Of course, the outfielders aiming for a regular spot in the first team, as well as young outfielders in the second team, are feeling disheartened, saying, ‘There’s no chance for us now.’ They can’t help but criticize this sudden change. It’s understandable if there are complaints about this change in policy,” said the same source.

Although developing young players is important, professional baseball is a complete meritocracy. It’s only natural to enter the season with a winning team. Amidst this, an unexpected incident has caused the motivation of the young players to rise sharply.

“On the 22nd, during an open match against Lotte at Tokyo Dome, Maru injured his right leg while running the bases and was substituted. He was diagnosed with a right biceps femoris muscle strain and will recover at the Giants’ stadium, which is equipped with medical equipment. He’s unlikely to be ready for opening day, which has revived opportunities for others to make their mark.

However, this is purely an opportunity created by Maru’s injury, and unless the replacement performs well enough to fill his spot, it will simply be a diminished strength. It would be great if a new star could emerge, much like how Hayato Sakamoto (36) made a breakthrough as a replacement for Tomohiro Nishioka (48) in the past,” said a club official.

Can they turn this accident just before the opening day into a blessing in disguise?