The Tigers lead the league! The day when Hanshin’s manager, Kyuji Fujikawa, becomes a legend!

The new Fujikawa Tigers are running fast.

Koji Chikamoto (30), Takumu Nakano (29), and Teruaki Sato (26) are all in the race for the top batting spot, and Sato is alone in the race for the home run crown. Sato, Shota Morishita (25), and Yusuke Oyama (30) of the clinching lineup are vying for the batting title, and the other major batting titles, including stolen bases and most hits, are almost exclusively held by Hanshin players. The team’s defensive rating is an astonishing 2.05, and with 28 games remaining, they lead the league by 14 games over second place (as of August 26, 2012).

For the first part, click here! 　This year’s Hanshin Tigers have a manager, Kyuji Fujikawa, who has a great ability to correct things!

The “No. 4 Shota Morishita” plan

Koji Nakata, a.k.a. Mike Nakata, who won 14 games in 1992, the only time the Tigers finished in the A class during the dark years, asserts, “Manager Fujikawa’s control methods have improved the team’s strength.

A good example of this is when he used Kyoki Yuasa (26), who failed to pitch in relief against Yakult on August 8, in a game the following day. It’s not that they are lenient with players, but if they can’t respond to chances, they drop them to the farm and give opportunities to the next player. This is a good example of how he is not just lenient with players, but if they don’t respond to opportunities, he drops them to the farm and gives the next player a chance.

Taeko Yoshii, a sportswriter who has been a Hanshin fan for half a century, also praises Fujikawa’s ability as a motivator.

This year’s Hanshin have won every important game, including the first-place game against the Giants on August 15. In the memorial game for Shigeo Nagashima, Sato made two good catches on foul flies. He won the game when he saw off a bunt along the line. What is this “strength on the edge of the ball”?　I believe there is a hint in the words “Please enjoy the Hanshin Tigers,” which the baseball player said at the post-game manager’s press conference.

Mr. Yoshii paid attention to Hanshin-related videos on official YouTube and Instagram. There, he saw smiling faces of “bad boys” who teased even the quiet-looking Oyama.

Morishita was photographed taking home a beautiful woman, and the ballplayers took the initiative in teasing him, saying, ‘Congratulations on your debut in Bunshun! Anyway, the team was cheerful, and no one on the bench looked down. What amazes me is that these “bad boys” are playing baseball as adults. The Hanshin players are ranked first through fifth in the four-base rankings (six players are ranked in the top 10), and the team is also number one in stolen bases by a landslide. Whenever a runner is on base, they hit a base hit. This is done even by players who start in the middle of the game. The players themselves, who were trained by former manager Okada, enjoy Hanshin and play without stress, so they are strong at the plate.

What Okada has that Kogi does not

Fujikawa’s “power of words” is also an important factor in creating a team atmosphere.

He never sassed a player who made a mistake, and his way of naming names is exquisite. He names players who are on the reserve team, such as Umeno and Seiya Kinami (31), before the main players and praises them for their daily preparation. He does not use the words “regular” or “reserve,” but emphasizes that they are “competing as a team. We tell them, ‘We are watching how you are working hard,'” said Yoshii.

The decision to use young players in the starting lineup out of the blue without checking on them by substituting in or out was also seen as an attempt to motivate the players.

However, Kawajiri pointed out that the manager had a different intention in the second half of the season when he aggressively rested his mainstays, including Chikamoto and Sato, and removed rotation pitchers Kotaro Otake (30) andDuplantier (31) and closer Masaru Iwasaki (34) from the roster to freshen them up.

Kawajiri points out another intention. “Managers who come from a fielding background tend to let their pitchers pitch too much. This leaves them fatigued the following year. The day after the magic light came on, Kogi used Hiroki Sakaeeda (27) as a starter. The reason why young fielders such as Nozomu Takadera (22), Yuto Nakagawa (21), and Hinase Iotsubo (20) were selected is because they are looking ahead to the next year and beyond. They are preparing for the fatigue of the pitchers, Chikamoto’s FA, Sato and Morishita’s transfer to the Majors, and the development of Sakamoto.

What the commanders are looking at is what lies beyond winning the league championship. When the Tigers win back-to-back championships, which neither Senichi Hoshino nor former manager Okada was able to accomplish, Fujikawa will become a Tiger legend.

From the September 12 and 19, 2025 issue of FRIDAY