“Destroying another team’s equipment…” Hanshin Tigers Manager Kyojirō Fujikawa: The Aftermath of His “Angry Ejection & Fist Punch” and the “Umpire’s Ruling”

“To be honest, it looked like he was safe (laughs).”

It was a wild night in Hakata. On June 10, Hanshin Tigers manager Kyojirō Fujikawa (45) was ejected in the seventh inning of an interleague game against the SoftBank Hawks (at Mizuho PayPay Dome)—the first ejection of his career, including his playing days.

Afterward, Manager Fujikawa exploded with uncontrollable frustration, smashing a whiteboard in the dugout before storming off. The incident occurred in the top of the seventh inning, with one out, when first baserunner Keiyu Kumagai (30) attempted to steal second base.

“To be honest, it looked safe to me (laughs), but the call was out. Manager Fujikawa immediately requested a review from the umpires, and the replay review began, but the call stood.Unable to contain himself, Manager Fujikawa shook his head and stormed out of the dugout to confront the umpires. However, under the Central and Pacific Leagues’ agreement, protests regarding replay reviews are strictly prohibited. Manager Fujikawa effectively violated this rule. After issuing two warnings, the umpires ejected him from the game,” said a reporter covering the game on site.

A former NPB umpire explains.

“In the NPB, there is a rule that states, ‘Unless there is conclusive evidence sufficient to overturn the call, the original call stands, no matter how suspicious it may seem.’From what I saw on TV, this play looked safe to me as well, but the dust kicked up during the slide perfectly obscured the metal studs on his spikes, so I couldn’t be certain whether Kumagai had reached the base before being tagged.

Even if I had been in the replay center, I wouldn’t have strongly argued for a call change. I believe the decision to proceed with the original out call—‘It looks safe, but we can’t say for certain that his foot reached the base before the tag’—was correct under the rules.

“There seem to be voices suggesting the call was biased in favor of SoftBank,” he noted, “but the umpires don’t have the luxury of favoring a specific team when making calls. Their livelihoods depend on it… There’s a huge barrier between something looking safe and actually overturning a call.”

Fans dissatisfied with the call unleashed a storm of boos. Manager Fujikawa also retreated to the third-base dugout, clearly frustrated.

“At that moment, I punched the whiteboard with my fist. I checked it after the game, and it was deeply dented. Since it happened during the game, the stadium staff probably won’t press charges, but it wouldn’t be surprising if it were classified as property damage.

While some players expressed gratitude to the manager for protesting with such resolve, veteran players and staff seemed to view the situation more calmly, saying, ‘We’re not saying we agree with it, but given what happened with Abe-san (Shinnosuke, 47), raising a fist in front of the cameras is a bit…’”(Reporter mentioned above)

After the game, Manager Fujikawa spoke to the press with a composed expression, saying, “I’m usually calm, but there are times when things happen that make you frustrated. I had absolutely no intention of insulting the umpire or anything like that.”

However, a former player from a certain team lamented, “I wish he’d think a little more about the team.”

“There’s no benefit to the manager getting ejected just to protest, and there’s no point in protesting the results of the replay review to the on-field umpires. It’s the replay review umpire off the field who’s watching the footage and making the call. Some players might have felt inspired, thinking, ‘The manager protested for us,’ but unfortunately, there aren’t many cases where the players actually rallied as a result.It’s far better for the team if he stays in command until the very end.

Some might interpret it as ‘he deliberately banged on the board to show his intent to protest,’ but even if that’s the case, destroying equipment at another team’s home stadium is a no-go…Back in the day, scenes of Manager Senichi Hoshino breaking fans or kicking chairs were featured on sports news and shows like “Funny Plays, Great Plays,” but times have changed.”

On the afternoon of the 11th, the NPB announced that it had issued a stern warning and a 100,000-yen fine to Manager Fujikawa. The Hanshin Tigers, under Fujikawa, have suffered a major slump with a 4-8 record since the start of the Interleague season (as of June 10). They continue to face trials in their quest to achieve their long-cherished goal of back-to-back championships.