Rakuten Eagles President Masayuki Morii visited Shiogama Shrine in Shiogama City, Miyagi Prefecture on the 6th. He prayed together with Ambassador Okajima and team staff. "First of all, I prayed that our players would be healthy and able to complete the year safely," he said emphatically.

The votive tablets were inscribed with phrases such as "Bring excitement to Tohoku," "win for all prefectures in Tohoku," and "Home games at the Climax Series." He explained, "The phrase 'Bring excitement to Tohoku' was used when Manager Hoshino took office. Of course, our goal is to be the best in Japan, but first we want to involve the entire Tohoku region and have a heated battle. I wanted to go back to basics and use the phrase 'Bring excitement to Tohoku'."

Last season, the team placed fourth. They are now embarking on a journey to become number one in Japan for the first time in 13 years. "As every year, our goal is to win. I'm sure there will be many things that happen throughout the year, but I want us to overcome them together and use everyone's power to lead the team to victory. To that end, we as a team will promise to provide our utmost support, and I want everyone across Tohoku to celebrate in November and December," he said.