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.

On the votive tablet, he wrote, "Let's heat up Tohoku," "win in all Tohoku prefectures," and "Host the CS at home." "The phrase 'Let's heat up Tohoku' is a phrase that Manager Hoshino used when he took over. Of course, becoming number one in Japan is our goal, but we first remembered that we need to get the whole of Tohoku involved and have a heated battle, so we went back to basics and used the phrase 'Let's heat up Tohoku'," he explained.

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.