It was revealed on the 19th that Hajime Miki (49), the former manager of the Rakuten Eagles, will be appointed as the head coach of the Orix Buffaloes. This season, the team finished in 4th place, falling into the B-class for the first time in two years, and head coach Toshio Haru (56) has already left the club. The team had been listing potential successors behind the scenes and had approached Miki by this day.

Miki spent his playing days with Yakult and Nippon-Ham and has extensive coaching experience. He has served in various roles, including head coach and manager for both the first and second teams. Next season will be the third year for Manager Mamoru Kishida (45). The presence of Miki, who led another Pacific League team until the middle of this season, is expected to be significant, and the second-team manager position is anticipated to be filled by Yoshihisa Hirano (42), a pitcher and pitching coach who retired from active play at the end of this season.

In the hitting department, hitting coach Keizo Kawashima (43) left the team at his own request. It was also revealed that the team will invite hitting coach Tatsuya Shimozono (41), who left the Rakuten Eagles at the end of this season. As a left-handed hitter with an excellent eye for the ball, Coach Shimozono gained experience as both a player and a coach with Yokohama and DeNA. He had been with the Rakuten Eagles since last year. The team's 483 runs scored this season ranked 5th in the league. He is known for his enthusiastic coaching and proficiency in data analysis, and expectations are high for him to not only strengthen overall hitting power but also to develop left-handed hitters such as Kita, Mugitani, and Yamanaka.

Hajime Miki. Born April 25, 1977, in Osaka Prefecture. 49 years old. Joined Yakult as the first-round draft pick in 1995 from Uenomiya. Transferred to Nippon-Ham via trade in 2008 and retired from active play at the end of that same year. After serving as head coach and in other roles for Yakult, he became the Rakuten Eagles farm team manager in 2019. He served as the first-team manager in 2020. In 2021, he was reassigned to farm team manager, and will serve as the first-team manager again starting in 2025. It was announced in June of this year that he would take a leave of absence, and he subsequently left the team. His career stats over 359 games include a .195 batting average, 2 Home Runs, and 14 RBI. 180 cm, 75 kg. Right-handed thrower and switch-hitter.

Tatsuya Shimozono. Born November 22, 1984, in Miyazaki Prefecture. 41 years old. After attending Miyazaki Nichidai High School and Kyushu International University, he joined Yokohama (DeNA) as a 4th round pick in the 2006 University/Adult draft. He retired from active play at the end of 2017 and became a DeNA second-team batting coach in 2020. He left the team in 2024 and became a Rakuten Eagles second-team batting coach starting in 2025. He took charge of the first team midway through that same year. His career stats over 656 games include a .263 batting average, 16 Home Runs, and 110 RBI. He is 179 cm tall and weighs 81 kg. He is a left-handed pitcher and left-handed hitter.