Rakuten Eagles announced on the 29th that they have notified pitcher Shota Watanabe (26), pitcher Kosei Koga (22), catcher Tsuyoshi Ishihara (27), infielder Kyosuke Kaneko (22), catcher Toshiya Osakae (19), and infielder Daiki Irie (24) that their player contracts will not be renewed for the next season. It appears that developmental contracts were offered to Shota Watanabe, Kaneko, Osakae, and others.

Sho Watanabe recorded 8 wins in 51 appearances during his first year, utilizing his sharp fastball and palmball as weapons. He underwent surgery on his right elbow last August. This season, he appeared in 6 games with the first team, recording 0 wins, 0 losses, and an ERA of 10.50, while in the farm league, he had 1 win and 0 losses with an ERA of 4.64 in 22 appearances.

Kaneko is a right-handed power hitter who joined the team from Kanagawa University as the fourth developmental draft pick in 2025. He made a strong impression in the farm league immediately after the season started and earned a promotion to the 70-man roster in May. In his first year, he recorded a .100 batting average over four games, including his first professional hit. In the farm league, he hit .244 with 13 Home Runs.

Daiei is a catcher who joined from Gakuho Ishikawa as a fourth-round draft pick in 2025. In his rookie year this season, he had no first-team appearances, and in the farm league, he played in 24 games with a .182 batting average, 1 Home Run, and 7 RBI.

Ishihara played in a career-high 68 games and recorded 4 Home Runs in 2024. This season, partly due to the impact of injuries, he was limited to appearing in only 7 games.

Irie appeared in a career-high 17 games this season with a .208 batting average. In the farm league, he recorded a .276 batting average, 3 Home Runs, and 21 RBI.