◆Nippon Life Interleague Series 2026 Rakuten Eagles vs. The Giants (10th, Rakuten Eagles Mobile is the strongest)

Rakuten Eagles announced on the 10th that manager Hajime Miki will be taking a leave of absence. The decision to take a leave of absence was made after discussions between the manager and the team, and head coach Tatsuya Shiokawa will take over as acting manager from the game against The Giants on the same day. Manager Miki commented, "I am very disappointed and regretful that things have come to this in the middle of the season. I am filled with gratitude to all the fans who have supported us at all times. I wish the players continued growth and success in the future. I ask for your continued support for the players and fans."

The team has played 58 games so far, with a record of 21 wins, 36 losses, and 1 tie. They have been struggling since the start of interleague play, with a record of 2 wins and 10 losses. In the game The Giants on the 9th (Rakuten Eagles Mobile's strongest team), they were completely defeated, lacking sharpness in both pitching and hitting. They suffered their fourth consecutive loss, putting them at their worst deficit of the season at 15 games below .500.

They are 14.5 games behind league leaders Seibu Lions, and their chances of winning the championship on their own could be eliminated as early as the 10th. They are in a difficult situation, sitting at the bottom of the league, 7 games behind fifth-place Lotte. On the 4th, they suffered a crushing comeback loss against DeNA (Yokohama) after being down by 7 runs, and although they had taken measures to improve the situation, such as changing pitcher coach's position on the 5th, they have now taken an even more drastic measure.

Manager Miki has followed an unusual career path, serving as the first-team manager once every 20 years, then managing the second team, and finally returning to the first team. However, in his second year back with the first team, he was unable to achieve the results he had hoped for.

In his place, Head Coach Shiokawa will serve as interim manager. The interim manager, who has supported the team as a coach for Rakuten Eagles for many years, will be looking to turn things around.

◆Hajime Miki: Born April 25, 1977, in Osaka City. Age 49. Drafted first overall by the Yakult Swallows in 1995 after graduating from Uenomiya High School. Transferred to Nippon-Ham in 2008 and retired from playing that same year. Served as head coach for Nippon-Ham from 2009 to 2013, and for Yakult from 2014 to 2018. Served as manager of Rakuten Eagles Eagles' minor league team in 2019 and was promoted to manager of the first team in 2020. Became manager of the minor league team again in 2021, and served as manager of the first team again from last season.