Yoshiaki Kanemura, who played for Kintetsu, Chunichi, Seibu Lions during his playing career, appeared on MBS Radio's "Yoshiaki Kanemura's Enough Already!" on the 15th. He commented on Seibu Lions 's strong performance, which puts them on the verge of winning their first interleague championship. "Seibu Lions definitely has the advantage. Their progress this year has been particularly remarkable. pitcher are good, and their rookie closer (Iwaki) has emerged. Fumiya Nishiguchi looks like a great manager..." he said, praising the manager who was his teammate during his playing days.

What he found particularly impressive was how clearly Manager Nishiguchi has defined the roles of his coaching staff. "Pitching coach Toyoda is doing a great job, and for batting (fielder), Nishi (fielder fielders and hitter) and Torigoe (head coach) are handling it. It's best for the manager to leave it to them," he revealed.

Mr. Kanemura cited the team’s record under Manager Ochiai from 2004 to 2011—a period during which the team won four league titles in eight years and never finished in the B Class—Chunichi.

"The most important thing is to leave it to the coach in that field. Ochiai was in the top tier for eight consecutive years. Morishige (Shigeo Mori, who has served as pitcher coach and head coach) handled everything related to pitcher. I (Ochiai, the manager) will handle the batting, so the coaches shouldn't teach unnecessary things. Just help out. It's easy to understand. That's what Seibu Lions does. Toyoda adds a nice touch. We make sure to give pitcher rest and not tire them out, and we also set up a closer rotation. We don't get hung up on names," he emphasized.