Rakuten Eagles announced on the 17th that Masato Yoshii has been appointed as their manager.

Yoshii managed the Lotte Marines for three years until last season, leading them to a second-place finish in 2023 and a third-place finish in 2024, securing a top-three finish for two consecutive years. Although they finished last last season, players like Misho Nishikawa, Ryusei Terachi, and Kyota Fujiwara reached the required number of plate appearances, and players like Ryusei Ogawa and Atsuki Tomosugi, who are currently regulars for Lotte, were also players that Yoshii actively used during his time as Lotte's manager.

pitcher staff includes Kazuya Ojima, who has achieved the required innings pitched for five consecutive years, and Atsuki Atsuki Taneichi, who is currently sidelined due to injury but has been developed into an ace. Last season, the team also actively used young pitcher such as Rikuto Yokoyama, Yuto Kimura, Shunsuke Nakamori, and Haruya Tanaka.

During his time as manager of the Lotte Marines, he meticulously managed the relief pitchers' appearances, limiting them to four or more appearances per week and generally avoiding three consecutive appearances. He employed multiple winning strategies as part of win formula. In terms of coaching, he respected the autonomy of his players and guided young players to understand their own strengths and weaknesses.

Rakuten Eagles also has many promising young players, so it will be interesting to see how they rebuild the team.