Yakult coach Shingo Takatsu (56), who played for our Heroes in 2008, extended his one-year contract with the club despite his lowest performance in the league.
The Yakult team announced on Monday a one-year contract extension with Takatsu. Takatsu will take the helm of the Yakult team for six seasons until next year.
Takatsu is a former member of the Yakult franchise. He joined the Yakult team in 1991 and became the relief king for four times. He also played in the U.S. Major League Baseball (MLB) including the Chicago White Sox (2004) and the New York Mets (2005). In 2008, he played for the Woori Heroes (currently the Kiwoom Heroes) in the 안전놀이터 KBO League, recording one win, eight saves and an ERA of 0.86 in 18 games. In 2010, he made 26 saves in the Taiwanese pro baseball league. He has posted a career-high 347 saves (286 saves in NPB 286, 27 saves in MLB, 8 saves in KBO, and 26 saves in CPBL) across the four pro leagues. After playing as a player-manager in the Japanese independent league, he served as the Yakult pitching coach since 2014. After becoming the Yakult coach in 2020, he led the team to victory in the Central League in 2021 and 2022. However, he failed to advance to the post season by ranking fifth in the Central League last year, and this season fell to sixth (57 wins and 75 losses as of Monday).
Yakult failed to advance to the postseason for the second consecutive year, but decided to give Takatsu another year.
The team had difficulty managing the mound due to a series of injuries to its main pitchers this season. The team’s ERA (3.70) and runs (534) are the lowest in the league. However, the team’s batting average was tied for the first place in homers (97), and the second place in runs scored (477).
“Despite our lowest performance this season, we are grateful to our team for offering to renew our contract for one year next season. It is not easy to rebuild our team, but we will make our best efforts with the utmost determination. We will continue the great tradition of Yakult and make a new chapter in our history,” Takatsu said.
Yakult said, “Coach Takatsu is not responsible for the continued injuries.”
Nikkan Sports said, “The Yakult club left the impression of leaving the baton to coach Takatsu in 2026, depending on next year’s performance.”
