The Japanese archipelago was thrown into shock. Abe Shinnosuke, a former legend who leads one of Nippon Professional Baseball's most prestigious clubs, was arrested on suspicion of domestic violence.
Nikkan Sports and other Japanese outlets reported on the afternoon of the 25th that they had received a tip that Abe Shinnosuke had assaulted his 18-year-old eldest daughter at his home in Shibuya Ward, Tokyo. Abe said he struck her in the process of trying to stop a fight between his daughters.
TV Asahi said that investigators reported the 15-year-old daughter also witnessed the assault. The suspect, Abe, has admitted the charges.
The outlet added that investigators suspect he may have been intoxicated at the time and that a breath or blood alcohol test is likely to be conducted. It also noted that officials are checking whether the eldest daughter had sought domestic violence counseling in the past, but there was no record of routine violence counseling.
There were no injuries reported to the 18-year-old daughter, and the Shibuya police station also plans to release Abe. However, it is unprecedented for an active manager to be arrested by police during the season. Yomiuri is scheduled to play an exhibition game against the SoftBank Hawks starting on the 26th. The Yomiuri club is treating the matter seriously.
Yomiuri president Toru Kunimatsu said in a statement, "Violence is unacceptable and we regard this matter with the utmost seriousness. I apologize to baseball officials and fans for this incident occurring the night before the start of the exhibition games. We will consider all measures regarding Abe's future, including resignation."
From the game on the 26th, senior coach Hashigami Hideki will serve as acting manager in place of Abe.
Abe is a Yomiuri legend. A graduate of Yasuda Gakuen High School and Chuo University, he joined Yomiuri as the No. 1 pick in the 2000 draft. As an offensively minded catcher for Yomiuri, he played in 2,282 games with a .284 batting average, 2,132 hits, 406 home runs and 1,285 RBIs. He served as the team's marquee player, at one point chosen as Yomiuri's 72nd No. 4 batter. In 2012 he won the batting title and RBI title and was selected league MVP.
He retired from active play in 2019 and thereafter served as a second-team manager and first-team coach. Since 2024 he had been appointed Yomiuri's 21st official manager and was leading the team. But his future as manager became uncertain after being involved in this unsavory domestic violence incident.
Meanwhile, Abe was also the person who last year offered former Doosan manager Lee Seung-yeop a temporary coaching role during autumn camp and this year offered him the official first-team hitting coach position. Lee accepted Abe's offer and is serving on Yomiuri's first-team coaching staff.<
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