Japan baseball Giants manager Abe arrested for alleged assault on daughter

TOKYO - Manager of the Yomiuri Giants, Japan’s oldest and most storied professional baseball team and often seen as the closest equivalent to the New York Yankees, Shinnosuke Abe was arrested on May 25 on suspicion of assaulting his daughter.

The 47-year-old was taken into custody by the Metropolitan Police Department for allegedly grabbing his 18-year-old daughter and forcing her to the floor at their home in Tokyo’s Shibuya Ward, an investigative source said. He was released on May 26.

Giants president Toru Kunimatsu apologised, saying violence cannot be tolerated and the club takes the matter extremely seriously. He said the team will consider “disciplinary action,” including the manager’s future with the club.

The manager, who has a reputation among Giants fans as a demanding manager who holds players to strict standards, has admitted to the allegation, telling investigators he lost his temper as he tried to mediate a fight between his daughters, according to the source.

Offensive chief coach Hideki Hashigami will serve as acting manager from the interleague game against the SoftBank Hawks at Tokyo Dome, the Giants said.

He was quoted by police as saying he told his daughters to be quiet, but they talked back to him and he became “furious.” He was arrested at home in front of his daughters and wife, the source said. He is believed to have been drunk at the time of the incident.

A child guidance center made an emergency call shortly after 7pm, reporting that the daughter was hit by her father. Child guidance centers in Japan are local government bodies that respond to suspected child abuse and other welfare cases.

The catcher who starred at Chuo University in Tokyo was selected by the Giants in the 2000 draft. He retired in 2019 and assumed the managerial post from Tatsunori Hara, who managed Japan to victory in the 2009 World Baseball Classic, ahead of the 2024 season after serving as their head coach and battery coach.

He led the Giants to the Central League pennant in his first season in charge before finishing third last year. They are currently third.

He had 2,132 hits and 406 home runs during his 19-year professional career with the Giants, leading the Central League in batting average and RBIs in 2012. He initially became the manager of the Giants’ farm team after retiring. KYODO NEWS