Tadahito Iguchi (51), who played in Major League Baseball (MLB), is the leading candidate to become the next manager of the Japan national baseball team, Japanese sports newspaper Nikkan Sports reported.

Citing an official from Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB), the organization responsible for appointing the manager, Nikkan Sports reported that the criteria for the next leader include MLB experience, international tournament experience, and data utilization skills. The report stated that Iguchi, who excelled in the MLB as a player and demonstrated his data-driven management skills while leading the Chiba Lotte Marines, has effectively been decided as the right person to lead Samurai Japan, the collective name for Japan's national baseball teams across age groups.

At an event last month, Iguchi said, "I have not received any contact yet," but added, "It is a position with immense responsibility, but I am interested," showing his ambition to lead the national team.

Iguchi, a right-handed infielder who played for the Daiei Hawks (now the SoftBank Hawks) in Japan for eight years, made his MLB debut in 2005 with the Chicago White Sox.

He subsequently played for the Philadelphia Phillies and the San Diego Padres for four years before returning to the Chiba Lotte Marines in 2009 and retiring in 2017.

In his Japanese professional career, he recorded 1,760 hits, 251 home runs, and 1,017 RBIs. In the big leagues, he posted a career batting average of .268 with 494 hits, 44 home runs, and 205 RBIs.

Iguchi won the Japan Series three times—twice during his time with Daiei and once with Chiba Lotte.

He also experienced a World Series championship with the White Sox in 2005.

Immediately after retiring, he took the helm of the Chiba Lotte Marines and managed the team for four years, before working as a commentator starting in 2023.

The position of Japan national team manager has been vacant since former manager Hirokazu Ibata stepped down following the team's elimination in the quarterfinals of the World Baseball Classic (WBC) this past March.

Japan plans to launch its new managerial era starting with the Asia Professional Baseball Championship (APBC), a tournament for Asian baseball prospects held this November, to prepare for next year's Premier 12, which will also serve as a qualifier for the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics.

(Photo: AP, Yonhap News)