BASEBALL / Rakuten Monkeys manager Furukubo steps down despite CPBL championship win

Taoyuan/Taipei, Nov. 10 (CNA)The Rakuten Monkeys have unexpectedly parted ways with manager Kenji Furukubo, two weeks after the team won the 2025 championship of Taiwan's Chinese Professional Baseball League (CPBL).

The team's general management on Sunday made the announcement of Furukubo's departure, shortly after the Monkeys' exhibition game against South Korea's KT Wiz in Taoyuan - a decision that reportedly caught many players by surprise.

"The franchise thanks manager Furukubo for his contributions over the past four years, including leading the Rakuten Monkeys to the 2025 Taiwan Series championship," the franchise said in a brief statement. "The new coaching staff for next season will be announced once finalized."

The 61-year-old Furukubo of Japan was recently named CPBL Manager of the Year.

Monkeys General Manager Kouki Makino said the decision was "based on the contract and a mutual agreement," but he declined to say how long the franchise had been considering such a move.

Furukubo has been "an energetic and respectful senior" whose passion for the game was impressive, Makino said. He did not say whether Furukubo would remain with the team in another capacity.

After Sunday's game, Furukubo addressed the coaches and players, saying he was sorry he could not continue to lead them.

Furukubo was a catcher in Japan's Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB) before his retirement in 2002, and he later worked as a coach in both the NPB and Korea Baseball Organization (KBO).

He joined Taiwan's Fubon Guardians as a catcher coach in 2019, then transferred to the Monkeys in 2022 as bench coach. He was promoted to manager after the team's loss in the 2023 Taiwan Series, becoming the Monkeys' first Japanese manager since the franchise came under Japanese ownership in 2020.

Under his leadership, the Monkeys recorded identical 62-57-1 records to rank third and qualify for the playoffs in each of the past two seasons.

On Monday, several Monkeys players expressed disappointment at the news of Furukubo's departure.

"I have no idea what the management is thinking - at least let [Furukubo] stay in the minor league," veteran infielder Lin Chih-ping (林智平) wrote on social media, later adding that the decision was "embarrassing."

"Ojisan, thank you for everything, and for all your care," outfielder Cheng Chin (成晉) wrote in Japanese.

Catcher Chang Min-hsun (張閔勳), a member of the CPBL 2025 All-Pro "Best Nine" team, posted a photo of Furukubo giving his Manager of the Year award speech, with the caption "Best Manager."

Meanwhile, Makino said the team will meet with each coach before making any further changes, and the current staff will oversee player training until a new manager is appointed.

The franchise is focused on finding the most suitable candidate, regardless of potential language barriers, he said, when pressed about Furukubo's successor.