The Era of 'Tough Love' - How Violent Coaching Became Normalized
In Japanese professional baseball, acts such as managers and coaches hitting, kicking, and verbally abusing players were long tolerated as part of coaching. This culture was rooted in pre-war military-style education, where the absolute authority of superiors and discipline through corporal punishment in the Imperial Japanese military were carried directly into postwar sports. The strict hierarchies of high school baseball were inherited by the professional world, and the belief that 'being hit makes you stronger' and 'strictness develops players' was widely shared not only among coaches but also among players and fans. Violent coaching was particularly commonplace from the 1960s through the 1990s. During this era, a manager punching a player behind the bench was described as 'firing them up' and was positively received as a sign of expectations for the player. Media not only failed to criticize such violence but tended to praise it with flattering terms like 'passionate coaching' and 'fighting spirit.' Sports news programs repeatedly broadcast footage of managers screaming at players as 'classic moments.' Players themselves believed that 'being hit proves they have expectations for you,' and accepting violence was considered 'professional resolve.' This complicit structure enabled the long-term preservation of violent coaching. This problem, common across Japanese sports, existed in similar structures not only in baseball but also in judo, sumo, volleyball, and many other disciplines.
Senichi Hoshino's Iron Fist - Inspiring Story or Violence?
The symbolic figure of violent coaching was Senichi Hoshino. He managed the Chunichi Dragons (1987-1991, 1996-2001), Hanshin Tigers (2002-2003), and Rakuten Eagles (2011-2014), leading Chunichi to two league championships, Hanshin to their first league title in 18 years, and Rakuten to their first-ever Japan Series championship. Despite these achievements, he was equally known for physically disciplining players. Numerous episodes have been reported of him punching players behind the bench after mistakes, screaming in locker rooms, and throwing bats. During his Chunichi tenure, television cameras once captured him slapping a player who had committed an error. Hoshino's violence tended to be romanticized as 'passion for winning.' His nickname 'Fighting General' positively framed his fierce temperament and violent coaching style. The teams he led did produce results, reinforcing the notion that 'violence is acceptable if you win.' However, in reality, it also instilled fear in players and stripped them of autonomy. Some players who played under Hoshino have testified that they were 'constantly on edge' and 'paralyzed by fear of making mistakes.' Rule through fear may maintain team discipline in the short term but inhibits players' creativity and self-directed growth over time. Hoshino justified physical discipline as a sign of expectations, but this logic is completely unacceptable in modern sports coaching. Using violence as a means of conveying expectations merely demonstrates a coach's lack of communication skills. When Hoshino passed away in 2018, many media outlets praised his achievements as a 'Fighting General,' but few reports directly confronted the issue of violent coaching.
Victims of Violent Coaching - Players' Untold Suffering
The damage from violent coaching was difficult to surface for a long time. For players, defying a manager or coach meant losing playing time, making it virtually impossible to speak up. Professional baseball contracts are renewed annually, and a manager's evaluation directly determines the following year's contract. Reporting violence risked being labeled a 'team disruptor,' making transfers to other teams difficult as well. While many players have confessed about violent coaching after retirement, almost none did so publicly during their careers. Beyond physical violence, power harassment took many forms. Personality-denying verbal abuse ('you have no right to play baseball,' 'you're useless'), forced excessive practice (being made to run alone while other players rested), interference in private lives (commenting on romantic partners and outings), and psychological pressure through ostracism and exclusion - invisible violence was also rampant. Such environments are believed to have seriously affected players' mental health, with some reportedly developing depressive symptoms and panic disorders. Cases where violent coaching's psychological damage contributed to early retirements, and its potential role in post-retirement social maladjustment, have also been noted. A survey conducted by the players' union reportedly found that approximately 30 percent of respondents had 'experienced inappropriate behavior from coaches,' though even this figure may underestimate the reality.
Signs of Change - Reforms Since the 2010s
In the 2010s, as awareness of harassment grew across society, changes began in NPB as well. The turning point was the 2013 judo coaching violence scandal. The resignation of All Japan Women's Judo coach Ryuji Sonoda over violence against athletes sent shockwaves across all of Japanese sports. In response, the Ministry of Education issued directives toward eliminating violence in sports coaching and required each governing body to develop guidelines. Professional baseball also began reviewing coaching methods, with NPB working with the players' union to develop harassment prevention guidelines. The guidelines explicitly prohibited not only physical violence but also personality-denying verbal abuse, excessive reprimands, and ostracism. Training programs for coaches were introduced, promoting coaching methods incorporating communication skills and sports psychology. Younger generation coaches tend to emphasize objective, data-driven coaching and communication skills, and non-violent coaching styles are gradually becoming mainstream. Hideki Kuriyama (Nippon-Ham manager, 2012-2021) was known for his philosophy of 'believing in and waiting for players,' achieving the 2016 Japan Series championship with an approach diametrically opposed to violence. Shingo Takatsu (Yakult manager, 2020-) also emphasizes dialogue with players, winning the 2021 Japan Series. These success stories demonstrate that winning without violence is possible, driving consciousness reform across the baseball world.
Remaining Challenges - Toward Eliminating Structural Problems
While surface-level improvements have been made regarding violent coaching in NPB, structural challenges remain. The greatest problem is the reproduction cycle of violence. The cycle in which players who experienced violent coaching in high school and amateur baseball enter the pros and eventually become coaches themselves cannot be changed overnight. The experience of 'that's how I was raised' provides the psychological foundation for justifying violent coaching. Breaking this chain requires comprehensive reform starting from the amateur level, not just the professional ranks. Additionally, coaching in closed spaces like locker rooms and bullpens is difficult for outsiders to observe, creating environments where harassment is hard to detect. While practice fields have many observers, individual coaching sessions often involve one-on-one situations between coach and player, with this privacy serving as a breeding ground for concealed violence. While independent third-party organizations where players can safely consult have been established, few players actually use them. The anxiety that 'the manager might find out I consulted' deters utilization. Improving the effectiveness of anonymous reporting systems is also a challenge, requiring transparency in post-report investigation processes and sufficient protection for whistleblowers. The most fundamental challenge is shifting the value system that 'violence is acceptable if you win.' As Senichi Hoshino's case demonstrates, as long as a culture persists where violent coaches are celebrated as 'great managers' if they produce results, eliminating violence will remain difficult. Separating victory from violence and establishing a new standard where 'coaches who use violence are not valued regardless of their winning record' is essential for NPB's future.