Japan’s Yomiuri Giants rocked by gambling scandal
The Yomiuri Giants, Japan’s most prestigious professional baseball franchise, continues to be rocked by a gambling scandal that has now forced the team’s top executives to resign.
Yomiuri owner Kojiro Shiraishi, chairman Tsunekazu Momoi and supreme adviser Tsuneo Watanabe will step down as a result of the latest revelations that Giants players were involved in a betting scheme, while team president Hiroshi Kubo is accepting a suspension.
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This all comes after Kyosuke Takagi became the fourth Giants pitcher to admit to having bet on baseball. Takagi had initially denied any involvement, but ultimately decided to come clean.
“I lied at the investigation but the probing continued and that got to me mentally. I knew the time would come and I decided to tell the truth after speaking to my wife and parents.
“The person kept on telling me to continue lying, but I could no longer trouble my team and decided to tell the truth here.”
The question was being asked as part of a widespread investigation that led to the indefinite suspensions of Yomiuri pitchers Satoshi Fukuda, Shoki Kasahara and Ryuya Matsumoto back in November after it was found the three players had placed wagers on games.
While none of the four pitchers were found guilty of fixing games or betting on games in which they played in, this is still understandably a massive story in Japan that even has government officials making statements on the matter. From the Wall Street Journal:
Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshihide Suga weighed in during a news conference Wednesday morning.
“Baseball is one of the most popular sports in Japan, and the professional baseball players are role models for many children. The fact that those who took part in betting on baseball is spreading is an extremely serious problem—it’s an act that betrays the fans,” Mr. Suga said.
Nippon Professional Baseball commissioner Katsuhiko Kumazaki has ordered the Giants to continue its investigation, so there could still be more fallout from this mess.
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Israel Fehr is a writer for Big League Stew on Yahoo Sports. Have a tip? Email him at [email protected] or follow him on Twitter. Follow @israelfehr
