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Hiroshi Mikitani
Hiroshi Mikitani
Founder & CEO, Rakuten
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[Exclusive Interview] Hiroshi Mikitani × Masato Yoshii / Behind the Scenes of the New Manager App...

📅 Jun 17, 2026 PIVOT 公式チャンネル 13 MIN 161491 VIEWS 32 SEGMENTS · 4 SPEAKERS
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What Hiroshi Mikitani said

Written from the verified transcript and checked against it. Every figure links to the moment it was said.

Hiroshi Mikitani, founder and CEO of Rakuten and owner of the Tohoku Rakuten Golden Eagles, discussed the mid-season appointment of Masato Yoshii as manager. Mikitani said he had been researching Yoshii for a long time and reached out when the opportunity arose, meeting him only after the internal decision to change managers was made. He emphasized the importance of mental strength and a winning mentality over data and strategy, noting the team is currently weak in that area. Mikitani stated he will leave first-team roster decisions to Yoshii, while GM Ishii oversees team operations and Mikitani focuses on mid-to-long-term issues like the farm team's training base. He estimated Japanese baseball is about 10 years behind MLB in using data and science, and he wants to combine MLB's lessons with fundamentals. Mikitani said he made the managerial decision himself without consulting anyone.

Key takeaways

  1. Mikitani made the managerial change decision himself without consulting anyone outside the organization.
  2. Mikitani estimates Japanese baseball is about 10 years behind MLB in data and science usage.
  3. Mikitani will leave first-team roster decisions to Yoshii, while GM Ishii oversees team operations.
  4. Mikitani believes mental strength and a winning mentality are more important than data and strategy.

Numbers and commitments

FigureWhat it refers toTypeAt
10 years Estimated gap between Japanese baseball and MLB in data/science metric 8:37

Chapters

  1. 0:00Managerial appointment announcement
  2. 3:40First meeting with Yoshii
  3. 4:41Yoshii's decision to accept
  4. 6:19Team vision and mental strength
  5. 7:34Division of responsibilities
  6. 8:30MLB data gap
  7. 9:18Decision-making process
  8. 10:15Yoshii's qualifications
  9. 11:20Yoshii's past regrets
  10. 12:25Closing passion and goals

Questions asked in this interview

9
  1. 3:30First of all, when was the first time Mikitani-san met with Yoshii-san?
  2. 5:17Yoshii-san, what words left a lasting impression on you when you first met Mikitani-san?
  3. 5:53Mikitani-san, when you talk directly, you can really feel the passion, but is there perhaps a gap between the general public image and reality?
  4. 6:06Could you share again what kind of team you want the Tohoku Rakuten Golden Eagles to become?
  5. 7:24How do you envision Mikitani-san, Yoshii-manager, and GM Ishii working together going forward in team management and games?
  6. 8:30Speaking of data and science, is the Japanese league really behind MLB in that regard?
  7. 9:18Did you consult with anyone outside the organization?
  8. 10:05Was there any gap between your image of Yoshii-san and the reality of meeting him?
  9. 12:25Finally, could you share your passion and goals for this season and beyond, Mikitani-san?
Masato Yoshii 0:00 ↗
When I was asked by Mikitani-san, honestly, I wanted to do it right from that moment.
Narrator 0:05 ↗
We asked Masato Yoshii to take on the role of manager.
Masato Yoshii 0:17 ↗
There was really no reason to refuse. The timing was unfortunate and I was a bit thrown off by it, but as Nomura-san said, you can't win because of the manager, but you can lose because of the manager a lot. I truly felt that at the time.
Narrator 0:30 ↗
First, we will hear greetings from Hiroshi Mikitani, Representative Director, Chairman and Owner. Please.
Hiroshi Mikitani 0:46 ↗
This year, we've been undertaking various reforms to the team based on mid-to-long-term strategy, not just simply improving this year's results. While we've seen some results at the farm team level, the first team hasn't produced the results we wanted, and as owner, I feel responsible for that. Having said that, I believe we need to fight each game this year while also pursuing mid-to-long-term direction and reforms to build a consistently strong team. That's why we asked Yoshii-san to become our manager. From the beginning, we had been doing extensive research and had been paying close attention to Yoshii-san. When this mid-season managerial appointment opportunity came up, even though it was a long shot, we reached out to him, and he was willing to pick up the pieces, so to speak. This is a truly major milestone, and I'm very grateful that he's taken on such a significant role and responsibility.
Masato Yoshii 2:43 ↗
I'm truly grateful to Mikitani-san for entrusting me with such a great responsibility. As a baseball person, I was very happy, and I want to express my gratitude here. The team is in a very difficult situation right now, but the Eagles have many young players, and I believe it's a team with potential. I don't think we'll become strong overnight, but I'll do my best, so I hope you'll watch over us with a long-term perspective. Please support the Eagles going forward.
NHK Reporter 3:30 ↗
NHK. Nice to meet you. First of all, when was the first time Mikitani-san met with Yoshii-san?
Hiroshi Mikitani 3:40 ↗
This was very recent, actually. Of course, we had done various listing and indirect contacts beforehand, but unfortunately, it was after the internal decision was made that we should change managers that we were able to meet with him.
NHK Reporter 4:04 ↗
So Yoshii-san, you received the offer during that meeting, is that right?
Masato Yoshii 4:08 ↗
Yes. I was surprised. First of all, I was surprised that Mikitani-san was asking for my opinion on pitcher-related matters, so when I listened to the conversation, it really felt like wow.
NHK Reporter 4:25 ↗
Yoshii-san, when you previously appeared on Pivot, you mentioned that when accepting a managerial position, it's important to know who you're working with, and that you shouldn't accept carelessly. What led to your decision to become manager at Rakuten?
Masato Yoshii 4:41 ↗
Yes. It was really Mikitani-san's words. He said let's work together through discussion to make the team better. I felt that even if I served as manager long-term, the team's approach wouldn't change. That was the most important thing for me. If the manager changes and the policy changes each time, the players and staff get worn out and it ends up falling apart. I could confirm that Mikitani-san would firmly take the lead and stay on course, so I decided to do it.
NHK Reporter 5:17 ↗
Yoshii-san, what words left a lasting impression on you when you first met Mikitani-san?
Masato Yoshii 5:23 ↗
I can't recall the specific words right now, but first of all, he told me from the beginning about the background of creating the Eagles. His passion for Rakuten is genuinely strong—he's a very straightforward person. I could really sense that he's the real deal. And he really hates losing.
Hiroshi Mikitani 5:46 ↗
Yes, I could feel that, so I thought this person is the real deal.

16 more exchanges in this transcript

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Cite this transcript

APA, MLA, BibTeX
APA

Mikitani, H. (2026, June 17). [Exclusive Interview] Hiroshi Mikitani × Masato Yoshii / Behind the Scenes of the New Manager App... [Interview transcript]. PIVOT 公式チャンネル. CEOInterviews.AI. https://ceointerviews.ai/interview/998307/

MLA

Hiroshi Mikitani. "[Exclusive Interview] Hiroshi Mikitani × Masato Yoshii / Behind the Scenes of the New Manager App...." PIVOT 公式チャンネル, 17 Jun. 2026. Transcript, CEOInterviews.AI, https://ceointerviews.ai/interview/998307/.

BibTeX 
@misc{mikitani2026_998307,
  author       = {Hiroshi Mikitani},
  title        = {[Exclusive Interview] Hiroshi Mikitani × Masato Yoshii / Behind the Scenes of the New Manager App...},
  howpublished = {Interview transcript, PIVOT 公式チャンネル. CEOInterviews.AI},
  year         = {2026},
  month        = {jun},
  url          = {https://ceointerviews.ai/interview/998307/},
  note         = {Speaker-attributed transcript with timestamps}
}