'Zombie Cigarette Scandal' Turns Hiroshima into a Wrecked Field! A Perfect Copy of the 2024 Doosan 'Oh Jae-won Incident' → Team Plummets to Last Place

*This content was translated by AI.

Starting with a scandal involving illegal designated drugs by a player in February, Japan's Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB) Hiroshima Toyo Carp has endured severe internal turmoil due to the club's lukewarm response and has ultimately fallen to last place in the Central League. With the club's failure in risk management leading to additional implicated individuals emerging, tarnishing the team's overall image and affecting its performance, critics point out that this situation is a perfect copy of the 'Doosan Bears' Oh Jae-won drug incident' that shook the Korean professional baseball scene during the 2024 season.

As of the day before their match on the 7th, Hiroshima recorded only 38 wins and 53 losses (winning percentage 0.418), placing them at the bottom of the Central League. While they remain three games behind third-place Yakult and still cling to hope for a Climax Series (CS) berth, mounting troubles both on and off the field have left them losing momentum.

The controversy erupted when current and former players became entangled in an incident involving a designated drug known as 'zombie cigarettes,' etomidate, ahead of this season. Former player Hattori Ryuta, arrested in February, was only found guilty on charges of using etomidate in May. In July, photos surfaced showing active players alongside the suspect who had been indicted for supplying drugs to Hattori, causing shock. The photos included starting infielder Kojino Kaito (26), who also represented Japan at the World Baseball Classic (WBC) in March, along with another infielder Yano Masaya (28) and outfielder Tamura Shusuke (23).

The bigger issue was the club's passive response. According to a report by Japanese Daily Shincho on the 7th, while the Hiroshima club demoted Yano, who was photographed alone with a drug seller and subjected to a police home search, to the third division, they allowed Kojino, a key infielder, to continue playing in the first division without any official action or explanation. Despite Hattori testifying during his trial that "there were other players in the team using etomidate," neither the club nor Kojino has taken a stance. Fans are fiercely criticizing the situation, claiming the club is trying to sweep the matter under the rug simply because of Kojino's status as a key asset.

A former front office official from another team told Daily Shincho, "When Yano was removed from the roster, Kojino should have also been sent down to the second division." They added, "Forcing him to play without clearly addressing the suspicions exposes the club's lack of management capability."

Although Kojino has retained his spot in the first division under the club's protection, his performance has plummeted. His batting average of 0.251 has dropped him outside the top 10 in batting in the Central League. Concerns over his unstable defense, which were already raised during his time with the WBC national team in March, and evaluations that he lacks the ability to advance to Major League Baseball have left him struggling in multiple aspects. Nevertheless, even Yano, last season's shortstop Golden Glove winner, has been sidelined due to police investigations, leaving the club with no suitable replacements and forcing them to continue using Kojino.

This chaotic operation directly led to a loss of fan support. Despite a dramatic walk-off victory in 12 innings against Yomiuri on the 4th, only 24,226 spectators attended the Matsuda Stadium, which has a capacity of 33,000, leaving many empty seats clearly visible throughout the stands. Even Sandro Fabian, who hit the walk-off home run, expressed his wish that "the stadium would soon be filled to capacity."

Local Japanese officials agree that Hiroshima must take steps to improve its structure following this incident. With issues ranging from players' moral insensitivity to eroded fan trust and a humiliating last-place record, it remains uncertain whether Hiroshima can overcome this crisis.

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*This content was translated by AI.