Taiwanese pro baseball team the Rakuten Monkeys held its first practice session of the year on Wednesday at the Chiayi County Baseball Stadium.
This was also the team’s first official practice under new ownership. Japanese conglomerate Rakuten Inc. bought the team in September after the previous owner put it up for sale amid financial difficulties. The transfer in ownership also brought a change in the team’s name- before the transfer, the team had been called the Lamigo Monkeys.
New head coach Tsing Hao-Chu said during practice on Tuesday that he will do his best to lead the new team forward.