Shinnosuke Abe

Shinnosuke Abe, born on March 20, 1979, is a Japanese former professional baseball player and manager. He spent his entire nineteen-year playing career in Nippon Professional Baseball with the Yomiuri Giants, serving as team captain from 2007 through 2014. After retiring as a player, he transitioned into coaching and managerial roles within the same organization.

During his playing career, Abe earned numerous individual honors and achievements. In 2009, he was selected as the Japan Series Most Valuable Player after helping the Giants defeat the Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters four games to two. In 2012, he was named the Central League Most Valuable Player after posting a .340 batting average with 27 home runs and 104 RBIs, and he co-received the Matsutaro Shoriki Award alongside Tatsunori Hara. Abe also earned All-Star Series Most Valuable Player honors in Game 1 in both 2007 and 2010. Finishing his career with 406 home runs, he ranks eighteenth on the all-time Nippon Professional Baseball list.

Abe represented the Japanese national team across multiple international competitions, including the 1997 Intercontinental Cup, the 1999 and 2007 Asian Baseball Championships, the 2000 and 2008 Summer Olympics, and the 2009 World Baseball Classic. As national team captain at the 2013 World Baseball Classic, he became the first and only player in tournament history to hit two home runs in a single inning, doing so against the Netherlands. He also played in exhibition games against Cuba in 2012, participated in the MLB Japan All-Star Series in 2004 and 2006, and represented the Giants in a 2018 exhibition against MLB All-Stars.

Abe announced his retirement on September 24, 2019, concluding his nineteen-year playing career. He was named manager of the Giants' second squad for 2020. On October 4, 2023, he was selected to succeed Tatsunori Hara as manager of the main team. Wearing uniform number 83 under a three-year contract, Abe led the Giants to the Central League pennant in 2024—the team's first title under a first-year manager since 2002—before losing to the Yokohama DeNA BayStars in the Climax Series. In 2025, the team finished third in the Central League and was again eliminated by the BayStars in the Climax Series.

Abe's managerial role concluded in May 2026 following his arrest on suspicion of assaulting his elder daughter after an argument. Following his release the next day, he announced his resignation as manager during a press conference. The incident began when Abe grabbed his daughter by the collar and threw her down after she talked back during a disagreement. The daughter contacted child consultation services on the advice of an artificial intelligence tool, which led to police involvement. She later stated that claims of her being kicked or punched were false and that she had not expected police to intervene.