Samurai Japan announced the addition of two coaches to Hirokazu Ibata's staff for the Samurai Japan Series, which will be held in March 2025 in Osaka. World No. 1 Japan will host No. 7 Netherlands.
Former Nippon Professional Baseball (NPB) All-Star left-hander Atsushi Nomi will support pitching coach Kazuyuki Yoshimi.
Born in 1979, Nomi played for the Hanshin Tigers from 2005 to 2020 and was a player coach for the Orix Buffuloes in 2021 and 2022. Before his retirement, he contributed to the Buffaloes 2022 Japan Series title out of the bullpen.
Seven-time Japan Series champion and WBSC Premier12 2019 winner Nobuhiro Matsuda will join the staff as the infield coach.
Born in 1983, Matsuda played from 2006 to 2022 for the Fukuoka Softbank Hawks and moved to the Yomiuri Giants for his final NPB season. Matsuda was a gold-glove third baseman and moved to first late in his career. He played 1922 NPB games, combining 301 home runs and 991 RBIs.
Ibata's staff includes four coaches under contract with NPB teams - bench coach Kaneko Makoto (Chiba Lotte Marines), catching coach Yoshinori Murata (Yomiuri Giants), infield and base running coach Eishin Soyogi (Hanshin Tigers) and outfield and base running coach Yoshiyuki Kamei (Yomiuri Giants).
