The Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks have been one of the most active among the Japanese pro baseball teams in making preparations for big improvement in 2014. It is clear the team management is viewing its fourth-place finish in 2013 as unacceptable and, judging by its wheeling-and-dealing this off-season, the front office is doing all it can to make sure the second-division Pacific League finish is not repeated.
After all, SoftBank led the Pa League in attendance, drawing 2,408,993 fans to home games at Fukuoka Yafuoku Dome. The figure is down by 1.6 percent from 2012, but still by far the best in the PL and third overall in Japan behind the Yomiuri Giants and Hanshin Tigers.
So, team officials have rolled up their sleeves and gone to work acquiring a slew of new players that will give the club a fresh look when spring camp opens in seven weeks.