The Hiroshima Carp became the fifth Nippon Professional Baseball club to admit to the practice of players exchanging cash after games.
The club's general manager, Kiyoaki Suzuki, on Thursday told the Central League's emergency board of directors session that the practice was only carried out when the team was on a five-game winning streak. The player who gave the pep-talk in the pre-game huddle before the fifth win received ¥1,000 from each player afterward.
The practice, which only involved position players, "began at least four or five years ago" and the figure increased to ¥10,000 last season as win streaks of that length happened so infrequently, Suzuki said.
Suzuki also said the club fined players for arriving late or making mistakes during fielding practice and used the collected money for off-season meal costs and meetings.