Hiroshi Mikitani, president of Internet shopping mall operator Rakuten Inc., said Wednesday he is willing to use some of his own money to help the company put up as much as 1 billion yen to acquire a top-class foreign player for its newly formed baseball team.
Mikitani, who visited National Stadium in Tokyo to take part in a ceremony before the Albirex Niigata-Kashiwa Reysol match, said money is not the issue when it comes to the success of the Tohoku Rakuten Golden Eagles, which officially launch Thursday in Sendai.
"I can pitch in if necessary. If he's a big name player, I don't mind us spending as much as 1 billion yen," he said.