The Tokyo Yakult Swallows would prefer to appoint a former player to the manager's position for next season, club president Tadashi Suzuki said Wednesday.
"That would be one of the key factors," Suzuki said when asked to comment on a request by shareholders of the club's parent company, Yakult Honsha Co., that a former Swallow succeed acting manager Junji Ogawa.
"I'd like to take that request into consideration. We will be looking at deciding who that person will be," Suzuki added.
His comments came after a general meeting of Yakult shareholders held at a Tokyo hotel earlier in the day.
Pitching coach Daisuke Araki, a former player for Yakult, is seen as the leading candidate for the job.