Toshikazu Yamaguchi, the Giants’ “owner,” issued a statement after DeNA’s victory Friday that consigned Yomiuri to consecutive fourth-place finishes that tells you two things about Yomiuri: The organization feels the pennant belongs to them each and every year, and changing managers is really, really painful.

“This is extremely frustrating,” Yamaguchi said. “We came into this season intent on recapturing the pennant (for the first time since 2020), but couldn’t stay in championship contention. That point makes this a season that deserves an apology to the fans.”