In the event the Marines are unable to land Stults, the Marines are preparing a new list of candidates, which could include Yankees farmhand Romulo Sanchez. I don’t think I need to repeat my opinion, but I will — why negotiate for a pitcher who is under contract when Lenny DiNardo is available as a free agent?
If any of the teams in the title of this post are reading, you could all use a suketto pitcher, and Lenny DiNardo is still unsigned. Give Lenny a shot.
Yokohama finished up their offseason shopping last week, introducing Takayuki Shinohara and Daisuke Hayakawa, and announcing the signing of Termel Sledge. Here’s the complete list of BayStars acquisitions, which ran on Sponich and was helpfully translated on Yakyu Baka:
Pos
Player Name
Age
Previous Team
P
Shimizu, Naoyuki
34
Chiba Lotte Marines
P
Bootcheck, Chris
31
MLB – Pirates
P
Shinohara, Takayuki
33
Softbank Hawks
P
Sakamoto, Yataro
27
Nippon Ham Fighters
P
Matsuyama, Suguru
20
Nippon Ham Fighters
P
Sugihara, Yo
24
Nomo BC
P
Wang, Yi-Zheng
24
CPBL – Bears
C
Hashimoto, Tasuku
33
Chiba Lotte Marines
INF
Inada, Naoto
30
Nippon Ham Fighters
INF
Castillo, Jose
28
CPBL – Lions
OF
Sledge, Terrmel
32
Nippon Ham Fighters
OF
Hayakawa, Daisuke
34
Chiba Lotte Marines
That’s a decent group of players, but the key here is the guys they’ll be taking plate appearances and innings away from.
Yokohama has some decent core hitters (Shuichi Murata, Seiichi Uchikawa), but in 2009 they had too many positions that they got no offense from. In 2009, the ‘Stars had four who got over 100 plate appearances despite hitting under .200. Dropping the number to 40 pa’s reveals another four. The additions of Hashimoto, Inada, Hayakawa and Castillo should be a huge improvement over that group. A little improvement from younger guys like Keijiro Matsumoto wouldn’t hurt either.
On the mound, Yokohama only had one reliable starter (Daisuke Miura) in 2009, and only three relievers who threw more than 50 innings (Hiroyuki Sanada, Shun Yamaguchi, Kentaro Takasaki). To that end, Shimizu is a nice pickup. He’s really not the ace he’s sometimes billed as, but should absorb about 150 innings. The real improvements to the rotation, however, are already on the roster: full seasons from Hayato Terahara and Stephen Randolph. I see the bullpen arms ‘Hama acquired mostly interesting question marks — a former dominator who hasn’t pitched recently (Shinohara), a guy with a couple good seasons to his name (Sakamoto) and an American with good velocity but poor command at the MLB level (Bootcheck).
Finally, there is a feel-good story amongst this: Sugihara is a former Lotte farmhand, but was released after the 2006 season. He had been working at a Docomo mobile phone shop in Osaka and getting by on 80,000 yen ($800) per month while moonlighting with the Nomo Baseball Club, and now he’s getting another chance.
Is all this enough to get Yokohama off the cellar? We’ll have to see, but the BayStars should definitely be closer to the pack in 2010.
I didn’t write about this when it happened, but Hanshin OF Norihiro Akahoshi abruptly retired the week before last, citing back and neck problems sustained from an injury diving for a ball last season.
I try not to let my bias as a fan show through too much, and in many ways, I’ve become a much more neutral baseball fan since starting this site. But I lived in and around Osaka for a couple years in the early 00’s, and I have dropped a few hints that my NPB team of choice is Hanshin. The Tigers’ 2003 Central League Championship run was the most exciting baseball season I’ve ever been around as a fan, and also, in a way, the most bittersweet. A doctor friend of mine managed to get me a single ticket to game three of the Japan Series, but it was rained out and I had to return to the US the following day, so I didn’t get to go.
Anyway, back to Akahoshi. I don’t think I have anything particularly poignant to say here, but Akahoshi was one of the guys that keyed Hanshin’s revival this decade. Despite being a mid-round draft pick he started his first season with the ichi-gun team, taking over center field from Tsuyoshi Shinjyo and leading the league in stolen bases. He missed half of 2002 with an injury, but still lead the league in stolen bases. Akahoshi entered his prime in 2003, when he started a run of three consecutive seasons hitting .300 or better with at least 60 steals. Despite not being as prolific on the base paths as he had been earlier in his career, Akahoshi had remained a threat to run and a respectable on-base guy until the end of his career.
Akahoshi contributed the most enduring image of the 2003 season, when he got bear-hugged by Senichi Hoshino after driving in the walk-off winner in the game that clinched the Central League for Hanshin. Of course, he also dressed as “Razor Ramon HG” during the 2005 beer kake…
He’s going out early, but Akahoshi had the good fortune to play during a golden age of sorts for Hanshin, and will certainly be closely associated with Hanshin’s success in the 00’s. I’ll leave with this pic of Akahoshi I swiped from Wikimedia Commons, the first image I’ve ever run directly on NPB Tracker.
According to a reliable source, Darrell Rasner has re-signed with the Rakuten Golden Eagles. I heard about this earlier in the offseason, but apparently now the deal has been signed. Rasner gets a one-year deal with an option.
When I read on mlbtraderumors.com then other day that the Padres had released Eulogio De La Cruz, I thought to myself “I wonder if an NPB team will go after him.” Turns out the Yakult Swallows are doing exactly that. Sanspo says that the Swallows are “going to acquire” De La Cruz, with an official announcement coming next week.
De La Cruz looked good against the Giants this year (I had De La Cruz mixed up with Edward Mujica), De La Cruz certainly fits the profile of hard throwing relievers that NPB teams seem to be targeting this offseason. You’d think that Yakult would be looking for him to step in to the shoes of the departing Ryota Igarasahi, but according to Sanspo they expect him to start.
Patrick » 11 December 2009 » In npb » Comments Off on Chunichi Signs Four out of The Dominican
Chunichi found a gem last year in the previously unheralded Tony Blanco, and is looking for more of the same. The Dragons have been scouting the Dominican this offseason, and came up with four signings:
Dionys Cesar
Edward Valdez
Candido Jesus (ikusei player)
Joaquin Santamaria(ikusei player)
All four players have played for MLB affiliated ball and you can easily look up their stats on baseball-reference.com.
Of these four, Cesar is the interesting one. A 15 year minor league veteran, Cesar has never reached the majors, and has spent the last several seasons in the Mexican League. He’s coming off a phenomenal season in Mexico, having hit .380 with 58 walks and only 36 strikeouts. Chunichi sees him as a utility guy who will play in the infield and outfield, taking over for the retired Tomas de la Rosa.
Chunichi has a growing interest in Dominican baseball. In addition to signing all these players, the Dragons employ former NPB slugger Domingo Martinez as a scout, and having been sending players to take part in the Dominican Winter League. I wonder if they’ll eventually set a full-time academy there, like the Carp have.
The Hanshin Tigers have signed Randy Messenger for 2010. The big righty gets a one-year deal worth approximately $600k, and will take over Scott Atchison’s role in the bullpen.
