There is nothing more to prove in the Japanese league.”
A major league scout who has long watched Yoshinobu Yamamoto, the best pitcher in Japanese professional baseball ever, Orix Buffaloes, told reporter Joel Sherman of the New York Post.
He said of Yamamoto in a recent interview with Sherman, “I don’t think he has anything left to prove in Japan. He is overly competitive.” “The splitter is a plus-plus pitch, and his fastball moves great. He’s a pitch maker. I think he’s a pitcher that’s one level higher than Senga Godai.”
That’s the best compliment that can come out of a scout’s mouth. After completing this season, Yamamoto will be eligible for major league posting. As an international free agent over the age of 25, he can freely negotiate with big league clubs and receive the ransom he wants.
Reporter Sherman said, ‘Yamamoto won the NPB Cy Young Award for two consecutive years and was the ace of last year’s Japan Series champion Orix. If he knocks on the major leagues, the recruiting battle will be heated,” he said. “He is 1m78 tall, but three scouts who know him well said there would be no problem.”
Unlike Senga, Yamamoto is a target player who needs a transfer fee. However, it is expected that the total amount of his ransom will well exceed 100 million dollars. This is because he is evaluated as the strongest ace of all time among pitchers from NPB.
He is now 25 years old, and until last year, his NPB record was 54 wins and 23 losses, an ERA of 1.95, a batting average of 0.197, and a WHIP of 0.95. Senga recorded a total of 66 wins and 35 losses in 9 years of NPB, an ERA of 2.69, and a WHIP of 1.13바카라사이트. Darvish Yu (San Diego) moved to the big leagues after raising a total of 93 wins and 38 losses, an ERA of 1.99, and a WHIP of 0.98 in seven seasons with the Nippon Ham Fighters.
Masahiro Tanaka, who signed a contract with the New York Yankees for 7 years and 155 million dollars, the highest ever from NPB, recorded 99 wins and 35 losses, an average ERA of 2.30, and a WHIP of 1.11 until the previous season, 2013. In sum, it means that if Yamamoto does not lose his ace dignity this season, he can be treated no less than Tanaka.
However, reporter Sherman draws attention by mentioning Kiwoom Heroes Lee Jung-hoo together with Yamamoto.
Reporter Sherman said, ‘Last year’s KBO MVP Lee Jung-hoo and the second consecutive Pacific League MVP Yamamoto will compete in the WBC next month. The reason why you should be interested in the Group B game is that even if Korea and Japan advance to the semifinals, many major league clubs are confident that the two players will be posted after this season.’
In this offseason, Lee Jung-hoo has already been evaluated several times by the local media. Reporter Sherman also said, ‘It is almost certain that Lee Jung-hoo will come to the major leagues. Kiwoom said they respected his request, and Scott Boras took over as agent. Last year, he had a batting average of .349, 23 homers, 66 walks and 32 strikeouts.’
However, he also gave negative reviews. It is doubtful whether Lee Jung-hoo’s power will work in the major leagues, and there is no fastball pitcher like the major leagues in the KBO league. A scout said, “There are only a few records that hitters from the KBO have posted in the major leagues. Only Shin-soo Choo and Ji-man Choi are the best.”
However, the scout said, “Lee Jung-hoo can hit, run, and throw. He can do a lot. His swing is unorthodox, he’s not used to fast balls, he swings inside-out, he lacks power, but so far It’s interesting because he’s grown well and knows how to control the strike zone well.”
Born in August 1998, Lee Jung-hoo was born 3 days later than Yamamoto. The biggest point to watch this winter is how the posting process of the two players will unfold.