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Jo Hsi Hsu Signs With NPB’s Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks

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Taiwanese right-hander Jo Hsi Hsu has signed with the Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks of Japan’s Nippon Professional Baseball. It’s a three-year deal with incentives worth more than $9.6MM USD. Yihsuan Wang of Yahoo Taiwan relayed the club announcement. Hat tip to CPBL Stats for relaying the details in English.

The 25-year-old righty has turned some heads with his results in the CPBL. He has thrown 305 innings for the Wei Chuan Dragons, including 114 innings in 2025 with a 2.05 earned run average. He struck out 28% of batters faced this year while limiting walks to a tiny 3.3% rate.

It was reported last week that the Dragons would make him available via the posting system and that Hsu was considering a jump to Major League Baseball, though a move to NPB seemed more probable.

A scouting report from Eric Longenhagen and James Fegan of FanGraphs suggested that many MLB clubs would likely view Hsu as a reliever. They then wondered if that would lead him to Japan in an attempt to further prove himself as a capable starter against a higher level of competition.

Hsu’s motivations aren’t known but he will indeed head to Japan. He is still quite young, so perhaps a move to North America will become viable down the road if he puts up good numbers for the Hawks.

Photo courtesy of Jasen Vinlove, Imagn Images

CPBL’s Wei Chuan Dragons To Post Jo Hsi Hsu

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The Wei Chuan Dragons of Taiwan’s Chinese Professional Baseball League are posting right-hander Jo Hsi Hsu for MLB clubs, as noted by CPBL Stats. Hsu is considering a jump to either MLB or Nippon Professional Baseball in Japan this offseason. Hsu himself told reporters that he’s already visited Japan and had dinner with NPB legend Sadaharu Oh, who now serves as the chief baseball officer for the SoftBank Hawks. According to Taiwanese outlet TSNA, Hsu has also garnered stateside interest from the Dodgers.

CPBL players can be posted for international free agency with the permission of their club after they’ve reached three years of service time. Hsu, 25, is in the midst of that process now and will market himself coming off a 2025 season where he pitched to a sterling 2.05 ERA with a 28.0% strikeout rate across 19 starts and 114 innings of work. That workload is fairly standard for the 119-game CPBL season, but it leaves questions about how well he’d be able to handle the rigors of a 162-game schedule as a starter in the big leagues.

Eric Longenhagen and James Fegan of Fangraphs took a look at Hsu’s profile last month and suggested that it’s “probable” most MLB clubs will view him as a reliever as he was unable to maintain his top velocity throughout even that 19-start campaign in the CPBL this year. Longehagen and Fegan both suggest that Hsu has the talent to be a late-inning set-up man in the majors, and a player headed into his age-25 season who could immediately slot into the back of any bullpen would surely be an attractive piece for teams to consider. With that being said, Longenhagen and Fegan both suggest that Hsu might prefer to first go to Japan to attempt to hone his skills as a starter before making the jump to MLB.

That’s a path that could be attractive for financial reasons. Hsu is young enough that even if he spent two or three years in Japan, he’d be able to come to MLB much younger than the average free agent pitcher. That could set him up for a more lucrative payday, particularly because then all posting fees owed to his the Dragons would be attached to his NPB contract. That would leave MLB teams able to offer Hsu the full amount they believe him to be worth rather than sending a portion of that money overseas to the Dragons. The CPBL posting fee is 20% of the first $25MM a player earns in their MLB contract, 17.5% of the next $25MM, and 15% of any dollars above $50MM. For minor league contracts, the posting fee is equivalent to 25% of the player’s signing bonus.

Beneficial as a stop in NPB might be financially, Hsu certainly wouldn’t be the first player to eschew a larger immediate payday for the opportunity to pitch in the majors sooner. Roki Sasaki opted to be posted last winter, when he wasn’t yet old enough to sign more than a minor league contract, and Shohei Ohtani famously did the same when he first came over to the United States. If Hsu does come stateside, it seems as though the Dodgers have at least some interest in his services. L.A. is hardly a club that’s been shy about making a splash in international markets, and while those efforts have been primarily focused on NPB (Yoshinobu Yamamoto, Sasaki) and KBO (Hyeseong Kim) players in recent offseasons, it wouldn’t be a shock to see them expand their horizons to Taiwan.

It seems silly to call anything about a back-to-back World Series champion disappointing, but the Dodgers made a big investment in the back of their bullpen by picking up Tanner Scott and Kirby Yates last winter that ultimately did not pan out. Adding an arm like Hsu to the fold alongside Scott could give L.A. some additional firepower in the bullpen to help make up for the loss of Evan Phillips, who underwent Tommy John surgery in June and was non-tendered this past week.

Of course, the Dodgers are hardly the only team who could have interest in Hsu’s services. International relief signings have typically come in at a fairly affordable price tag that could make him an interesting target for virtually any club searching for bullpen help this winter. Woo-Suk Go (two years, $4.5MM), Yuki Matsui (five years, $28MM), and Shintaro Fujinami (one year, $3.5MM) are all players who signed from the international market as relievers in recent years, and none came with the typical price tag associated with late-inning relievers already established in MLB.

Braves Release Jackson Stephens To Sign With CPBL Team, Sign Anderson Pilar To Minor League Deal

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1:00pm: MLBTR has learned that Stephens was released to sign with a team in Taiwan’s Chinese Professional Baseball League.

12:49pm: Right-hander Jackson Stephens has been released by the Triple-A Gwinnett Stripers, according to his transactions tracker at MLB.com. On the flip side, the Braves have signed right-hander Anderson Pilar to a minor league deal and he’s been assigned to Gwinnett.

Stephens, 31, signed a minor league deal with Atlanta in the offseason. He’s actually been putting up good numbers in the minors in a swing role. He has logged 49 Triple-A frames this year over four starts and 18 relief appearances. He has a 2.57 earned run average, 22.2% strikeout rate, 7.9% walk rate and 41.5% ground ball rate.

Atlanta has needed plenty of arms at the big league level this year, which each of Chris Sale, Reynaldo López, Grant Holmes, Spencer Schwellenbach, AJ Smith-Shawver and Joe Jiménez missing significant time. Despite the need for innings, they haven’t given Stephens the call. With his decent numbers, it’s possible he opted out his minor league pact.

Whether he triggered some kind of opt-out or this is a straight release, the result is the same. He’ll head out to the open market and assess his opportunities. He has 132 1/3 innings of major league experience with a 4.15 ERA, 19.4% strikeout rate, 9% walk rate and 40.4% ground ball rate.

As for Pilar, it’s not a surprise that Atlanta has scooped him up. They took him from the Marlins in the Rule 5 draft back in December. He came into camp with the club but couldn’t make the most of the opportunity. He tossed 5 2/3 spring innings, allowing nine earned runs on ten hits and six walks while striking out ten.

Atlanta returned him to the Marlins prior to Opening Day. He’s having a decent but not spectacular season. He tossed 44 1/3 Triple-A innings with a 4.26 ERA, 25.9% strikeout rate and 6.7% walk rate. His .311 batting average on balls in play and 62.3% strand rate are a bit to the unfortunate side. His 3.11 FIP is more than a full run better than his ERA. The Marlins released him earlier this week and Atlanta has quickly pounced on him. This time, they aren’t bound by the Rule 5 restrictions and don’t even need to give Pilar a roster spot.

Photo courtesy of Dale Zanine, Imagn Images

Yankees Release Brandon Leibrandt To Sign In CPBL

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The Yankees announced that they have released left-hander Brandon Leibrandt to sign with the CTBC Brothers of Taiwan’s Chinese Professional Baseball League. That move was previously reported by CPBL Stats.

Leibrandt, 32, signed a minor league deal with the Yankees in the offseason. He logged 41 Triple-A innings over nine starts and one long relief outing, allowing 2.85 earned runs per nine. He probably got a bit of help from his .245 batting average on balls in play and 87.8% strand rate, but his 22.7% strikeout rate and 8.6% walk rate were both solid figures while his 50.5% ground ball rate was quite strong.

Despite that cromulent performance, his path to big league playing time in the Bronx was steep. Despite several injuries, the Yankee rotation is in decent shape. They have Max Fried, Carlos Rodón, Clarke Schmidt, Will Warren and Ryan Yarbrough. They could get Marcus Stroman and JT Brubaker back soon, as both are on rehab assignments. Luis Gil is tossing bullpens and could be on his own rehab assignment in the coming weeks.

Leibrandt was therefore likely to be stuck in the minors but will head overseas instead. Presumably, he’ll be getting a bit of a pay bump while being able to explore the other side of the globe. It’s also possible that he could be exposed to scouts from other Asian leagues and earn himself future opportunities if he performs well. His major league track record currently consists of 15 1/3 innings with a 5.28 ERA.

Photo courtesy of Nathan Ray Seebeck, Imagn Images

Felix Pena Signs With CPBL’s Uni-Lions

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Right-hander Felix Pena has signed on with the Uni-Lions of Taiwan’s Chinese Professional Baseball League (h/t to CPBL Stats).

Pena, 35 later this month, signed with the Cubs out of the Dominican Republic as an international amateur and made his pro debut all the way back in 2009. He gradually climbed the minor league ladder until he made his MLB debut back in 2016, when he debuted for Chicago and pitched decently in a brief cup of coffee at the big league level. The right-hander posted a 4.00 ERA (108 ERA+) in nine innings that season, striking out 37.1% of opponents in his limited playing time at the major league level en route to a 2.70 FIP. He was used in a similarly minor role with the Cubs in 2017, but that second trip to the majors left something to be desired in terms of results as he posted a lackluster 5.24 ERA (84 ERA+) in 34 1/3 innings of work thanks in part to a bloated 11.6% walk rate.

Those struggles in 2017 led the Cubs to designate Pena for assignment shortly after the 2017 season came to a close. He shipped to the Angels shortly thereafter, and wound up pitching for his new club as a starting pitcher for much of the 2018 season. His results were decent enough, as well: in 92 2/3 innings of work split between 17 starts and two relief outings, Pena surrendered a 4.18 ERA (101 ERA+) with a 4.04 FIP. He struck out a decent 21.9% of opponents and, more importantly, got his walk rate under control and allowed free passes at a 7.2% clip. That appeared to set Pena up for a crack at a full-season rotation job with the Halos in 2019, and he was part of the club’s Opening Day rotation at the beginning of the year.

Unfortunately for Pena, however, his first four starts of the 2019 season left much to be desired. While his 4.15 ERA was decent enough, Pena allowed four homers, surrendered seven walks, and hit three batters in just 17 1/3 innings of work while his strikeout rate dipped to 19.2%. That led the Angels to move him into a bulk role behind an opener, and he initially excelled in the role with a 3.03 ERA and 3.18 FIP over his next seven outings where he struck out 28.5% of opponents in 32 2/3 frames. Things took a turn for the worse during a disastrous month of June, however, as his issues with the long ball resurfaced and he posted a ghastly 7.97 ERA in five appearances totaling 20 1/3 innings. He pitched better (4.15 ERA, 3.48 FIP) once the calendar flipped to July and even played a key role in a combined no-hitter against the Mariners but saw his season cut short by a torn ACL.

By the time baseball resumed in late July of 2020 after the pandemic shutdown, Pena had recovered from his ACL tear and was back on the mound with the Angels. He was confined to a short relief role in 2020 but made the most of the role, posting a 4.05 ERA (113 ERA+) in 26 2/3 innings with excellent peripheral numbers including a 3.00 FIP and a 25.2% strikeout rate against a 7% walk rate. That performance figured to earn Pena another shot with the Angels in 2021, but a hamstring strain delayed his start to the season and he was torched to the tune of seven runs in less than two innings of work upon his return, prompting the Angels to outright him to the minor leagues.

That was Pena’s last time appearing in the majors. After struggling badly at Triple-A through the remainder of the 2021 season, the right-hander began the 2022 season with the Mets on a minor league deal but eventually headed overseas to sign with the KBO’s Hanwha Eagles. He spent parts of three seasons with the Eagles, posting a 3.98 ERA in 54 starts for the club, but struggled to a 6.27 ERA in his final nine KBO starts earlier this year. That prompted Hanwha to release Pena back in May, but now he’ll get a fresh start in Taiwan where he can provide veteran innings to a club that employed former big leaguers Hector Perez and Logan Ondrusek last season.

Beau Sulser Signs With CPBL’s Rakuten Monkeys

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The Rakuten Monkeys of Taiwan’s Chinese Professional Baseball League announced that they have signed right-hander Beau Sulser. Yihsuan Wang of Yahoo Taiwan reported a few weeks back that the Sulser was in negotiations with a CPBL team. The righty is represented by Full Circle Sports Management.

Sulser, 31 in May, pitched in the majors in 2022. Splitting his time between the Pirates and Orioles, he tossed 22 1/3 innings over 10 appearances, allowing 3.63 earned runs per nine innings. He struck out 19.2% of batters faced and gave out walks at a 9.1% clip.

His minor league numbers that year were a bit more interesting. Over 56 2/3 Triple-A innings between those two clubs, his 4.13 ERA was pretty middling but his 24.3% strikeout rate and 5.7% walk rate were both strong numbers.

Going into 2023, he headed to Asia by signing with the KT Wiz of the KBO League in Korea. That move didn’t work out for him, as he posted a 5.62 ERA in 49 2/3 innings, getting released in June. For the latter half of 2023 and then the 2024 season, he was back in North America, bouncing around on minor league deals. Between the Pirates and Blue Jays, he had a 5.63 over that year and a half, throwing 112 minor league innings. His 6.6% walk rate was still good but he only struck out 17.9% of hitters.

Had he stayed in affiliated ball for 2025, Sulser surely would have been limited to another minor league deal and an uphill battle back to the majors. Instead, he’ll head overseas again for a clearer opportunity and likely a guaranteed salary above what he would make while pitching in Triple-A.

Kirk McCarty Re-Signs With CPBL’s CTBC Brothers

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Left-hander Kirk McCarty is re-signing with the CTBC Brothers of the Chinese Professional Baseball League in Taiwan (h/t to CPBL Stats). McCarty first signed with the club prior to the 2024 season but will be returning to pitch for them again in 2025.

McCarty, 29, was a seventh-round pick by Cleveland back in 2017 and made his big league debut in 2022. That remains his only season of big league action. He spent 13 games as a swingman in the Guardians’ bullpen, starting two games and finishing six as he cobbled together 37 2/3 innings of work. The results left something to be desired, however, as he posted a 4.54 ERA (84 ERA+) with a 6.64 FIP.

Somewhat unusually, McCarty’s time in Cleveland was actually broken up by a brief sojourn to the Orioles organization in 2022, in the middle of his time as an up-and-down hurler for the Guardians. The club actually designated him for assignment after his third appearance of the year on July 2, at which point he had a 9.00 ERA in 12 innings of work. He played just one game in the Baltimore organization (a four-inning start at the Triple-A level) before he was once again designated for assignment and claimed off waivers by the Guardians on July 14, ending his week away from the organization.

McCarty’s ten appearances with the Guardians after being re-acquired went far better, as he pitched to a strong 2.45 ERA in 25 2/3 frames across ten appearances. With that being said, there were still some red flags in the peripherals; while McCarty’s 6.9% walk rate was excellent, his 17.8% strikeout rate left much to be desired and he surrendered a whopping five home runs during that time. That left him with a 5.18 in even during his best stretch of play in the majors, so it wasn’t much of a surprise when the Guardians released McCarty early in the 2022-23 offseason.

It wasn’t long after that when McCarty signed a deal with the Korea Baseball Organization’s SSG Landers, and he pitched as a starter for the club in 2023. Things went quite well for the southpaw during his first year overseas, as he pitched to a strong 3.39 ERA in 24 starts and struck out 21.4% of opponents in 130 innings of work. That solid performance wasn’t enough to keep McCarty in the KBO for 2024, however, and he instead headed to Taiwan to pitch for the Brothers. The southpaw was utterly dominant in the CPBL, making the most out of his 81 2/3 innings over 13 starts. McCarty posted a sterling 2.76 ERA despite striking out just 18.5% of opponents faced during the season.

Those lackluster strikeout numbers may have held McCarty’s prospects back somewhat in free agency, but the Brothers were evidently happy to have him back in the fold, where he’ll look to further establish himself as a strong rotation option in hopes of potentially making it back to the majors at some point in the future.

CPBL’s Fubon Guardians Sign Roenis Elías

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Left-handed pitcher Roenis Elías has reportedly signed a contract for the 2025 season with the Fubon Guardians of the CPBL in Taiwan. TSNA (h/t to CPBL Stats) was the first to report the news (Chinese language link), which Francys Romero later confirmed. The southpaw will earn a guaranteed $500K USD salary.

Elías, 36, spent time with the Mariners, Red Sox, and Nationals throughout parts of seven MLB seasons. His best year was his rookie campaign with Seattle in 2014, when he pitched 163 2/3 innings over 29 starts with a 3.85 ERA and 3.96 SIERA. Unfortunately, he struggled to ever replicate that success. From 2015-22, he pitched 232 big league innings over 104 games (25 starts), putting up a 4.03 ERA and 4.49 SIERA.

Although he signed a minor league deal with the Cubs ahead of the 2023 season, Elías made only four starts for Triple-A Iowa before the organization released him to pursue a career overseas. He inked a $540K contract with the KBO’s SSG Landers in May and pitched to a 3.70 ERA in 131 1/3 innings over the rest of the year. That ERA was well below the 4.14 league average, as was his 6.0% walk rate. Those numbers were enough to earn him another season (and a raise) from the Landers, who re-signed him to a one-year, $1MM deal for the 2024 campaign.

Unfortunately, the 2024 season wasn’t quite as kind to Elías. He missed time with an oblique injury and finished with a 4.08 ERA in 123 2/3 innings. However, it’s worth pointing out that his ERA was actually better compared to the league average in 2024 than it was in 2023. He also increased his strikeout rate from 17.0% to 19.8% while slightly reducing his walk rate. Nevertheless, it seems as if the Landers opted not to bring him back for a third year with the club. Instead, Elías will take a pay cut and try to establish himself in a new foreign league.

CPBL’s Rakuten Monkeys Sign Jonathan Bermudez

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The Rakuten Monkeys of the Chinese Professional Baseball League have signed left-hander Jonathan Bermudez, according to the CPBL Stats X account.  The 29-year-old Bermudez elected minor league free agency at the end of the 2024 season.

A 23rd-round pick for the Astros in the 2018 draft, Bermudez spent parts of his first four pro seasons in Houston’s farm system before the Giants claimed him off waivers in August 2022.  He was on Puerto Rico’s roster for the World Baseball Classic in March 2023, but that same month saw the Giants release the southpaw.  Bermudez caught on with the Marlins on a minors deal a few weeks later and had been with Miami until he chose free agency this past October.

This time with the Marlins resulted in Bermudez’s Major League debut, as he posted an 8.10 ERA over three appearances and 6 2/3 innings this season.  One of the many pitchers cycled on and off Miami’s active roster this season, Bermudez was twice designated for assignment and then outrighted off the Marlins’ 40-man in August and September.

The southpaw posted solid numbers throughout most of his minor-league career but seemed to hit a wall at Triple-A, posting a 7.01 ERA over 140 innings at the top farm level.  Bermudez’s walk and strikeout totals have trended in the wrong direction at Triple-A, and home runs were a particular issue for him during the 2022 season in the hitter-friendly Pacific Coast League.

Bermudez has started 85 of his 122 career minor league games, and seems likely to assume a starting role in the Monkeys’ rotation.  Rather than battle for a minor league contract with North American moves, signing with the CPBL allows Bermudez to lock in some guaranteed money and perhaps provide a fresh start to his career.

Spenser Watkins Signs With CPBL’s TSG Hawks

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Right-hander Spenser Watkins has signed a one-year deal with the TSG Hawks of the Chinese Professional Baseball League in Taiwan, per Bob Nightengale of USA Today on X. The righty is a client of Gaeta Sports Management.

Watkins, 32, has appeared in 40 major league games, suiting up for the Orioles and Athletics over the 2021 to 2023 seasons. He tossed 164 1/3 innings over those appearances, allowing 5.97 earned runs per nine. He struck out 13.9% of batters faced, walked 6.9% of opponents and got grounders on 38.4% of balls in play.

He signed a minor league deal with the Nationals going into 2024 but never got the call to the big leagues. He tossed 118 1/3 Triple-A innings on the year with a 4.56 ERA, 18.1% strikeout rate, 7.7% walk rate and 45.8% ground ball rate.

If he had stayed in North America, he likely would have been looking at another minor league deal and more riding the bus while hoping to get the big league call. By heading to join the Hawks, he’ll get to explore new horizons while also likely collecting a larger paycheck than he would on the farm.

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