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NPB’s Tohoku Rakuten Golden Eagles Sign Maikel Franco

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The Tohoku Rakuten Golden Eagles of Japan’s Nippon Professional Baseball announced the signing of third baseman Maikel Franco for the 2023 season (link via Japan Times). It’ll be the first stint in Japan for Franco, who has appeared in the majors in each of the past nine campaigns.

A top prospect during his days as a minor leaguer, Franco looked like a franchise building block for the Phillies after a .280/.343/.497 showing during his age-22 season in 2015. He never took the expected step forward after that initial MLB success, however, and that year remains the best of his career. Franco posted below-average numbers in each of the next two seasons. He bounced back with an average year in 2018 but was cut loose after another disappointing season in 2019.

After being let go by Philadelphia, Franco bounced around the majors in journeyman fashion. He signed with the Royals for the abbreviated 2020 campaign. He posted decent offensive numbers but was nevertheless non-tendered at the end of the season. Franco played for the Orioles and Nationals over the past couple seasons, logging a bit more than 100 games in each year. He combined for just a .219/.254/.319 line from 2021-22, and he was released in August during both seasons.

Franco owns a .244/.293/.414 line in over 3500 big league plate appearances. He’s connected on 130 home runs and surpassed 20 longballs in three straight seasons with the Phils from 2016-18. He’s occasionally shown the power potential that once made him such an exciting young player, but a very aggressive offensive approach has prevented him from topping a .321 on-base percentage in any season since his rookie year. Franco has rated as a below-average defensive third baseman throughout his career.

A native of the Dominican Republic, Franco has a decent .268/.314/.439 line over parts of four Triple-A seasons. He’ll look to more consistently tap into his power production against NPB pitching. He only recently turned 30 years old and could again be an option for MLB teams in future offseasons if he performs well in Japan.

NPB’s Hanshin Tigers Post Shintaro Fujinami

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The Hanshin Tigers of Japan’s Nippon Professional Baseball have officially posted right-hander Shintaro Fujinami, according to Yakyu Cosmopolitan.

It was reported back in October that the Tigers planned to post Fujinami. Now that it’s been made official, he and his representatives will have 30 days to secure a major league contract. If a deal is reached, the signing team will also owe money to the Tigers, with that amount being relative to the size of the contract given to Fujinami. Any big league team that signs him would owe the Tigers a fee equal to 20% of the contract’s first $25MM, 17.5% of the next $25MM and 15% of any dollars thereafter. If he does not reach an agreement with an MLB team, he will return to the Tigers for 2023.

It’s possible that Fujinami will find that there’s a wide variance in the level of interest he gets from major league teams, given the inconsistency he’s shown thus far in his career. He was a highly-touted young arm in his high school days, often compared to Shohei Ohtani as the top names in their draft class. In 2013, he was thrown into the Tigers’ rotation despite being just 19 years old at the time. He ended up throwing 137 2/3 innings with a 2.75 ERA, 126 strikeouts, 44 walks and a couple of hit batters. He continued producing strong results over the next two seasons, tossing 163 innings in 2014 with a 3.53 ERA and then 199 frames in 2015 with a 2.40 ERA.

From that point on, however, control issues put a damper on his performance. He walked 70 batters in 169 innings in 2016 and then gave out 45 free passes in only 57 innings in 2017, getting sent down to the minors. He’s been shuttled between the farm and the big leagues since then, struggling to show enough improved command to keep a regular job. That was still the case in 2022, as he made 25 appearances on the year but only 16 of them were at the NPB’s top level. In those 16 appearances for Hanshin, he logged 66 2/3 innings with a 3.38 ERA, striking out 65 while walking 21 batters. He faced a total of 276 batters, meaning his walk rate was 7.6%, which is actually respectable. For reference, this year’s MLB average was 8.2%. That’s a huge improvement over 2021, where he walked 40 out of 238 batters faced for a rate of 16.8%.

Taking all this into consideration, the 30 MLB clubs will likely be able to reach different conclusions of Fujinami’s value. The most bullish teams can point to his early career success and 101 mph fastball. Despite his long tenure in NPB, he’s just 28 years old, turning 29 in April. He also showed some improved control this season. For those who take the pessimistic side, they could point to the fact that Fujinami hasn’t been able to maintain a consistent level of performance for years.

There’s little doubt that Fujinami has some skills to bring to the table. The question will be how much major league teams believe they can use their tools to harness Fujinami into a useful pitcher in North America. It makes him an intriguing wild card addition to the offseason and we will see how his market plays out over the remainder of the year.

NPB’s Yokohama BayStars To Sign J.B. Wendelken

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The Yokohama BayStars have signed right-hander J.B. Wendelken, the New York Post’s Jon Heyman reports (Twitter link).  The contract is a one-year deal with an option for 2024, and Wendelken can earn up to $3.05MM, including incentives.

Wendleken elected free agency after the season, ending a stint with the Diamondbacks that began in August 2021 when Arizona claimed him off waivers from the A’s.  The Diamondbacks agreed to an arbitration-avoiding one-year, $835K deal with Wendelken last winter, but he posted only a 5.29 ERA over 29 innings in 2022.  Arizona designated the righty for assignment in July and then outrighted him off the 40-man roster, with Wendelken then spending the remainder of the season at Triple-A Reno.

Beginning his career in Oakland, Wendelken had a solid 2.30 ERA over 74 1/3 relief innings from 2018-20, though his 3.74 SIERA was perhaps more reflective of his overall work.  Wendelken benefited from a very low .218 BABIP in those three seasons, but his fortune changed with a .310 BABIP in 2021 and a dropoff in his strikeout rate.  The right-hander has only a 19% strikeout rate and a unimpressive 11.4% walk rate over 72 2/3 innings since the start of the 2021 season, as well as a 4.71 ERA.

With this recent performance, Wendelken might have been hard-pressed to find anything beyond than a minor league deal with an MLB team this winter, so he has instead opted for some guaranteed money and a fresh start in Japan.  Wendelken’s Triple-A numbers are worth noting, as he had a strong 2.63 ERA, 35.1% strikeout rate, and 9.6% walk rate over the small sample size of 24 innings with Reno.  This provides some hope that Wendelken can perhaps get on track with the BayStars, and either continue in NPB or perhaps eventually explore a return to North American baseball.

Roberto Osuna To Re-Sign With NPB’s Chiba Lotte Marines

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Reliever Roberto Osuna is close to agreeing to a one-year contract with Japan’s Chiba Lotte Marines for the 2023 season, per Enrique Rojas of ESPN.

Osuna began the 2022 season playing in the Mexican League for the Diablos Rojos del México, tossing 13 1/3 innings of three-run ball while striking out 15 batters and earning six saves, before joining the Marines for the second half of the season. Once in Japan, he threw 32 2/3 innings of 1.37 ERA ball, posting a 37:3 strikeout-to-walk ratio, earning sixteen saves, and allowing only a single home run.

Osuna, who will be 28-years-old during the 2023 season, hasn’t appeared in a major league game since 2020, when he was outrighted off the Astros’ roster. Osuna had missed much of that season with an elbow injury that limited him to only four appearances. The injury initially came with a recommendation of Tommy John surgery, but a second opinion led him to rebab instead. Now, with two consecutive years of pitching more than 45 innings, Osuna appears fully recovered.

Osuna served a 75-game suspension in 2018 for violating the MLB – MLBPA Domestic Violence Policy. A member of the Blue Jays at that time, he was arrested in Canada and charged with the assault of his then-girlfriend. He later agreed to a one-year peace bond, with the alleged victim withdrawing the charges to resolve the criminal case.

Per the Canadian Department of Justice’s website, peace bonds are generally used when “an individual (the defendant) appears likely to commit a criminal offence, but there are no reasonable grounds to believe that an offence has actually been committed.” The Canadian Department of Justice further adds that peace bonds are obtainable by “any person who fears that another person may injure them, their spouse or common-law partner, or a child, or may damage their property.”

It’s unclear if any major league club has shown interest in bringing Osuna back state-side this offseason. There’s little question of his on-field effectiveness when he is healthy, but it remains to be seen whether he’ll get another MLB opportunity at any point down the line.

Aristides Aquino Signs With NPB’s Chunichi Dragons

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10:30 AM: Hector Gomez of Z101 Digital adds that Aquino’s deal is one-year, $1.2MM with an additional $300K of possible incentives.

10:20 AM: Outfielder Aristides Aquino has signed with the Chunichi Dragons of Japan’s Nippon Professional Baseball, reports Jon Morosi of MLB Network. It’s Aquino’s first stint overseas, who had previously spent parts of the last five seasons with the Cincinnati Reds.

Aquino, 28, made his debut during the 2018 season, earning a single at-bat, before reaching free agency and re-signing on a minor league deal with the Reds. He would eventually join the team in a more permanent role during the 2019 season, slashing .259/.316/.576 with 19 homers in 205 at-bats while posting serviceable strikeouts (26.7%) and walk (7.1%) rates. During that stretch, the right-handed hitter hit 13 homers in his first 100 plate appearances, setting an MLB record.

His success soon faded, and Aquino would spend the 2020 season bouncing between the major league club and the Reds’ alternative training site. More recently, Aquino hit a weak .194/.269/.381 with 20 homers across the 2021 and 2022 seasons (433 at-bats) with a poor 36.7% strikeout rate and a strong 9.2% walk rate. He was designated for assignment two weeks ago, as the Reds adjusted their 40-man roster ahead of the Rule 5 Draft.

It’s possible that Aquino has a strong enough performance in Japan to draw some new major league interest in the future, for it was only a few seasons ago that he showcased his immense power. Nevertheless, he will now turn to the Dragons as an outfield option with a career .300/.374/.644 line at the Triple-A level.

Yomiuri Giants Showing Interest In Tyler Beede

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The Yomiuri Giants of the Nippon Professional Baseball league are showing interest in adding right-handed pitcher Tyler Beede for the upcoming season, according to Hochi News (h/t Sung Min Kim). Beede was released by the Pirates last month after spending the 2022 campaign with them and San Francisco.

Beede, 29, was drafted 14th overall by the Giants back in 2014, but never managed to live up to the first round pedigree over four years in the big leagues. Across 187 innings between the Giants and Pirates, Beede pitched to a 5.34 ERA, averaging a 19.1% strikeout rate and a 9.7% walk rate. Most of those innings were logged in the 2019 season, when Beede pitched 117 innings of 5.08 ERA ball largely out of the Giants’ rotation.

Tommy John surgery ruled him out of the shortened 2020 season, and a significant chunk of the 2021 campaign as well. The Giants cut ties with him after a handful of relief appearances this year, and he was picked up by the rebuilding Pirates. The change of scenery didn’t bring about a change of results though, as Beede worked to a 5.23 ERA in 51 2/3 innings. He also saw his strikeout rate drop to 14.8% while putting up a 9.7% walk rate.

Pittsburgh designated Beede for assignment towards the end of the season and he became a free agent in October.

The report also adds that Yomiuri are looking to sign former Royals and Blue Jays pitcher Foster Griffin as well as Beede. Griffin was also drafted in the first round in 2014 (28th by the Royals) has made just a handful of appearances across two years in the big leagues, tossing eight innings of 6.75 ERA ball for the Royals and Blue Jays. The left-hander was much better at Triple-A, where he worked to a 2.10 ERA across 51 1/3 innings of relief work.

Hanshin Tigers Close To Signing Jeremy Beasley and Sheldon Neuse

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The Hanshin Tigers of the Nippon Professional League are close to signing former MLB players Jeremy Beasley and Sheldon Neuse, as well as former big league prospects Brian Keller and Johan Mieses, according to Yahoo Japan.  Meanwhile, the Tigers have renewed former Tiger, Angel and Pirate Kyle Keller’s contract for around $1.5MM, and the deal contains an additional $300K in possible incentives.

Beasley, 27 tomorrow, was recently released by the Pirates, but last pitched in the majors for the Blue Jays. He had a 4.80 ERA in nine relief appearances spanning 15 innings, and owns a career 5.84 ERA across 24 2/3 innings for the Blue Jays and Diamondbacks in the past three seasons. He’s shown the ability to punch out major league hitters, striking out batters at a 29% clip, although that comes with a 12.3% walk rate.

Neuse was a second round pick for the Nationals back in 2016, but made his way to Oakland in the Sean Doolittle deal a year later. Across three seasons with the Athletics and Dodgers, Neuse owns a .212/.262/.296 batting line with seven home runs in 420 plate appearances. He’s primarily spent time at second and third base, but has also logged time at first base, shortstop and both corner outfield positions.

Brian Keller was drafted in the 39th round of the 2016 draft by the Yankees, and made it as high as Triple-A with them. He was claimed off waivers ahead of the past season by the Red Sox, and spent the last year at their Triple-A affiliate. There, Keller pitched 113 innings of 3.27 ERA ball, making 20 starts and 11 relief appearances. He struck out a little over a quarter of the batters he faced, but walked batters just over ten percent of the time.

Mieses, 27, has bounced around the minor leagues a bit, spending time with the Dodgers and Cardinals before joining the Red Sox in 2021. The outfielder spent the past year at Triple-A, slashing an impressive .271/.387/.537 with 12 home runs across 60 games. All of those appearances came in right field or as the DH, although he has appeared at the other two outfield spots in previous seasons.

Kyle Keller, 29, spent the past season with Hanshin after being released by the Pirates at the end of the 2021 season. He turned in a 2.72 ERA in 49 2/3 innings with 64 strikeouts and just 12 walks. He struggled during his time in the big leagues, pitching to a 5.83 ERA across 46 1/3 innings for the Marlins, Angels and Pirates, but he seems to have found success in Japan so it’s not surprising to see him stick around for another season.

Note: A prior version of this post incorrectly stated Keller’s salary as approximately $1.3MM. MLBTR regrets the error.

Padres Meet With Kodai Senga

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The Padres had a meeting with highly sought-after free agent pitcher Koudai Senga in San Diego yesterday, according to Dennis Lin of The Athletic. He recently met with the Mets in New York, and has been drawing interest from a number of other teams, including the Angels, Red Sox, Rangers, Blue Jays, Mariners, Cubs and Dodgers.

Senga is seeking to make the move from Japan to the US after a sterling season in Nippon Professional Baseball. The right-hander tossed 144 innings of 1.94 ERA ball across 22 starts for the Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks, striking out batters 27.5% of the time and walking them at an 8.6% rate. It’s an ideal platform year for a hurler who has been one Japan’s best for the past decade, and in over eleven seasons he boasts a 2.59 ERA across almost 1,100 innings.

The 29-year-old (30 in January) combines an upper-90s fast ball with a split-finger pitch to great effect, although there have been some concerns raised over his command and breaking pitch. With that being said, his track record in Japan speaks for itself, and it’s not surprising there’s a lengthy line of potential suitors showing interest.

For the Padres, Senga would be a boost to a rotation that already features Yu Darvish, Blake Snell, Joe Musgrove, and the recently extender Nick Martinez. As Lin notes, Senga is close with Darvish and played with both Martinez and reliever Robert Suarez in Japan, so there’s some familiar faces in that pitching corps there that certainly wouldn’t hurt when trying to sell Senga on San Diego.

As Senga is a true free agent after reaching nine years of service time in Japan, his signing won’t require the acquiring team to pay a posting fee to Fukuoka. MLBTR predicted a five-year, $75MM deal for Senga recently. According to RosterResource, the Padres 2023 payroll is already projected to be right around their 2022 mark, although owner Peter Seidler hasn’t been afraid to make a big splash in recent seasons, so it certainly wouldn’t be a surprise to see their payroll increase next year.

Mets Meet With Kodai Senga

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The Mets recently sat down with free agent starter Kodai Senga in New York, reports Will Sammon of the Athletic. Andy Martino of SNY first reported earlier this week that New York and Senga’s camp would sit down.

Senga, 30 in January, recently wrapped up his 11th season in Nippon Professional Baseball. He had a 2.59 ERA in over 1000 career innings at Japan’s highest level. Senga’s coming off a particularly excellent platform campaign, working to a 1.94 ERA through 144 frames with the Fukuoka SoftBank Hawks. He punched out an above-average 27.5% of batters faced against a manageable 8.6% walk rate.

Evaluators have raised some concerns about Senga’s command and breaking ball, but his combination of an upper-90s fastball and a split-finger offering have drawn plenty of praise. Between his excellent NPB performance and quality raw stuff, he figures to be of interest to virtually every team with a rotation need. The right-hander has already found a wide array of interest as he tests the market in preparation for his jump to Major League Baseball. The Mets join the Giants, Red Sox, Rangers, Cubs, Blue Jays, Mariners and Padres as teams known to be involved in his market to some extent.

The Mets figure to cast a wide net in their search for return help, as the starting staff is facing a high degree of possible turnover. Jacob deGrom, Chris Bassitt, Taijuan Walker and swingman Trevor Williams all hit the open market — deGrom and Bassitt after declining qualifying offers. Max Scherzer and Carlos Carrasco are presently the only locks for the season-opening rotation, with David Peterson, Tylor Megill, Joey Lucchesi and José Butto among the depth options who could get a look. New York is sure to retain or add at least two starters (and quite likely three) from outside the organization over the coming months, and they’ve also been tied to former Dodger southpaw Andrew Heaney.

Senga, it bears remembering, is a true free agent after reaching nine years of service time in Japan. Unlike with players made available a year or more early via the posting system, signing Senga will not require an MLB team to provide any kind of financial compensation to the Hawks.

NPB’s Hiroshima Carp To Sign Matt Davidson

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The Hiroshima Carp of Japan’s Nippon Professional Baseball have signed infielder Matt Davidson to a one-year contract, per Yahoo Japan. Davidson is represented by CAA.

It’ll be the first stint overseas for Davidson, the No. 35 overall pick in the 2009 draft (D-backs) and former top prospect who’s appeared in parts of six MLB seasons dating back to his 2013 debut. The bulk of Davidson’s MLB action has come with the White Sox, for whom he slugged 46 home runs between the 2017-18 seasons. However, despite Davidson’s clear plus power, he’s been hampered by a lofty 34.3% strikeout rate that has helped suppress his overall output. In 1112 plate appearances at the MLB level, Davidson is a .220/.290/.430 hitter with 54 home runs. He most recently appeared in 13 games between the A’s and D-backs in 2022.

Though he’s had his struggles at the big league level, Davidson has a much stronger track record in Triple-A — including a 2022 season in which he posted a mammoth .310/.414/.644 slash with 32 home runs in just 332 plate appearances between the top affiliates for Oakland and Arizona. The Pacific Coast League is notoriously hitter-friendly, but it’s nonetheless impressive to see that Davidson has slugged 60 round-trippers in his past 170 Triple-A games — and 93 in his past 275 games, dating back to 2019.

Even with consistent production in Triple-A over the past few seasons, Davidson hasn’t gotten much in the way of an MLB look. He’s appeared in just 35 big league games since Opening Day 2019.  In Japan, Davidson will receive consistent playing time and a far heftier salary than he’d have otherwise earned as a likely minor league signee who’d be seen as a depth option for a Major League club.

 

 

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