Sports Report: Japanese stars Arihara, Nishikawa to be posted for MLB
Report: Blue Jays interested in Springer, hope to bolster center field
The Toronto Blue Jays weren't kidding when they said they planned to be aggressive in free agency this offseason. The Blue Jays are interested in pursuing All-Star outfielder George Springer, Jon Heyman of MLB Network reported Monday on the "Big Time Baseball" podcast. Springer hit .265 with an .899 OPS, 14 home runs, and 32 RBIs in 51 games with the Houston Astros this past season. A first-round draft pick in 2011, Springer was one of the biggest contributors to the Astros' success in recent years.The 31-year-old's best offensive season came in 2019 when he finished seventh in American League MVP voting after hitting 39 home runs with a .292/.383/.591 slash line.
The Toronto Blue Jays weren't kidding when they said they planned to be aggressive in free agency this offseason. The Blue Jays are interested in pursuing All-Star outfielder George Springer, Jon Heyman of MLB Network reported Monday on the "Big Time Baseball" podcast. Springer hit .265 with an .899 OPS, 14 home runs, and 32 RBIs in 51 games with the Houston Astros this past season. A first-round draft pick in 2011, Springer was one of the biggest contributors to the Astros' success in recent years.The 31-year-old's best offensive season came in 2019 when he finished seventh in American League MVP voting after hitting 39 home runs with a .292/.383/.591 slash line. Kohei Arihara wants to pitch in the major leagues in the near future. Haruki Nishikawa wants to make the Playing in MLB has to look more attainable than ever to Japanese players. There are four with realistic Nishikawa , an All- Star once in eight seasons, said he hopes to be posted next offseason.
In his first MLB season, Tanaka was selected as an All- Star and posted a 2.77 ERA over 20 starts (he missed time due to a right elbow injury). Murakami impressed enough to be promoted to the Major League club in September, becoming the first player of Japanese descent in MLB history at just 20
Two stars from Japan's Nippon Pro Baseball will be posted for Major League Baseball teams this offseason.
© STR / AFP / Getty The Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters plan to post right-hander Kohei Arihara, a source confirmed to Jon Morosi of MLB.com.
Fighters outfielder Haruki Nishikawa will also be posted, according to Jim Allen of Jballallen.com, citing reports from multiple Japanese outlets.
Arihara, 28, has spent his entire six-year career with Nippon-Ham. He threw a team-high 132 2/3 innings in 2020, posting a 3.46 ERA and 1.17 WHIP with 106 strikeouts, 30 walks, three complete games, and one shutout. His best season came in 2019 when he was a finalist for the Eiji Sawamura Award - Japan's equivalent of the Cy Young - after winning 15 contests and recording a 2.46 ERA and 0.92 WHIP.
Cardinals writer says MVP vote for Cubs' Tepera was meant for Trea Turner
2020 keeps getting weirder. Chicago Cubs reliever Ryan Tepera officially earned MVP consideration this year after an altogether unremarkable campaign - and from a St. Louis Cardinals writer, no less. "I'm sure the Tepera family is delighted, but there's no way I would have voted for him. It was an accident," Rick Hummel of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch told Gordon Wittenmyer of NBC Sports after putting Tepera 10th on his NL MVP ballot. "I fullyChicago Cubs reliever Ryan Tepera officially earned MVP consideration this year after an altogether unremarkable campaign - and from a St. Louis Cardinals writer, no less. Star Japanese lefty eyes signing with MLB club. In his NPB career, Kikuchi is 73-46 with a 2.77 ERA. Kikuchi is not expected to be a superstar on the level of two-way phenom Shohei Ohtani, but according to a report by MLB .com's Jon Paul Morosi earlier this year, multiple MLB scouts believe he
Special Reports . Major League tours of Japan For more than a century, Americans and Japanese have been united in their love for baseball . • 1980 • Pete Rose and Steve Garvey lead MLB vs. the Japanese All- Stars (whose reliever wears a Pirates-type uniform and has a Kent Tekulve-like motion).
Nishikawa, a 10-year veteran, has also spent his entire career with the Fighters. The 28-year-old slashed a career-high .306/.430/.396 with five homers, 39 RBIs, 42 stolen bases, and 92 walks over 523 plate appearances in 2020. He's led the Pacific League in stolen bases three times, owns three Gold Gloves, and has posted an OBP of .378 or higher in five straight seasons.
Per the MLB-NPB posting agreement, every MLB team will have 30 days to negotiate with Arihara and Nishikawa once they're posted. Any club that signs them will have to pay the Fighters 20% of the first $25 million of their contract as a posting fee.
If the players don't sign in MLB, they'd return to Nippon-Ham in 2021.
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