NPB Tracker

Add Tokyo Yakult Swallows reliever Ryota Igarashi to the list of guys that is looking for a future move to MLB. Igarashi is a domestic free agent this year, but will decline to file so that he can pursue an MLB contract later on. Igarashi is said to be looking to make a “Shinjo class” move, which is to say he wants to come to America for the experience rather than the money. And if he truly follows the Shinjo model, he’ll return to Japan to finish his career.

Igarashi has already begun negotiating his next contract with Yakult, and it appears that he stay in Yoyogi at least for next year. Igarashi spent nearly two years on the shelf due to Tommy John surgery, but came back in July and posted solid numbers for the Swallows. Most notably his 42/6 K/BB ratio indicates that his control, which was never a strong point pre-surgery,  has improved dramatically.

A few links to pass along this morning…

Japanese Articles:

• Was Marty Brown fired? No, he wasn’t.
• SoftBank is sending pitcher Nagisa Arakaki to America for surgery to clean up loose bodies in his throwing elbow. In retrospect, having him throw 164 pitches in a game may not have been the best idea. (Box score in English)
• Orix has released pitcher Yuki and infielder Shogo Makita. Makita will join the front office, while I imagine Yuki will catch on with another team.
• Chunichi wants to offer Tyrone Woods an incentive-laden contract with a big pay cut from this year’s $6M base. Team president Junnosuke Nishikawa says they’ll work with Woods after the draft, adding that the team will be scouting foreign players in this year’s Dominican Winter League. Woods had previously been reported as being on his way out of Chunichi, but it appears that the door is still open for a return.

English Articles:

• Wayne Grazcyk dissects the one-game advantage given to the higher-seeded playoff teams. 
• Yomiuri Giants manager Tatsunori Hara will run Japan’s WBC effort.

Michael Westbay of JapaneseBaseball.com has published the lastest edition of his podcast, Pro Yakyu This Week. Grab the audio here, or read the transcript here. This week’s edition features the resolution to the Marty Brown saga, a look ahead at the Japan Series, and a retrospective of Sadaharu Oh’s managerial career.