NPB Tracker

• Twitter Weekly Updates for 2010-04-04: Twitter Weekly Updates for 2010-03-28: Hanshin Looking to Import More Pitch… http://bit.ly/d4D11Y #
• NPB Tracker Data, 日本語版: http://www.npbtracker.com/data/jp/ #
• The United Countries of Baseball http://slyoyster.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/04/baseballcounties.jpg #
• Tomo Ohka has agreed to a deal to return to Yokohama, where he started his career. Announcement coming tomorrow http://bit.ly/aeGCq0 #
• RIP Takuya Kimura: Last weekend in Hiroshima, Yomiuri coach Takuya Kimura was hospitalized after collapsing during… http://bit.ly/bVTGxN #
• A Brief Commercial Message: My work on NPB Tracker has afforded me the opportunity to contribute to some top-notch… http://bit.ly/bucD5m #
• Omark to Edmonton: Here’s a fun diversion from our usual business of Japanese baseball: the moribund Edmonton Oile… http://bit.ly/dlcLIS #
• Nikkan Sports reporting: Eri Yoshida, the knuckleball princess has agreed to a contract with the Indy Chico Outlaws http://bit.ly/bYz9gy #
• SoftBank to Work Out Two: According to Sanspo, SoftBank will be working out American pitchers JD Durbin and Michae… http://bit.ly/9B6cTx #
• NPB Tracker DATA 日本語版をアップしました: http://www.npbtracker.com/data/jpでご覧ください。 http://bit.ly/bkZTbm #

Here’s a fun diversion from our usual business of Japanese baseball: the moribund Edmonton Oilers have signed Swedish forward Linus Omark away from the KHL. Edmonton drafted Omark in the 4th round back in 2007.

Despite a casual interest in European hockey, I first heard of Omark when everyone else did — last year when his creative shootout goal hit YouTube. I’ve seen more of Omark since, and he really is a clever player, and a lot of fun to watch. I’m looking forward to seeing how his game translates against more physical players on the smaller NHL rink. Here are some clips, enjoy!

• Twitter Weekly Updates for 2010-03-28: Hanshin Looking to Import More Pitching: The Central League season hasn’t e… http://bit.ly/ct0dbS #
• Darvish Offers First Hint at MLB Interest: Just as soon as I publish my latest “don’t expect Yu Darvish in MLB any… http://bit.ly/amMuG2 #
• Ichiro takes bp righthanded, hitting a rag ball. http://bit.ly/akwjpn #
• Opening Weekend Notes: Alright, so NPB is officially in season… here are some observations from the games this wee… http://bit.ly/dpslv2 #
• Ichinoseki Lands in Belgium: Remember Shota Ichinoseki, the Aomori University pitcher who looked overseas as a fal… http://bit.ly/dyuoZW #
• Stults' deal with Hiroshima: approx. $700k plus bonuses http://mainichi.jp/enta/sports/news/20100401k0000m050020000c.html #
• Hiroshima Adds Stults; Hanshin to Acquire Standridge: Eric Stults’ is indeed heading to Japan, with the Hiroshima … http://bit.ly/aHiudP #
• Darvish Responds: The always insightful passerby left a comment latest Yu Darvish post, pointing us to the heralde… http://bit.ly/ckMn6D #
• H. Takahashi has made the Mets' opening day roster, probably as a middle reliever. (according to Sanspo) http://bit.ly/9X7dV5 #

• Hanshin Looking to Import More Pitching: The Central League season hasn’t even opened, and already the Hanshin Tig… http://bit.ly/bjh82F #
• Twitter Weekly Updates for 2010-03-21: Twitter Weekly Updates for 2010-03-14: Twitter Weekly Updates for 2010-03-0… http://bit.ly/b7WntX #
• official live streams for Pacific League games; only seems to work in IE http://pa.tv-live.jp/isp/yahoo/ #
• Rookies to Watch in 2010: In the last of my “things to watch” in 2010 series, today will look at this year’s crop … http://bit.ly/9QCKHz #
• Yomiuri Giants championship rings. Cost ~$100k http://bit.ly/ddIcjQ #
• And an awesome grand prix poster http://bit.ly/9DJtDK #
• One of the things I miss about living in Japan: http://bit.ly/cEaYc0 #
• Japanese commercial of the day: Brad Pitt's crappy singing, mispronouncing the word "maru" http://bit.ly/aXtCKu #
• Breaking down a Pete Rose head-first slide. Great shot; I wish it was someone other than Pete Rose. http://bit.ly/aWLDR2 #
• Re-run: The Quirks of NPB Pitching: This is one of my favorite all-time NPB Tracker posts, and one that generated … http://bit.ly/b3ncy6 #
• good luck to one of my favorites @extrabaggs Red Sox deal for Kevin Frandsen, ending his time as a San Francisco Giant http://bit.ly/cqBQqS #
• Add Powell to Hanshin’s List: Casey Fossum has started the season in minors, and Hanshin continues to hunt for rei… http://bit.ly/dtW4QK #

• Twitter Weekly Updates for 2010-03-14: Twitter Weekly Updates for 2010-03-07: Twitter Weekly Updates for 2010-02-2… http://bit.ly/baUtg5 #
• Pat Venditte in action, via Sanspo http://bit.ly/btIpis #
• did I mention that that was switch-pitcher Pat Venditte? http://bit.ly/bzHJ9T #
• Eno Sarris on Hisa Takahashi: http://godblessbuckner.com/2010/03/13/investigating-hisanori-takahashi/ #
• my favorite rapper talks Albert Pujols! @pharoahemonch if he wants a a-rod type deal, they would have to sell a lot of Budweiser . #
• Tomo Ohka released by Quintana Roo, reportedly due to a roster squeeze
  http://bit.ly/d8q1Ua #
• Nakata might win a sprint, but would have no chance over any kind of distance. #
• Here's a video of a Nakata at-bat in an exhibition game, along with him tagging up on a fly out http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L7WqP0ZMTUU #
• #100 http://bit.ly/a9QCLF #
• The End of the Buffaloes: If you’re interested in purchasing an Orix Buffaloes jersey, you might want to get it no… http://bit.ly/aawOkf #
• Takeshi Hirabayashi becomes the first Japanese umpire in an MLB game, albeit an exhibition game. Has plenty of 3A exp http://bit.ly/apj3mj #
• should say, he has some 3A experience. #
• Six 2010 Season Storylines: The Pacific League opener is nearly upon us. Here are a couple of storylines I’ll have… http://bit.ly/c2nfWP #
• iyo iyo, yakyu: It’s opening day and there’s a justin.tv feed for today’s Seibu vs. Lotte game.
  Short notice, but … http://bit.ly/9SM95m #
• Nippon Ham & Darvish's opening day start on justin.tv here: http://www.justin.tv/olepixy#r=4WlPSQ8~ #
• And we have a Giants-BayStars exhibition game too: http://www.justin.tv/zettiru#r=4WlPSQ8~ #
• Darvish's opening day pitch count: 147
  Velocity chart here: http://bit.ly/8ZGIZr #
• 2010 Pacific League Opener: It took some time to find a working video feed, and the live chat idea didn’t really w… http://bit.ly/b1wLAH #
• Nippon Ham vs SoftBank live on justin.tv http://www.justin.tv/shinyahack#r=4WlPSQ8~ #

• Twitter Weekly Updates for 2010-03-07: Twitter Weekly Updates for 2010-02-28: Twitter Weekly Updates for 2010-02-2… http://bit.ly/c659cX #
• The English NPB Blogosphere, 2010 Edition: When I started this site in 2008, there were some good English language… http://bit.ly/al1Bmc #
• I've decided to give Google Buzz a try. Follow npbtracker@gmail.com #
• Tomo Ohka is headed to Tigres de Quintana Roo of the Mexican League http://bit.ly/info/dACnL1 #
• Tomo Ohka is headed to Tigres de Quintana Roo of the Mexican League http://bit.ly/dACnL1 (corrected link) #
• New Foreign Players to Watch: I’m suffering from something of writer’s block, so here we go with another list. Th… http://bit.ly/aXrN2v #
• Bynum to Orix is official, press conference on the 12th
  http://www.sanspo.com/baseball/news/100311/bsk1003111605001-n1.htm #
• Toshihisa Nishi signs with Lancaster Barnstormers of the Atlantic League http://www.sanspo.com/baseball/news/100312/bsr1003121122000-n1.htm #

• Twitter Weekly Updates for 2010-02-28: Twitter Weekly Updates for 2010-02-21: Twitter Weekly Updates for 2010-02-1… http://bit.ly/91qtaR #
• NPB Bullet Points: Real Bullets This Time: In the year and a half or so I’ve been writing posts called “NPB Bullet… http://bit.ly/cHvfiy #
• wait a minute, is that a Coors Light? http://bit.ly/9v6AVU #
• Hisa Takahashi to make his spring debut on March 2 against the Braves http://bit.ly/beqJih #
• Knuckleball Princess Eri Yoshida meets her inspiration, Tim Wakefield http://bit.ly/9OiK9G #
• MLB teams scouting Taiwanese pitcher Min-Tzu Chen
  http://bit.ly/bAWKEN #
• New Pitches: It’s spring training, and that means pitchers are refining their arsenals. Here are some of the guys … http://bit.ly/9NlXmX #
• Nicolas Cage's pachinko commercials, which he never intended for anyone outside Japan to see (esp. 2nd from top) http://bit.ly/5gAPPd #
• Tim Lincecum models Giants snuggie. I guess Zito wasn't available http://bit.ly/9tDUsd #
• Only in Japan: Orix to acquire former Rakuten mascot, Gohya the Super Giant. Gohya was in camp with Rakuten last year. http://bit.ly/c4dXOB #

• Twitter Weekly Updates for 2010-02-21: Twitter Weekly Updates for 2010-02-14: The biggest sporting even of the day… http://bit.ly/aIFFZF #
• Moving On: Barrett, Sisco, Okamoto, Bale: A brief update, to show you all that I have a pulse…

  Ricky Barrett and … http://bit.ly/deRodU #

• Korea sometimes excuses top athletes for winning, like '08 Olympics baseball team
  RT @ryan_j_lewis @keithlaw …Choo's "backup plan?" #
• Got my 2010 Rotowire Fantasy Guide in the mail today. Great job by @PeterSchoenke and company! http://bit.ly/asHShJ #
• I think we have Shin-Soo Choo's 'backup plan' for avoiding his obligatory military service… http://bit.ly/aVIf6R #
• Orix Moving to Acquire Bynum: Nikkan Sports is reporting that the Orix Buffaloes are progressing towards acquiring… http://bit.ly/bM8qSA #
• New Foreign Players — Which Ones Did I Get Right?: Last November, I made a few predictions about guys we might see… http://bit.ly/c5jAO6 #
• Team Switzerland: http://bit.ly/bTEz5P #
• Ballparks of Europe, courtesy of @misterbaseball http://bit.ly/a0Tuqp #

• Twitter Weekly Updates for 2010-02-14: The biggest sporting even of the day, for me: http://bit.ly/bFzlKk #
  Sanspo… http://bit.ly/97B7Gc #
• Yu Darvish is throwing lefthanded again http://bit.ly/bSjoHk #
• Season 2010: So a couple of weeks ago, I asked for some feedback on the site, specifically what you all would like… http://bit.ly/bLQsDU #
• 11 Players I’m Looking Forward to Following this Year: I didn’t set out to order these guys in any specific way, b… http://bit.ly/8ZoH7E #
• Shock! Yusei Kikuchi training with a glove that has his high logo embroidered on it; not allowed in officall npb games http://bit.ly/cKqEvD #
• Gary Burnham signs with the Godo Knights of the Italian Baseball League http://bit.ly/bMA8BT #
• Matsuzaka press conference: "I have great expectations for myself"
  @nikkansportscom 松坂が会見「自分にすごく期待している」 http://bit.ly/dbLPQA #
• Yusei Kikuchi's fireball: http://bit.ly/dBBcZy #
• First pic of Matsui in full uniform for the Angels. Looks weird. http://bit.ly/9Cmknw #
• Hit the 500 followers mark. Thanks to @ATLMonty @MiLBClubbie @Flushin2DaBronx for putting me over the top. #

• The biggest sporting even of the day, for me: http://bit.ly/bFzlKk #
• Sanspo on Hisa Takahashi: If you find yourself in the minority of people who are more interested in where Hisanori… http://bit.ly/9QsTFz #
• Twitter Weekly Updates for 2010-02-07: Brian Cashman brings WS trophy to Japan: http://bit.ly/dvFntd #
  Twitter Wee… http://bit.ly/bNyJEk #
• Marty Brown with "Baby Brown". Looks kind of like Joe Madden to me http://bit.ly/9RKeuI #
• err, looks like Joe Maddon to me. #
• Reports: Another Phillies Signing: Let’s throw this one out there and see if it gets shot down… multiple reports o… http://bit.ly/blnXLt #
• WSJ on Yankees in Asia http://bit.ly/aVFfOe #
• Orix signs George Foster to work as a cross-checker for US-based players… he still looks like he could hit http://bit.ly/9hsx1t #
• Bobby Bo is a genius Via @drewsilva… Mets owe Bobby Bonilla $1.2 million per year in deferred money from 2011-2035. http://bit.ly/adzvGG #
• fmr Marlin & Ranger Michael Tejera in camp with the Chiba Lotte Marines http://bit.ly/9a5OQv #
• Updates on Hiroya Yamamura, the catcher the Phillies were looking at http://bit.ly/ccfKUm #
• Sports Hochi: Hisanori Down to Dodgers and Mets: Looks like the Hisanori Takahashi saga may be drawing to a close … http://bit.ly/b6RoFV #
• Mets fans – here is a velocity chart from a 140-pitch Hisa Takahashi start from last October http://bit.ly/cpw32n #
• Andrew Sisco to get trial in Yokohama BayStars camp http://bit.ly/czBJxB #