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Welcome to the Nippon Pro Baseball thread!    wikipedia posted:Nippon Professional Baseball consists of two leagues, the Central League and the Pacific League. There are also two secondary-level professional minor leagues, the Eastern League and the Western League, that play shorter schedules. Spring training games start from Feb. 25 (sat) - Mar. 26 (sun). Opening day is Mar. 31 (fri). From here on out I am going to try and write a team summery for each team based on their rankings from 2016, from worst to best. I have not paid the NPB hardly any notice until very recently, so if I get something wrong or you have anything to add let me know! Central League #6 Chunichi Dragons Pacific League #5 Tohoku Rakuten Golden Eagles #6 Orix Buffaloes ScottyJSno fucked around with this message at 02:33 on Feb 17, 2017 |
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Feb 7, 2017 07:44
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Orix Buffaloes   2016 Record 57-83 (3 Ties) .407% and 30 games behind 1st. 6th place in the Pacific League. Last Championship Pacific League Pennant - 1996 Japan Series Championship - 1996 Drought - 21 years Ballpark Osaka Dome (Osaka) Side note – I saw The Who play here 10 years ago or so   Corporate sponsor Orix Corporation. A Investment Banking Corp. They are also the chief operators of the Kansai Region’s International Airports (Osaka) Uniforms    Projected lineup 1 – 2B *Masahiro Nishino (26) .264/.335/331  Nishino was 7th round draft pick out of the Industrial Leagues in 2014, where he was defensive award winning 2B. Masahiro Nishino played his first full season in the NPB in 2016.  2 – SS Ryoichi Adachi (29) .273/.344/.323  Adachi became the full time SS in 2013. He has only recently shown signs of his bat waking up. In July of 2016 he won the Monthly MVP award for racking up 30 hits and a .380 batting average.  3 – LF *Masataka Yoshida (23) .290/.360/.494 in 63 games  Masataka Yoshida was a 2015 1st round pick out of Toho University. In the 2016 season he started the season with 6 consecutive games with hits, which tied the drafted rookie record. He was also the first rookie DH since 2002. Unfortunately he suffered a back injury at the end of April, and was out until August. When he returned the power started to show, he finished the season with 10 HR the most by an Orix rookie since 1969 He has been called the future of the Orix Buffaloes.  4 – 1B *Takahiro Okada (26) .284/.357/.471  Okada a first round draftee out high school in 2005 is probably Orix’s most popular player. He is known for his big size, bat speed and power hitting. Winner of the Pacific League MVP in 2010 and a Gold Glove at 1B in 2014. Reported to be in the “best shape of his life” after dropping from 104kg to 98kg this off-season. Nicknamed T-Okada to differentiate his name from the manager with the same name. 5 – RF Stefen Romero (28) .304/.361/.541 with AAA Tacoma  The Seattle Mariners selected Romero in the 12th round of the 2010 Major League Baseball Draft. After cracking uthe MLB in 2014 and putting up a career -1.4 WAR with Seattle, he joined Orix this off season. His AAA numbers being what caught Orix’s attention, .902 OPS with 21 HR. 6 – DH Hiroyuki Nakajima (34) .290/.346/.439  Nakajima debut with the Seibu Lions in 2002. There he distinguished himself winning 3 gold gloves SS, 3 all-star games, and the Japanese silver slugger 4 times in 10 years. He was also the second SS in NPB history to have over 100 RBIs. Best known for his power bat and base stealing skills, he was also known to clash with management over perceived contract problems. In 2010 he requested to be posted to the USA and management ignored his request. He request was granted the following year, but could not reach an agreement with the NY Yankees. Then in 2012 he exercised his international FA rights and signed with the Oakland As. Never cracking the MLB level, he returned to Japan and joined Orix in 2015.  7 – 3B Brent Morel (29) .244/.319/.364  Brent Morel is a average player. In 6 MLB seasons he 62 OPS+ and 0.5 WAR. In NPB last year he has a .683 OPS. With no other 3B options it likely he will start there. He has been described as being “average” at 3B by Japanese commentators. 8 – C Hikaru Ito (27) .241/.257/.326  An 8 year veteran at C, Ito is known for good defense and a strong arm. Has a career 20% strike out rate. 9 – CF *Shuhei Kojima (29) .246/.289/.307  Drafted in 2011 out of the Industrial leagues, Kojima got his first major playing time in 2016. After fantastic start in 2016 hitting .423 until May, he fell back to earth with wet fart to end the year with a .246 BA. Projected Starting Pitching and Notable Relief Pitching Yuki Nishi (26) 10-12 4.14 ERA / 1.325 WHIP / 7.8 K/9 / 2.25 K/BB / 2.96 FIP  Nishi became a regular starter starting in 2011. Throws a 87mph fastball, slider, curve, and a change-up. Was known as the “Smile Prince” due to his frequent grinning on the mound. Has the phrase “It’s OK” written on his cap. This is a mantra of sorts and he can be seen chanting it to himself on the mound. Brandon Dickson (32) 9-11 4.36 ERA / 1.482 WHIP / 7.3 K/9 / 1.96 K/BB / 3.93 FIP  Dickerson was an un-drafted free agent signing by the St Louis Cardinals in 2006. After 7 lackluster seasons in the Cards system and only making the show for 14.2 innings, he made the move to Orix in 2013. He throws a 92mph Fastball, a 74mph Knuckle Curve, slider and change-up. In 2016 he had an NPB leading grounder rate of 63.4%, and a grounder to fly ratio" of 2.36. Chihiro Kaneko (33) 7-9 3.83 ERA / 1.247 WHIP / 6.9 K/9 / 2.12 K/BB / 3.56 FIP  Kaneko is 10 veteran with Orix. He holds the team record for lest amount of losses upon reaching 100 wins.(56) He has 89mph fastball, a 12-6 curve, and a power sinker. Before pitching to the top batters, he takes pose of bringing both hands to the bill of his cap ", “This is because you can center your mind, and you do not want the camera to see what you are saying to yourself." *Takahiro Matsuba (26) 7-9 3.26 ERA / 1.274 WHIP / 5.6 K/9 / 2.00 K/BB / 3.67 FIP  Matsuba is a #1 draft pick from 2012. Known for being able to change speed of his pitches wildly. He throws 92 mph fastball, a slider, a curve, and a fork-ball. *Phil Coke (34) 5-3 2.96 ERA / 1.271 WHIP / 7.8 K/9 / 2.90 K/BB with AAA Scranton in 70 innings  Coke’s last full season of MLB baseball was in 2014 where he posted a 5–2 record with 41 strikeouts and a 3.88 ERA in 58 innings pitched. He throws mainly four-seam and two-seam fastballs at around 93mph. Yoshihisa Hirano (32) 31 Saves 1.92 ERA / 0.984 WHIP / 8.4 K/9 / 3.56 K/BB / 2.32 FIP  Hirano is Orix’s premier RP. Throws a fork ball, a slider, a curve and a 92 mph fastball. He is a 2 time RP of the year. Taisuke Yamaoka (21) 2016 #1 Draft pick  Yamaoka is starting the year on the 2-Gun team. It is expect that he will get some playing time on the NPB team this year. Outlook The Orix Buffaloes had a rough off-season. First they lost their best hitter, Yoshio Itoi, to the free agency. Then missed out on their replacement target, Dai-Kang Yang. What they ended up with is Stefen Romero, who has 233 MLB plate appearances since 2014. Hopefully his AAA success will enable him to anchor the middle of the order. The Buffaloes desperately need power as they have only one player who has hit more than 10 HRs in the past few seasons. On the pitching side the Buffaloes picked up LHP Phil Coke who had been bouncing around the minors since his last long term stint with the Detriot Tigers in 2014. On the bright side is the youngster OF Masataka Yoshida. In only 66 games he hit 10 HRs and had an OPS of .854. The Buffaloes also drafted Taisuke Yamaoka out of the Industrial Leagues. The 21 year old, while a bit small at 5’7” 145lb, has 93mph fastball and has been praised by the Ranger’s Yu Darvish. Final Score = 3 = 5 = 4 = 4Looks like another year in the basement. ScottyJSno fucked around with this message at 06:55 on Feb 15, 2017 |
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Feb 7, 2017 08:15
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Chunichi Dragons   2016 Record 58-82 (3 Ties) .414% and 30.5 games behind 1st. 6th place in the Central League. Last Championship Central League Pennant - 2011 Japan Series Championship - 2007 Drought - 10 years Ballpark Nagoya Dome (Nagoya)   Corporate Sponsor Chunichi Shimbun Co., Ltd the 4th largest newspaper publisher in Japan Uniforms  Projected Lineup 1 - CF *Yohei Oshima (31) .292/.348/.382  Oshima is the kind of player the NPB loves. He is fast, a decent base stealing threat, and a great defender. He has 20+ steals in the past 3 seasons, and has won the gold glove at CF 5 times including the past 3 years straight. 2 - 2B *Kyohei Kamezawa (28) .226/.271/.258 in 59 games  It seems likely that Kamezawa will split time, and slowly take over for the aging 38 year old veteran Araki (.246/.290/.291) at 2B. Though having unimpressive stats, he is known as a team leader and a mood setter for the team. 3 - 1B Dayan Viciedo (27) .274/.352/.486  In 2008 Viciedo was an international amateur FA signing out of Cuba for the Chicago White Socks. In 2010 he made the show and played mainly in the outfield for the Soxs. In 5 years of regular playing time he racked up a OPS+ of 97. In 2015 he was DFA and bounced around AAA affiliates before joining the Dragons in 2016. In his first 3 games with the team he hit 3 HRs. He is known as a free swinger who will chase. 4 - LF Alex Guerrero (30) .233/.261/.434 with the LA Dodgers in 2015  Guerrero is a Cuban defector who signed with the Dodgers in 2014. With limited success at the Big League level, and after injuring his knee in spring of 2016, the Dodgers DFA him. Guerrero slots in to the clean up spot and the Dragons are hopeful he will thrive there. 5 - RF Ryosuke Hirata (28) .248/.358/.411  1st round pick by the Dragons in 2006. He has become a regular starter in the OF since 2011. Said to have the best defense on the team in the OF by the manager. 2016 Silver Slugger award winner. 6 - 3B Nobumasa Fukuda (28) .267/.346/.407  In high school Fukuda was scouted by the NY Mets, but was drafted in 2007 in the 3rd round by the Dragons. He is a converted C to the IF. 7- SS Naomichi Donoue (28) .254/.298/.362  Player's Union Vice President, Donoue was a highly ranked 1st round prospect in 2006. Drafted by 3 different teams, he eventually joined the the team of his father and older brother. Completely unremarkable. 8 - C Shota Sugiyama (25) .260/.340/.357  A 4th round pick in 2012. Sugiyama got his first playing time in 2015 and became the full time C in 2016. He is fast for a C, and he is know for a strong pick-off move. Projected Starting Pitching and Notable Relief Pitching *Yudai Ono (28) 7-10 3.54 ERA / 1.257 WHIP / 5.9 K/9 / 2.30 K/BB / 3.63 FIP  Drafted out of College in 2011 Ono is not considered as having "ace" stuff. Ono has 88mph Fastball, fork-ball, 60mph curve, and 2 different sliders. Scouts have been concerned with his delivery, worrying that his arm could not take the strain. He is a two time all-star, but last year his ERA went up by a full run and his K/BB dropped by a whole K. The Dragons hope for a return to form. Kazuki Yoshimi (32) 6-7 3.08 ERA / 1.226 WHIP / 5.6 K/9 / 3.00 K/BB / 3.40 FIP  A Dragon since 2006, Yoshimi's career has been plagued by elbow injures. Elbow and shoulder pain has kept him out for the majority of the 2013, 2014, and 2015. But when not hurt Yoishimi has won the best pitcher award in 2011 and had an excellent 2012. He throws a slider, a fork-ball, a cutter, a palm ball, a change-up, a curve, and a 88mph fastball. Always wears red underwear the day of a start. Shunta Wakamatsu (21) 7-8 4.29 ERA / 1.442 WHIP / 6.6 K/9 / 2.30 K/BB / 3.55 FIP  A 7th round pick in 2012, Wakamatsu is the bright hope for the Dragons future. His first full year in 2015 with the pro-club had him wining 10 games with a 2.12 ERA and coming in second in Rookie of the year voting. His sophomore outing did not go as well, but there is hope for a return to form. He throws a 89mph fastball, a devastating change-up, a curve, a slider and a fork-ball. *Jordan Norberto (30) 6-6 4.24 ERA / 1.364 WHIP / 8 K/9 / 2.00 K/BB / 3.97 FIP  Noberto First signed as a international amateur FA with the Arizona Diamondbacks in 2004. He was on the opening day rosters for the 2010 Diamondbacks and the 2011 Oakland As. Shoulder injuries limited him to only has 78.2 innings over 3 years in the show. In 2013 he was part of the Bio-Genesis scandal and was suspended for 50 games. He throws a 93mph fastball, a slider, and a change-up. He was a late resigning this off-season and I don't think he will be around next year unless his numbers really pick up. Yuya Yanagi (23) First round pick in 2016 Draft out of University.  A highly touted prospect, Yanagi is expected to break camp with the Pro team. He has a "good quality" fastball and big dropping curve. His pitches are said to have lots of movement and changes speed well. *Shinnosuke Ogasawara (19) 2-6 in 72 relief innings 3.36 ERA / 1.327 WHIP / 7.2 K/9 / 1.45 K/BB / 4.33 FIP  Ogasawara was a first round pick in 2015. In his first appearance at the age of 18 he threw 5 innings of one hit ball. He has a 94mph fastball and a "good" change up. He likes WWE. He is expect to make the starting rotation this year. Outlook The Chunichi Dragons look bad. Their line up is old and bad. Their bullpen is bad, they only have 2 pitchers with a WHIP below 1.200. And with no major signings in the postseason, the Dragons can only boast that 2 of their best players, Yohei Oshima(CF) and Ryosuke Hirata(RF), did not declare for domestic FA. Who they did pick up was a Alex Guerrero, and he seems to not be as exciting as fans would want. On the positive side, they have young pitching that seems ready to break out. The Dragons also have a new manager in Shigekazu Mori. He was the international scouting director for the Dragons before he became the new manager. He is known to have close ties with the Dominican Republic, and there is hopes that he will be able to bring in new talent from there. Final Score = 1 = 5 = 4 = 4There is no where to go but up, but that won't happen. ScottyJSno fucked around with this message at 07:00 on Feb 15, 2017 |
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Feb 10, 2017 07:08
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Hard hitting news out of training camps today. Otani received 24 Valentines day presents from fans. This is the most of any Pro NPB player. The next highest was paltry 18. Also to update The Orix Buffaloes, Kaneko Chihiro has been named the opening day starter. This is unsurprising, he is the veteran pitcher on the team and is looking to have a bounce back year. Good pick. ScottyJSno fucked around with this message at 00:14 on Feb 15, 2017 |
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Feb 15, 2017 00:01
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Tohoku Rakuten Golden Eagles   2016 Record 62-78 (3 Ties) .443% and 25 games behind 1st. 5th place in the Pacific League. Last Championship Pacific League Pennant - 2013 Japan Series Championship - 2013 Drought - 3 years Ballpark Rakuten Kobo Stadium Miyagi (Sendai)   Corporate sponsor Rakuten, Inc. Rakuten is the largest e-commerce site in Japan and among the world's largest by sales. Think Amazon.com if Amazon.com had unreadable design. (Personal Note: I hate this web site. The layout is the worst. Think Las Vegas neon signs of ads jammed into Amazon.com website. Ugh) Uniforms  Projected lineup 1 - CF *Hiroaki Shimauchi (27) .287/.349/.404  Shimauchi is a 6th round pick out of university from 2011. In his early days he was mainly used as a pinch-runner and platoon bat. Last year he received is first major playing time in LF thanks to being short handed in OF after the signing of RF Carlos Peguero. 2 - SS *Eigoro Mogi (22) .278/.330/.408  A 2015 draftee out of university, Mogi perform admirably in in his rookie outing. He was the first rookie in team history to make the opening day lineup. With the 14th highest BA in NPB, Mogi came in 3rd in Rookie of the year voting. 3 - LF *Carlos Peguero (29) .279.340.492  Peguero signed with the Seattle Mariners as an international free agent out of the Dominican in 2005, and made his MLB debut in 2011. After making 103 game appearances in 5 year with 4 different clubs, the St. Louis Cardinals sold his contract to the Eagles in July of 2016. His AAA numbers over 6 seasons where .277/.346/.520. Peguero is seen as a power hitter with a changeup sized hole in his swing, he had a 33.5% strike out rate in 2016. 4 - 3B Zelous Wheeler (30) .265/.351/.478  The Milwaukee Brewers selected Wheeler in the 19th round of the 2007 Major League Baseball Draft. He was then claimed by the Baltimore Orioles, then signing as a free agent with the New York Yankees before the 2014 season. After starting the season in the minor leagues, Wheeler made his MLB debut on July 3, 2014. He only got 16 hits in 29 games. After the 2014 season, the Yankees sold Wheeler to the Eagles. Wheeler has seemed to find his niche hitting 27 HR for the Eagles last season. Wheeler is versatile player who has experience all round the infield and outfield. 5 - 1B *Ginji Akaminai (28) .274/.369/.333  Akaminai is a the 5 year veteran at 1B for the Eagles. While generally a very reliable contact hitter, he had a bit of a slump in 2016. After 3 straight season with a BA over .300, Akaminai's BA dropped 30 points. Because of this down swing his pay took hit in the yearly negotiations. This was even though his OBP and OPS was relatively unchanged. He even doubled the amount of walks from the year before. 6 - DH Japhet Amador (30) .258/.290/.515 (only played 1/2 the season, injury)  Amador is a giant of an man. "El Gigante de Mulege" is listed at 6'4" 297lb, he was registered as the heaviest NPB player ever. He was the 2015 Mexican League MVP with 41 HRs. In 2013 weighing in at 330lb and after murdering baseballs in Mexico for 5 years, and playing winter ball every year of his career, the Astros signed him. Sadly due to pregnant and sick wife he never got more then a handful of games in AAA. Thankfully, and hopefully, he will be hitting fat guy dong-shots for the Eagles this year. 7 - RF *Takero Okajima (27) .252/.338/.345  Okajima is 2011 4th round draftee. Reported to be fast and able to beat out many infield hits, especially for an converted catcher. He made the all star game last year. 8 - 2B *Kazuya Fujita (34) .265/.297/.321  Fujita is a long time veteran since 2005 in the NPB. He is the sort of boring Good D and bad everything else player that only Japanese Managers can love. He can only hit singles or bunt a guy over. Only had an OPS over .700 once in his 11 years. Silver Slugger in 2013, and 2014. Gold glove in 2013, 2014, and 2016. 9 - C Motohiro Shima (32) .271/.393/.357  The Eagles signed veteran C Toru Hosokawa (38) .116/.190/.168 this off-season, but he should be no threat to Shima's starting position. He is 2 time golden glove, and silver slugger winner in 2010 and 2013. He is also the long time battery mate of Yankees ace Tanaka. Shima is fast for a C and is one of the better sacrifice bunt-ers on the team, often time being called on to to bunt a suicide squeeze. Projected Starting Pitching and Notable Relief Pitching Takahiro Norimoto (26) 11-11 2.91 ERA / 1.241 WHIP / 10.0 K/9 / 4.32 K/BB / 2.38 FIP  Norimoto was the 2013 Rookie of the year. He was drafted in the second round of the 2012 draft. Norimoto is one of the stand out pitchers in the NPB. After is ROTY season, he improved in every regard, he led the league in K and inning pitched in 2014 and 2015. Norimoto Throws a 90mph fastball and is know for his devastating slider which can have different break profiles. Takayuki Kishi (32) 9-7 2.49 ERA / 1.220 WHIP / 7.2 K/9 / 2.89 K/BB / 2.98 FIP with the Seibu Lions  A major FA signing, Kishi played last year with the Seibu Lions. He is a Local boy having played through university in Miyagi-Ken. Kishi throws a 89mph fastball, a change-up, a slider, and a 70mph curve-ball. Kishi is know to be very athletic, and is a two time all-star and a 1 time Pitcher of the Year award winner. Manabu Mima (30) 9-8 4.27 ERA / 1.361 WHIP / 6.7 K/9 / 3.44 K/BB / 3.47 FIP  Mima is 2010 2nd round draft pick out the industrial leagues. he is best know for losing 13 consecutive starts at home in 2015. He is a thoroughly avg starter. He throws a slider, a fork-ball, a curve-ball, a two-seamer, and a 95mph fastball. *Takahiro Shiomi (28) 8-9 3.97 ERA / 1.245 WHIP / 6.6 K/9 / 3.00 K/BB / 3.53 FIP  First round pick in 2010. While Shiomi is known for his control, his down fall has been the long ball giving up enough solo HRs to be called "1 run sick". He throws a 86mph fastball, a curve at 60mph, a change-up, a slider, and a fork-ball. He was an all-star in his rookie season. Yoshinao Kamata (23) 7-5 4.14 ERA / 1.540 WHIP / 6.1 K/9 / 1.54 K/BB / 4.49 FIP  Kamata was a 2nd round pick in 2012. He had Tommy Johns at age 20. He throws a 88mph fastball, a slider, a cut-ball, and a fork-ball. It might be time to send him back down to a lower level to see if he can improve. I don't like anything about him but the Eagles are not deep at SP. At least he is young. *Tomohiro Anraku (20) 3-5 3.42 ERA / 1.198 WHIP / 6.8 K/9 / 2.3 K/BB / 3.73 FIP  1st Round pick out of High School in 2014. Anraku holds the record for the fastest pitch by a high schooler in Japan, 98mph. He averages 91mph fastball, a slider, a fork ball, and a 60mph curve. He is best know in the west for Baseball America article about Japanese High School pitch counts. In that 2013 article they reported he threw 772 pitches over five games in nine days, including 232 in one game. Outlook While missing out on South Korean Slugger Dae-ho Lee and Nippon Ham Fighters' FA Dai-Kang Yang, the Eagles did manage to land home town hero Takayuki Kishi. The rotion is solid, the starting 9 are also solid. Their biggest weakness is the bullpen, with no one elite arm to clean up messes. In 2015 they had a few 10 game undefeated streaks but fell apart in the second half. I am looking forward to see how Mexican big man Japhet Amador can do with a full season. On the pitching side Norimoto is about as elite as NPB can produce. They might be able to fight their way into the Climax-Series. Final Score = 4 = 5 = 2 = 4
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Feb 17, 2017 02:30
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Humbug Scoolbus posted:https://www.japan-zone.com/store/official-baseball-caps-c-1_2.html I don't think majestic makes NPB caps... My guess they are Chinese Ripoffs too EDIT majestic did do 2016 hats. 3,000 YEN on Japanese Web sites ScottyJSno fucked around with this message at 02:36 on Feb 20, 2017 |
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Feb 20, 2017 02:29
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