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NPB held its first ever Active Player Draft (現役ドラフト) this past week where the inspiration is similar to the Rule 5 Draft in MLB.
With a slight twist in rules by comparison to the North American counterpart, each team designated two players available for any team to take. The draft order was done on a waiver wire basis similar to the regular draft in October. Up to 24 players could switch teams, but only one round occurred with nobody taking a second player.
With many players unable to find an opportunity, the purpose of the Rule 5 is to give that chance to those who are buried and find a change of scenery. Johan Santana and Mark Canha are some of examples where a Rule 5 pick worked out in MLB.
The Saitama Seibu Lions selected IF Naomasa Yohkawa of the Hanshin Tigers with their nomination. They also lost P Kouki Matsuoka to the Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters in the process.
Yohkawa, 31, was mostly a bench player for the Hanshin Tigers and spent many years as a survivor from being cut after each season.
Last year, he was a primarily a pinch-hitter against left-handed pitchers and hit .357 in that situation. In a limited 45 games, he slashed .294/.351/.426 in only 68 at-bats.
Only two seasons has he appeared in more than 70 ichi-gun regular season games. Our friends @thehanshintiger said his defense is not the greatest.
With the Lions lacking offense, Yohkawa is versatile enough to be a spell 3B or outfielder, but likely can't start everyday. He should be part of mix in the outfield if the Lions play the matchups properly while also giving others a break. His estimated salary for 2023 is ¥22 million.
Matsuoka, 22, was a third round draft pick out of the independent Baseball Challenge League back in 2019. His 3/4 arm slot was inspired by former Yakult Swallows pitcher Yong-Chang Lim.
However, his time with the Lions has been limited to seven ichi-gun games in mop up duty with little hope in sight. With the Lions bullpen options being stacked last year, he failed to play an ichi-gun game. He will seek a new opportunity with the Fighters.
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Compensation list has arrived
The Orix Buffaloes sent their FA compensation list to the Lions on December 9 and Hisanobu "Nabe-Q" Watanabe has said he looked at it already. While Masataka Yoshida reached an agreement to sign with the Boston Red Sox, he hasn't signed the contract since Orix sent the list or protected across to the Lions.
There are 28 players the Lions cannot claim and it's very likely the Buffaloes had to protect Yoshida even though he was already posted, this protecting only 27 players eligible for 2023. There should be options available. It's possible we could do a mock list if time permits.
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