Kosuke Fukudome

[Guest Edgy DC]

Declares free agency.

He missed almost half of 2007 with an injury, but he was MVP in 2006. He's a pure free agent, with none of that posting business, with US and Japanese teams eligible to compete with each other.

http://www.welovekosuke.com/uploaded_images/fukudome-782638.jpgHe's a lefty outfielder capable of playing center. He's a likely improvement on Shawn Green, but getting him could turn Lastings Milledge into trade bait. And Lastings would be more of the devil you know, while a Japanese free agent coming off an injury year would be the one you don't.

It wouldn't kill them to shelve Milledge until Alou gets hurt, but I'm pretty sure they're done with they're outfield. He'll be an interesting addition to the marketplace, though. Known, I think, for being tempermental.

[Benjamin Grimm]

The lettering on the back of his jersey reminds me of the t-shirt that Alex Rodriguez' wife wore to Yankee Stadium earlier this year.

[Guest sharpie]

His name indicates he's probably hostile to playing in Minnesota or Toronto.

[Guest Edgy DC]

It won't be hard for comedy writers to come up with gags of New York playing its home games in the Fuck You Dome.

[Frayed Knot]

Plus, if he comes here and bombs, the anti-banners practically write themselves.

[Fman99]

Wasn't he one of the two twins that Austin Powers wanted to nail in the 3rd movie?

[Mex17]

Jokes about he name aside, I really like the idea of signing this guy. I think that it is always a gamble when you sign a guy out of Japan, but the gambles are worth taking sometimes.

We have gotten stuck with the Kaz Matsui's, Shinjo's, and Komiyama's, but other teams have come away with Hideki Matsui's and Ichiro's!!

15-20 HR's, 30-40 2B's, .280-.290 AVG., .380-.400 OBP., Lefty Bat, Good Speed, Defense and an Arm in RF. . .that is (hopefully) the upside. Not to mention his presence would make it easier to package Milledge in a trade for a top notch starter. A multi-year contract to him would also buy time for Fernando Martinez to develop.

[soupcan]

[Benjamin Grimm]

This article could go in any of several threads, but I pasted it here because it implies a Cub interest in Fukudome:

="The Denver Post"] Rockies prepared to lose Matsui, Torrealba Saturday, Nov 10, 2007 11:02 am EST The Denver Post reports the Colorado Rockies are prepared to deal with the potential loss of two starters. If the Chicago Cubs offer a three-year contract to Kazuo Matsui, as expected, and the Florida Marlins or New York Mets bid $4 million a year for Yorvit Torrealba, which possible, the Rockies are prepared to lose both starters. The Cubs want Matsui for his speed. They also believe he could ease the transition for Kosuke Fukudome, if they land the Japanese free-agent center fielder. The Rockies have offered Torrealba two years, but he wants to test the free agent waters before deciding on the Colorado offer.

[Guest Edgy DC]

Four years to a catcher? Gimme LoDu for two and an option.

[Farmer Ted]

The Austin Powers chick on the left is a judge on Dancing with the Stars. You gotta start somewhere.

[Guest Kid Carsey]

mex: >>>We have gotten stuck with the Kaz Matsui's, Shinjo's, and Komiyama's, but other teams have come away with Hideki Matsui's and Ichiro's!!<<<

Apply tounge to wound.

Lick, repeat.

[Frayed Knot]

Mex17 wrote: We have gotten stuck with the Kaz Matsui's, Shinjo's, and Komiyama's, but other teams have come away with Hideki Matsui's and Ichiro's!!

I'm not quite sure where this idea started that every Japanese player signed was supposed to be some kind of superstar. Aside from Kaz, none of the others were billed, promoted, promised or paid as anything other than role players.




With pitching, 2nd base & catching up in the air, I don't see them chasing after FA OFers as a top priority. I'd prefer Milledge getting a shot at this point and no move should be made with Fernando Martinez in mind. He'll be here when he's ready which could be anywhere between a year from now and never.

[seawolf17]

No thanks.

[Fman99]

Mex17 wrote: Jokes about he name aside, I really like the idea of signing this guy. I think that it is always a gamble when you sign a guy out of Japan, but the gambles are worth taking sometimes. We have gotten stuck with the Kaz Matsui's, Shinjo's, and Komiyama's, but other teams have come away with Hideki Matsui's and Ichiro's!! 15-20 HR's, 30-40 2B's, .280-.290 AVG., .380-.400 OBP., Lefty Bat, Good Speed, Defense and an Arm in RF. . .that is (hopefully) the upside. Not to mention his presence would make it easier to package Milledge in a trade for a top notch starter. A multi-year contract to him would also buy time for Fernando Martinez to develop.

Slightly off topic... I swear to God that at a game at Shea this past September I saw a guy wearing a Mets shirt with Komiyama's name and number on the back. It was the damndest thing.

[nymr83]

]15-20 HR's, 30-40 2B's, .280-.290 AVG., .380-.400 OBP., Lefty Bat, Good Speed, Defense and an Arm in RF. . .that is (hopefully) the upside.

thats basically the same thing we heard about Matsui before we overpaid for him and moved our brightest young position player to another position for him. Lets not bench or trade Milledge on the speculation about another Japanese import.

[Guest Edgy DC]

Come on.

[Guest Edgy DC]

The Boston Globe gives a scouting report on all this season's top Japneese infielders:

Six Japanese free agents to watch

By Daigo Fujiwara

Globe

Staff / November 14, 2007

Earlier this week was the deadline for Japanese players who are eligible to file for the free agency. They will be allowed to negotiate with teams in both Japan and the United States starting today, Nov. 14. Here are the six likely candidates to jump across the Pacific.

Kosuke Fukudome

Outfielder (right field), Chunichi Dragons

Age: 30 (DOB: Apr. 26, 1977)

Hits: Left, Throws: Right

2007:.294, 13 HR, 48 RBI

Fukudome missed half of the 2007 season with a right elbow injury, but is considered one of the best all-around hitters in Japanese Pro Baseball. He has career average of .305 with 192 homers in 9 seasons. He plays solid defense, and was named the Central League MVP in 2006, when he led the league with a .351 batting average to go along with 31 HRs, 104 RBIs, and 11 SBs. He played for Japan in the World Baseball Classic, batting fifth in most of the games, but struggled (he hit .105 in the tournament) and was benched for the semifinal game against Korea. He came off the bench as a pinch hitter in the seventh inning in that game, and delivered a two-run home run off of ex-Red Sox pitcher Byung-Hyun Kim, breaking a scoreless tie. Fukudome did not file for free agency until the last day of the filing period. On his blog, fukudome1.com, he wrote "it was the toughest decision in my life [to decide whether or not to file for FA] but wanted to find out how other clubs valued me as a baseball player."

Hiroki Kuroda

Starting pitcher, Hiroshima Toyo Carp

Age: 32 (DOB: Feb. 10, 1975)

Hits: Right, Throws: Right

2007: 12-8 with a 3.56 ERA

His fastball reaches 97 miles per hour, and he also throws a forkball, slider, and shuuto (a two-seam fastball that cuts into righthanded hitters). Kuroda has good command, pitching 74 complete games in the last 11 years. He is the same age as Yankees outfielder Hideki Matsui, and the two had some great matchups in Japan. Kuroda lead the Central League with a 1.85 ERA in 2006, despite playing in the smallest park in Japan. In 2005, he led the league with 15 wins, and was awarded one of the Central League's "Best nine" awards, which are given to the best player of the league at each position. His father was also a pitcher who played with Nankai Hawks in the '50s, so Kurado comes from a strong baseball background.

Masahide Kobayashi

Relief pitcher, Chiba Lotte Marines

Age: 33 (DOB: May. 24, 1974)

Hits: Right, Throws: Right

2007: 2-7, 27 saves, 3.61 ERA

Kobayashi's fastball reaches the low 90s, and he also throws a shuuto and a sinking slider. He has been Yokohama's closer since 2000, and has at least 20 saves in each of the last seven seasons, which is a Japanese league record. He led the league in most saves in 2005 with 29. Kobayashi helped Bobby Valentine's Lotte win the Japan Series that year, closing out the final game of the series. He struggled a little in 2007, recording a career-high 7 losses, and was sent down to the farm league to make adjustments. He has 227 total saves in the Japanese League. Only two other Japanese pitchers have had 200 or more saves: Kazuhiro Sasaki and Shingo Takatsu, who have both played in the major leagues.

Yasuhiko Yabuta

Relief pitcher, Chiba Lotte Marines

Age: 34 (DOB: Jun. 19, 1973)

Hits: Right, Throws: Right

2007: 4-6, 4 saves, 2.73 ERA

more stories like thisYabuta's fastball is in low 90s, and he also throws a slider, forkball and changeup. Lotte manager Bobby Valentine converted Yabuta from a starting pitcher to a middle reliever in 2004, and Yabuta has since recorded 9 saves to go with 86 holds. He has a career record of 44-59 in 343 appearances with a 4.03 ERA in 12 seasons. In 2007, he had a 2.73 ERA, 34 holds, and was 4-6 with 4 saves and a 45-10 strikeout-to-walk ratio, which was good enough to win the "best middle-relief award". In the World Baseball Classic game against Team USA, he was summoned into a tie game, with two outs with a runner on third, and he struck out Alex Rodriguez to end the seventh inning. Then in the eighth, he got Chipper Jones to ground to third and struck out Derrek Lee and Johnny Damon to end the inning.

Kazuo Fukumori

Relief pitcher, Tohoku Rakuten Golden Eagles

Age: 33 (DOB: Aug. 4, 1974)

Hits: Right, Throws: Right

2007: 4-2, 17 saves, 4.75 ERA

He has a fastball in the high 80s and throws a shuuto, forkball and knuckle-curve. He has been the closer of the expansion team, the Tohoku Rakuten Golden Eagles, since the team joined the Pacific League in 2005. Fukumori has 49 saves in the last three years, and a career total of 72, but he may have saved more games if he played for a better team, as Rakuten is just 153-257 in the last three years.

Yukinaga Maeda

Relief pitcher, Yomiuri Giants

Age: 37 (DOB: Aug. 26, 1970)

Hits: Left, Throws: Left

2007: 0-1, 5.06 ERA

The 19-year veteran lefty is best known for mixing in a knuckleball into his pitching arsenal. Unlike Tim Wakefield's knuckler, Maeda's has a slight spin and a downward motion near the plate. He can throw from different arm angles (from three-quarter to sidearm), and has good a pick-off move. In 2007, he was limited to only 15 appearances, partly due to his age and a lack of confidence from his manager, but he may be able to be successful in the Major Leagues as a situational lefty reliever.

Daigo Fujiwara is a graphic designer at the Globe, and the founder of

JapaneseBallPlayers.com

. He also and writes Japanese-language Red Sox blog,

go-redsox.com

.

[Benjamin Grimm]

But none of them are infielders.

[Valadius]

On Kobayashi - what the heck is a "shuuto"?

[DocTee]

shuuto: a two-seam fastball that cuts into righthanded hitters

[Guest Rockin' Doc]

From my experience, I didn't think that a tailing 2 seam fastball was all that unusual that it required a special name for it.

In American lexicon, Kobayashi is a sinker slider pitcher who's velocity tops out in the low nineties.