MLB: Shohei Ohtani’s rival asks for a clue in the best baseball in the world

Meridian Writing

The Hanshin Tigers of Japan’s professional baseball league have sent right-hander Shintaro Fujinami to Major League Baseball’s transfer system, they announced Thursday.

Fujinami will now have 30 days to negotiate with MLB clubs. If he reaches an agreement with an MLB team, the Hanshin Tigers will receive a compensatory fee derived from the value of his contract. (You can read more about how the displacement system and compensatory fees work by clicking here).

@AnthonyDiComo @StevenACohen2 @martinonyc @Feinsand @NYPost_Mets @SNY_Mets @genymets @MetsManager The Hanshin Tigers just posted 28-year-old RHP Shintaro Fujinami. He had a 2.77 ERA, 1.12 WHIP, and 115 Ks / 107 IP this season. He features fastball up to 100 mph, slider, and splitter.

— viccorrea (@viccorrea6) December 1, 2022

The 28-year-old Japanese pitched for the Tigers in parts of the past 10 seasons, amassing a 3.17 ERA and a 2.31 strikeout-to-walk ratio in 252 career appearances. In his day he was considered one of the main rivals of the two-way phenomenon of Los Angeles, Shohei Ohtani, thanks in part to his impressive arm strength. In fact, Fujinami’s fastball sits in the mid-90s and has hit triple digits. He also throws a splitter and a slider.

Fujinami has had control issues throughout his career, hitting more than four bases per nine. Because of this, it seems more likely that MLB teams will consider Fujinami a reliever. Of course, it is enough for a team to consider him a starter for the market for him to change significantly.

Shintaro Fujinami has officially been posted by the Hanshin Tigers of ether NPB—meaning he can now negotiate with MLB teams.

Here’s a blurb we did on Fujinami in October!â¬‡ï¸ https://t.co/J5a32KfVEq

— MLB Deadline News (@MLBDeadlineNews) December 1, 2022

Fujinami is one of the various talents of the NPB who is expected to join MLB teams this winter, along with fellow right-hander Kodai Sengai and outfielder Masataka Yoshida.