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Tohoku Rakuten Golden Eagles |
RETURN to Teams Page
Top Picks from Amateur
Draft going into 2009 Season.
by Brandon Siefken,
JapanBall.com
(This page to remain posted until just before 2010 season.)
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Hiromichi Fujiwara |
Name
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| Pitcher |
Position
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| NTT West |
Previous Club
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| 1/15/85 |
Birthdate
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| 177 / 70 |
Centimeters / Inches
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| 77 / 170 |
Kilograms / Pounds
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| L / L |
Throws / Bats |
Fujiwara is inexperienced but has good raw
talent. He likes to intimidate batters by throwing inside. He's skillful and has
great stamina. He hits the corners well and was the one stable presence on a bad
team last year.
He's not aggressive going for Ks, but he's crafty
and has good control. He throws a max 143km fastball, along with a cutter,
screwball and slider. He needs to work on movement on his breaking pitches
because his fastball isn't enough to carry him.
In five league games he had 31 2/3 IP, 20 hits
given up, 17Ks, 4BBs and a 1.42 ERA.
Projection: Japanese scouts say he's ready to
start. I doubt it. He's too inexperienced to manage a game, which he'd have to
at this level because his Ks will be few.
The Eagles pitching staff is shaping up nicely,
so I don't think they need to rush Fujiwara. If they do, be prepared to see some
ugly outings.
He may develop into a good pitcher, but if he
couldn't K players in the industrial league, why would he be able to now do so
in the pros? I'm not optimistic for his long-term chances.
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Taishi Nakagawa
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Name
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| Infielder
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Position
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| Sakuragaoka HS
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Previous Club
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| 6/8/90
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Birthdate
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| 185 / 73 |
Centimeters / Inches
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| 89 / 196
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Kilograms / Pounds
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| R / R
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Throws / Bats |
Nakagawa has a big body who can hit the long ball and is
versatile having played the outfield and pitched in addition to his infielding
duties. When pitching he can throw 140km and paint the corners pretty well.
He's not the most agile fielder, so projecting him in the
outfield makes more sense with his size and power. There's no wasted movement on
his swing and he has nice vision. His lower body strength is better than that of
his upper body, which makes him use his legs too much for power. His follow
through is not full, but generally makes up for it with head speed. He'll for
power if he polishes his swing a bit and gets more upper-lower body
balance.
Projection: Rakuten doesn't have many hitters who hit over .300
(Fernandez, Rick) so the need for power is there now. Nakagawa is mentally tough
but doesn't have the usual enthusiasm and pep that you see in high school
players.
His physique and tools give him huge potential, but he needs to
work on becoming more polished before contributing in Rakuten's line-up. Look
for him to hone his skills. Once he is developed he could be a huge hitter in
the Yamasaki (Rakuten) mold.
He's a work in progress, but one that will pay off for the
Golden Eagles in a few years.
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Ryohei Isaka
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Name
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| Pitcher |
Position
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| Sumitomo Metals
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Previous Club
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| 10/19/84
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Birthdate
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| 186 / 73
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Centimeters / Inches
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| 75 / 165 |
Kilograms / Pounds
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| R / R
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Throws / Bats |
Isaka is tall, throws down to the batter, and has
nice movement on his slider. This pick caught me off guard. He wasn't on
my prospect list. It's possible they drafted him for his size and his 151km max
fastball. He's said to throw consistently in the 140-145km range.
He has two types of sliders and a curve, but
still lacks enough variety to effectively attack batters. He also lets a lot of
his pitches get too high.
Projection: Rakuten has a pitching staff that's
really shaping up nicely. I expect that staff to be near the top of the Pacific
League even without any draft picks contributing.
Isaka needs to develop a pitch to get batters out
besides raw velocity. He also needs to work on his control and keep balls down.
He's surprisingly unpolished for someone out of the industrial league.
Rakuten must be banking on his raw skills, great
physical strength and physique in the hope he can develop into a good pitcher. I
can't see him playing in 2009. Rakuten has depth and won't need him, plus he'd
most likely get smacked around. Look for him to develop and he could be
something at this level later.
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