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RETURN to Teams Page
NPB Japanese Professional Baseball Draft
Guide
by Brandon Siefken, JapanBall.com
(This page posted until just before the start of the 2010 season.)
For the first time in years the draft for the 2009 season
subjected all amateur levels (high school, university, and industrial league) to
the same draft.
Each team is ranked and graded using three criteria:
- How a team met its needs;
- What talent was drafted...and passed by; and,
- The value received for the round.
A brief recap of team statistics are given before the
analysis.
| Team: |
Marines |
Draft Rank: |
8 |
Grade: |
C |
|
2008 Statistical Finish out of Six Clubs in League |
| Record |
73-70-1 (4th) |
RBI |
662 (2nd) |
| RA* |
648 (6th) |
ERA |
4.14 (6th) |
| * Runs Allowed |
In short, Lotte was brilliant and bone-headed in the same draft,
so that evens out at a C grade. When you finish second in hitting and last in
pitching, you draft pitching.
First Round: Lotte started the draft by drafting perhaps
the most talented and pro-ready pitcher in the draft. Yuta Kimura is a huge
lefty pitcher from Tokyo Gas. He'is great, but a bit of a head-case. If they can
tame him he'll be a force in their rotation sooner than later. I love this
pick.
Second Round: But as soon as I wanted to commend the
Marines, they picked Hisayoshi Chono, an infielder from Honda. Chono refused
Nippon Ham’s pick two years ago because he insisted on wanting to play for
Yomiuri.
I'm curious why Lotte made this pick when they knew they could be
rebuffed, as the Fighters were in 2006. And that's exactly what happened. Chono
has refused to play for Lotte. They wasted a second round pick on a player who
didn’t want to play for them and told them so beforehand and, further, he's a
player they don't need. Pitching is much more of a need.
The rest of Lotte’s draft was a wash. Yamamoto from Kobe
Kokusai High School, whom they got in the fifth round has promise as a pitcher,
but the rest of the picks made for a pretty forgetful day.
Kimura ranks an A+ while Chono ranks an F-, giving the Marines a
final grade of C.
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