Darvish to be Posted Rumor

I understand this rumor was even repeated by Peter Gammons in his ESPN Insider column. I guess the good news is that Japanese players are really getting their due respect. In a way, it's good to see all this interest, although mostly for the potential of jumping to the ML.

Thanks for keeping an eye on this.

As much as I hate to say it, NPB needs more Igawa-like failures to scare players from going over to MLB. It's just ridiculous how many players are asking to be posted, though I think making players wait 9 full ichi-gun years to attain free agency is even more ridiculous.

It's like being too strict on a child and keeping him or her completely oblivious to the temptations of life, rather than having the child confront them head on. That kid is gone with the first chance they get without being scolded.

Ultimately, I don't think NPB can ever compete with the inflated MLB salaries. The lack of salary caps is leading to a ridiculous amount of money being spent on players. NPB seems to keep a 5-oku roof on their salaries, and that's just not enough to compete with MLB money.

Igawa has been performing very poorly for the Yankees. A lot of Yankee fans don't want him on the team anymore because every time he pitches he gets rocked, but the Yankees can't cut him because they gave him a lot of money.

YankeesDaily

Let's see if Yu Darvish can stay healthy for at least two more seasons before discussing his prospects for the major leagues. I can't see him going before the 2010 season at the earliest.

It's now been two days, and none of the other sports dailies have picked up on this headline. If none of the other dailies are willing to report such claims, even for the headline effect, then it's most likely a non-story.

Nothing to see here. Move along.

The story I have read about this is that the posting of Darvish was approved by the Nippon Ham GM, who was quoted as saying such. I think the idea is ridiculous, but Nippon Ham may be looking at the size of the payday. Masato Yoshii's evaluation of him in the New York Times will only heighten that further.

Nevertheless, it will now be up to Yu-kun to formally ask for it. We'll have to see if that happens.

Well, Igawa did very well yesterday, so you know how fans are, it's "what have you done for me lately?" and if he can keep it up, he'll be accepted.

YankeesDaily

Darvish was quoted as saying that he didn't want to play in the USA. Understandable given the USA's posturing towards Iran (his father's homeland).

If he says he won't play over here, I do believe that this will temper the posting fee amounts considered.

And given that, posting fees are non-binding, if a player has been posted by his current squad, paid for, and he refuses the contract offer by the team paying the posting fee, is he still able to play in Japan as a free agent? Or must he find another league to play in?

First of all, there is no risk of losing money by bidding for a player and the player not signing. If the player does not sign, the money is returned (or no money changes hands - I'm not sure about the timing between paying the posting fee and signing the player). So there is no reason for posting fees to be tempered.

Secondly, if a player refuses to sign with the team posting the highest bid, the player remains with his team. Unlike the Millar Scandal a few years ago, Japanese players are not placed on waivers first.

In fact, after posting a player, the team posting him retains his rights in Japan until he has completed his 9 years of service in Japan. So if Ichiro decides to return to Japan, Orix has controlling interest in him. (That may change if/when the anticipated number of years to free agency is shortened. So those of you who come across this post after March of 2008 will need to take other factors into account before repeating the above. I expect "real" journalists to fact check with the Commissioner's Office.)

I hope this clears some things up.

This may just be the American media catching on to the Darvish posting rumors, but today, ESPN posted this article titled "Dice-K 2.0."

Can anyone confirm the information in this article, the writer claims that there is a better than 50:50 chance Darvish will be posted, or is this just ESPN running with this rumor?

From the television piece on Japanese Baseball it appears Darvish will be posted since he will fetch a high posting fee. It was on "Outside the Lines" on ESPN and was quite interesting talking about baseball in both countries.

Like Westbay-san previously mentioned, just because the posting fee could be high, doesn't guarantee Darvish will be posted. There are other factors the Fighters will surely take into consideration.

I liked the article, but thought the title was a little lame. I realize it's to give an American audience something to relate to, but it's sensationalist and a little lazy.

I realize that this is an old thread, but I just need to add this.

Any new rumors surrounding Darvish going to MLB this next season?

Nothing has changed. The only people saying that he'll be posted are those who know nothing about Japanese baseball. In fact, that would be a good way to spot such research-adverse reporters.

Thanks. You're it Westbay.