Three Questions

1 - Well it's been Miceli by a mile. What about Kapler? Don't know too much about the Pacific League in general, or Damon, but I think I met him out with Kevin Hodges and Lopes when the Eagles were in town for open-sen.

2 - The Question of real interest. Seibu looks poor, but they have the players to get them out, as of course do Kyojin. (But the fact the Giants are at bottom is perhaps the best possible thing for NPB. Have they ever finshed bottom before? I know the excitement is letting me get ahead of myself. Does anyone know?)

Yokohama are on the way up, give them a year or two. Yakult are quite possibly on a downward trend, though it is too early to say.

I'd say the real concern could be for Orix. I don't know too much about the games they've played this season. (I tend not to choose to watch them, a Central League offering or the Hawks/Marines/Lions are a more interesting prospect, and the choice is almost always there.) Orix has some good players, but do they have the fans following last season's debacle? Will a poor season this year prove quite damaging?

Finally, I think it's a little harsh labeling Rakuten a disaster. They are in their first season and were never going to set the league on fire with the players they were able to obtain. They will improve, but these things take some time. Will anyone give me a price on the Eagles sweeping the Kyojin, preferably in Sendai?

I mention Rakuten being a disaster because, earlier this season, they were begging the league for better players, they lost a game by a score of 26-0, and they just "Reassigned" their GM. Their foreign players have all been really underacheiving as well. It's a little harsh, but they promised an exciting, competitive team and they have come up with neither. Maybe Tracy will help a lot, I don't know.

I also mention Minor because he was a really good triple A player and a decent MLBer who, until 2 days ago, couldn't crack Rakuten's lineup. It's kinda personal in a way because I'm a San Francisco Giants' fan in the U.S. and I really wanted him to do well, so I'm disappointed.

- Yakult are quite possibly on a downward trend, though it is too early to say.

I should correct myself on this. The Swallows could be on their way down a bit this season (but it is too early to call), however their recent results and performances that I've seen on the highlights suggest otherwise, and they do have the players and potential (not as much as in recent years, mind) to still have a very good season. However, they do come to Nagoya during Golden Week!

- [W]ho do you think is the biggest offseason acquisition dissapointment after the first month?

So far I would have to say Gabe Kapler of the Giants.

1. I think the off season aquisition dissapointment is Kevin Witt. Last year he was the triple A home run leader, and this year he can't buy a hit.

2. I think that the Giants are the biggest disaster. With all the money they spend they should be on top (just like the Yankees this year).

All you people are so negative. Why not talk about who's doing well instead of dwelling on who's struggling?

It often takes the foreigners a little while to adjust to Japanese baseball. Gabe Kapler is an established baseball player and will come around given the chance. And Damon Minor and Kevin Witt are big power guys that will often go through slumps. That is the drawback of power hitters. They often are very streaky. If you look at Kevin Witt's stats over the years, he always starts off slow and then picks it up after a couple months, then ends up leading the league in HRs and/or RBIs.

Sometimes for the foreigners it's more than what they do on the baseball field. Adjusting to the food, the life, the language barrier, etc. can also take a while to adjust to. With time hopefully they will all start producing and showing all you people why they are here in the first place.

Good luck to all foreigners playing in Japan. Prove these people wrong.

I'm sorry if I offended anyone by putting up a discussion question. I'm being critical, not negative.

I don't think Kapler is gonna be around long enough to turn it around. It might be unfair, but hitting .144 and making a ton of money kinda takes away room for error. He's a smart player and I think he could turn it around for a team like Orix, where he wouldn't be under a microscope.

Minor is disappointing because he's barely been able to crack Rakuten's lineup. I am a huge fan of Minors and I was really hoping he would kill over here.

Andy Tracy has probably ended his NPB career.

One other thing - during his minor league career, Minor only averaged about 19 home runs a season - not overwhelming power numbers. He really is more of a contact hitter. But I'll agree that it's a bit difficult to adjust to the strike zone.

Let me turn the questions around:

Who do you think was the best foreign pickup this year?

Gull,

I tried posting the Dragon report, but the system rejected it. It might have been too long or it might be seen as clutter. I'll try it again at the end of May.

- Gabe Kapler is an established baseball player and will come around given the chance.

That though means little to nothing. Kapler has the ability to become a great player in the NPB. Though when you're batting .144 (13 for 90) with 3 HR and 6 RBI, you can't stick with him forever, however unfair the situation might be to Kapler, which in this case isn't unfair. The Giants have Shimizu, now relegated to bench duty, signed to a 2 year contract. He should be the starter right now in my opinion.

As a Tiger fan, it's nice to see teams other than Hanshin have to deal with multiple foreign-signee busts like the Giants are!

I'm curious as to the relationship between these struggling players and their arrival in Japan. You'd think that a guy who came before spring training and got used to living in Japan - food, apartment, riding the trains, whatever - would have an easier time once he stepped on to the field. Do the early arrivals fare better than the guys who walk off the plane and right into the locker room on opening day?