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Going to play in Japan

Discussion in the Ask the Commish forum
Going to play in Japan
Is there any way I could find out how I could go play in Japan? I keep having a lot of people tell me that I need to try to go to Japan and play. I have played Independant Ball for the last 3 years...

I'm a lefthanded pitcher who has put up great stats all through my Junior College years and also in Division I College Baseball. I have all my stats and some video tapes I could send if you would like to see them.

  • I have never thrown hard, around 82 to 83 tops.
  • I mix all my pitches up well and hit my spots.
  • I am very competitive.
I have had scouts talk to me but they wanted me to get my fastball up around 85 mph. I would come home and work out hard during the offseason and go back and it would just never happen. I just want a chance to still play because I love it.

Again Thanks,

Trey Hussey

[Format edited by: westbaystars on May 1, 2002 12:29 PM JST]

Comments
Re: Going to play in Japan
[ Author: westbaystars | Posted: May 1, 2002 12:37 PM | YBS Fan ]

This FAQ answer should give you a good start.

Gambare!
Re: Going to play in Japan
[ Author: Guest: Gary Garland | Posted: May 2, 2002 9:21 AM ]

Hi Trey:

The problem is that since you don't have much of a
fastball or what would be called a plus pitch, it's pretty unlikely a Japanese team would be interested in
you. Independent leagues are Class A to Class AA qualitatively. The thing is that Japan is rife with pitchers who have the same (or better) stuff you do with similar command and those players don't have to worry about adjusting to the culture and language. Too, there are veteran MLB pitchers in the Japanese minors
(Greg Hansell, for example).

The other issue is that Japanese teams almost always want players who have already been through a major league organization both for prestige reasons
and from a coaching point of view. Moreover, unless you're connected with an agent who has had experience
dealing with the Japanese, who are from a country where
personal relationships are paramount, it makes it a tough row to hoe without that MLB background.

If you want to play outside of the U.S., you might see if you can get hooked up into playing in Mexico or
maybe a country like Italy. Korea would be a reach, but
it might be worth a shot. Note, though, that the playing conditions in those nations aren't nearly as
good as they are in the U.S. or in Japan (and Mexico is
bad for personal safety reasons). I suppose you could also check into Puerto Rico and Venezuelan winter leagues. Sorry I couldn't be more encouraging.
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