The Toronto Blue Jays are among the teams who have expressed interest in a free-agent pitcher. In other news, water is wet.
Jon Morosi appeared on MLB Network on Monday and reported that there are a number of different teams who are scouting Kodai Senga “very intensely.” The list of teams that Morosi mentioned are the Blue Jays, the Los Angeles Angels and Dodgers, the Texas Rangers, and the Seattle Mariners.
At least five teams are in on Japanese pitching sensation Kodai Senga @jonmorosi has the latest on the right-hander’s free agency market and where he could fit in a major league rotation. #MLBNHotStove pic.twitter.com/C2vYXx5akI
— MLB Network (@MLBNetwork) November 14, 2022
Senga is the top Japanese free agent on the market this winter, and perhaps the most hyped pitcher to come out of Japan since Shohei Ohtani came overseas back in 2017. He generated a lot of hype for himself with a strong performance for Japan at the World Baseball Classic in 2017 but hasn’t been made available to Major League clubs because his NPB team, the Fukuoka Softbank Hawks, are philosophically opposed to using the posting system.
In 2022, Senga posted a 1.94 ERA over the course of 22 appearances. He struck out 9.8 batters per nine innings and walked 3.1 per nine. Senga relies on a four-pitch mix, with a fastball that averages 96 miles per hour but has apparently touched as high as 102. He also has an off-speed weapon that’s referred to as a “ghost fork.”
Kodai Senga has been up to 102 mph, throws a ghost forkball, slider, curve & cutter. 1.89 ERA in 148 innings this year.
Senga’s agent noted Kodai would like to play in a big market on a win now team and is versed in/wants to learn more about analytics.
pic.twitter.com/EUd4RmxucB
— Michael Mayer (@mikemayer22) November 14, 2022
An interesting thing about Senga is that he isn’t a traditional Japanese free agent whom Maj …
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Author: Cam Lewis / Blue Jays Nation
