Mariners sign a Japanese teenager pitcher to a minor league contract

by toshi on Dec 26, 2007 6:24 PM PST Comment 16 comments

From Asahi com. (http://www.asahi.com/sports/update/1227/OSK200712270013.html).

Mariners have signed a 18 yrs old Japanese pitcher Kenta Suda to a minor league contract. I could not find much data on him, but the article says he throws right handed, and his heater can hit 150 km/hr (~94 mph). I have no idea where he starts next spring.

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Suda 4 5th slot in rotation!

by Matthew on Dec 26, 2007 6:54 PM PST reply actions

Unpossible!

He's only 5'10"! The M's would never sign a short pitcher.

Anyways, formerly of Heian High School, Kyoto. Apparently dropped out this year, but it can be speculated he dropped out on purpose to sign with a US team. Was apparently selected for the All Japan HS team too.

Detect-O-Vision

Favor the Bold

by IcebreakerX on Dec 26, 2007 8:05 PM PST reply actions

Japan's education system is vastly different

then ours. Here, we laze our way through high school, get into a good college, and study hard there because higher education weighs more here.

In Japan, their college entrance exams and requirements are based almost entirely on your high school education. Basically, they bust their balls in high school to get into a good college, then laze college.

How does the saying go? "Good school; good job; good life"?

I will not make jokes in my sig. I will not make jokes in my sig. I will not...

by TIF on Dec 27, 2007 2:31 AM PST up reply actions

Actually...

Entrance exams have nothing to do with what they learn in high school, as most of what they need isn't taught at school. Thus, the kids who are wealthy enough and have the neural pedigree take endless hours of cram schools after school hours. Even if high schools are tuned to get into colleges, its typically not enough to pass the entrance exams, leading to many students who 'ronin' and take entrance exams the year after graduating. Even for some, that is difficult, leading to students going 2 or 3 years before they get into college.

Meanwhile, those who do not have brains, money or a combination of the two are eternally screwed over and relegated to a significantly lower income bracket, typically as contract workers.

The entire entrance system is also systemically built to benefit a entire side industry that shouldn't even exist if schools did what they're supposed to do: get you ready for college. Uber elite schools typically go through the entire high school curriculum in the first year and can produce students that are of the highest caliber, but again, uber elite and atypical of the typical Japanese high school.

Also, high-caliber baseball prospects are not held to the standards of a regular student either, as most attend high schools that have baseball teams dedicated entirely to the National High School Baseball Tournament at Koshien. But it has been noted with Suda that he was "tired" with going to school and wanted to concentrate on baseball.

Detect-O-Vision

Favor the Bold

by IcebreakerX on Dec 27, 2007 7:01 AM PST up reply actions

Also...

If you graduate a Japanese HS, you're automatically forced into the NPB HS Draft, and by extension, 10+ years of indentured servitude to the team that drafted you.

If you don't graduate or are passed in the HS Draft, you're allowed unrestricted FA. If you go into any of the Industrial or Collegiate Leagues after HS, you're once again subject to the NPB College/Industrial League Draft and 10+ years of indentured servitude.

As far as I know, the Nomo Team isn't part of the major industrial leagues, so they probably fall outside of either draft.

Detect-O-Vision

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by IcebreakerX on Dec 28, 2007 7:32 AM PST up reply actions

Which is why Japan needs to change its

drafting rules, or it will encourage promising young players to drop out of high school so they'll have more leverage.

by Llewdor on Dec 28, 2007 9:22 AM PST up reply actions

Well, to be fair

High school isn't mandatory in Japan. You're only required to go to school up until the end of middle school.

But I think 99% of the nation goes to high school anyway, because otherwise you won't be able to get any sort of reasonable job. And most go on to college for the same reason.

by Deanna on Dec 28, 2007 7:42 PM PST up reply actions

And, of course...

...baseball is a gianormous risk.

Combined with Koshien being the dream of all those who play baseball in this country, and you have a pretty good incentive to not quit.

Detect-O-Vision

Favor the Bold

by IcebreakerX on Dec 28, 2007 7:45 PM PST up reply actions

Favor the Bold

by IcebreakerX on Dec 26, 2007 9:00 PM PST up reply actions

ummm

deanna just got home from work, because she was there for the last 12 hours and didn't have access to a computer there and just saw this post.

there's plenty about this Sudo kid out there on the web, anyway... I mean, google comes up with plenty of hits in Japanese to articles and pages about him. if nothing else, he's still listed on the NOMO club pitcher page.

but yeah, I haven't seen this kid play; while I went to a whole bunch of non-pro baseball games in Japan this year, none of them were HS or club, just things like college leagues, master's league, asia series, etc, and I'm not a scout anyway, which should go without saying. So if you want me to describe to you how a 58-year-old man is still throwing strikes at 85 mph, or exactly how awful the University of Tokyo team is in general, or show you pictures from when I snuck into minor league stadium dugouts, fine. But when it comes to things that are useful to MLB people? Not really exactly my forte, no...

btw, maybe there should also be some mention of the Angels signing Mitsuo Sumi's kid Ikko to a minor-league contract. At first when I looked at this post I almost got confused because it's a similar story (kid drops out of school, goes to majors, etc)

by Deanna on Dec 27, 2007 7:29 AM PST up reply actions

I wonder if he is hungry

or was Suda fed?

Bill Bavasi is no slouch in bed but he wouldn't know a good trade if it gave him a handjob.

by Vernitis on Dec 26, 2007 9:37 PM PST reply actions

Revenge of Mac Suzuki!

by Gomez on Dec 27, 2007 1:29 AM PST reply actions

This was inevitable

You're going to start seeing more and more Japanese kids being signed like this. Everybody wants the next Daisuke Matsuzaka but don't want to deal with that posting shit anymore.

I wonder how long Japan will let this go on before doing something to prevent their koshien kids from being signed away to MLB farm teams.

I will not make jokes in my sig. I will not make jokes in my sig. I will not...

by TIF on Dec 27, 2007 2:28 AM PST reply actions

A bit more info

OK, I dug out a bit more info here (sorry, it's in Japanese): http://www.sponichi.co.jp/baseball/news/2007/12/27/09.html

It basically says Suda was a captain in a pretty good high school for baseball in Kyoto, but he got tired of spending an hour and half (one way) just to commute his school. So he quit the school, but could not give up on baseball, so he joined the amateur baseball club established by Hideo Nomo. He made a All-Japan team (below 18 yrs old) for the BFA AAA Asian Baseball Championship in August this year. His four seamer can touch 153 km/hr (95.6 mph), and he also throws two seamer, slider and curve. He is ~6 ft, 176 lb, 18 yrs old, and throws right.

kupo!

by toshi on Dec 27, 2007 11:12 AM PST reply actions