Tazawa

[Dipre]

Ace pitcher > Speedy contact hitter with no other tools.

 

Ichiro is insanely overrated.

 

Wow, that is insanely short-sighted, i mean, he is overrated, but c'mon, no other tools...

 

Ichiro's a 4-tool player, the only thing he lacks is power........

 

However, i agree that Dice-k >>>>>>Ichiro, but that's just my humble opinion.

[Dojji]

Actually he's a three tool player. He makes great contact but he doesn't exactly take a ton of walks. If he did, then he really would be a monster.

 

And then there's the fact that the Ichiro-to-CF experiment seems to have been abandoned, making him not just an outfielder with no power, but a CORNER outfielder with no power.

 

Ichiro Suzuki is an average offensive baseball player.

[Dipre]

Actually he's a three tool player. He makes great contact but he doesn't exactly take a ton of walks. If he did, then he really would be a monster.

 

And then there's the fact that the Ichiro-to-CF experiment seems to have been abandoned, making him not just an outfielder with no power, but a CORNER outfielder with no power.

 

Patience is not considered one of the 5 "tools", let's take a recap......

 

Contact...................Check

Speed.....................Check

Throwing Arm..........Check

Defense...................Check

Power.....................No Check

 

So yes, he's in fact a 4-tool player by every known standard, he's an overrated 4-tool player, but one nonetheless.

[BoSox21]

I believe the sabermetricians have added Ability to Draw Walks as the 6th tool

[Dojji]

Well whether it's a tool or not, it's what separates Ichiro from the true greats like Wade Boggs or even Todd Helton, who's a much much MUCH better baseball player than Ichiro.

[riverside sluggers]

http://cache.boston.com/bonzai-fba/Globe_Photo/2008/12/05/120508_tazawa329__1228472996_9859.jpg

[Dojji]

I'm absolutely pumped to see Japanese pitchers thinking about the Sox and the Sox expanding aggressively into the world's second largest baseball market. We've ignored Japan for far too long.

 

If the Japanese baseball oligarchs have a problem with us engaging with young Japanese baseball players, they can beat us in the free market and keep quality players around by treating them well and keeping their loyalty. EARN it in other words.

 

BTW -- don't blame this all on Daisuke. When we had those two games in Japan, Oki got cheered at least as much. Daisuke is the cultural icon, but Oki has a role to play in how the Japanese see us as well, and if he makes it, so will Tazawa.

[TheKilo]

Typical Western attittude. I can't say I completely understand their thinking as I am not an Asian, but I got a glimpse of it when I lived there.

 

What can they do?

 

Many things.

 

Go after the Red Sox amateur picks. Think a player agent wouldn't love to tell Epstein "Well, we have an offer from a Japanese team for your pick...". Steer their players to other teams. Drop hints to other teams who are offering bids in the posting process.

 

I'm not saying this can happen. However, I'd be a little surprised if the Red Sox didn't face future difficulties.

 

Also...Mr. Straw...what does Dice-K have to do with this? Absolutely nothing.

 

http://sportsillustrated.cnn.com/2008/baseball/mlb/wires/12/04/2010.ap.bba.red.sox.tazawa.2nd.ld.writethru.0818/

 

Epstein said he had a list of 50 Japanese amateurs who signed with 23 major league organizations. "This is far from unprecedented,'' he said.

 

lulz

[Cocos Disciples]

SoxProspects.com slots Tazawa at #7 in the organization, between Casey Kelly and Ryan Kalish.

 

Scouting Report: Small-framed Japanese pitcher with very good potential and top-notch secondary offerings. In an unprecedented move, Tazawa asked his home country pro teams to refrain from drafting him in order to allow him to pitch in the United States directly from the amateur ranks. His delivery is somewhat unconventional, similar to Michael Bowden's. His arm lags behind his shoulder and he has an abrupt whipping action down from his elbow as he releases the ball. His follow through isn't all that smooth, and some might say its almost non-existent. However, his lower body has solid mechanics and stays balanced throughout his motion. Tazawa makes use of a 90-94 mph fastball that works inward on righties. Presently it's about average, but it has some plus potential. But reports that he has hit 97 mph on the radar gun have largely been rebuffed. His secondary stuff is very advanced for his age, and he relies on it heavily. He mixes in a plus slider, a nice mid-70s curve, and an above average forkball (basically a split-fingered change-up). He has excellent command, and likes to paint corners similar to Daisuke Matsuzaka, one of his idols. Tazawa signed with Boston despite receiving larger offers from several other U.S. clubs.

 

ETA: late-2010