[tehsuigi]

2042-43 Offseason Summary

Awards
* Four Golden Gloves are heading Shizuoka's way - second baseman Nobuyoshi Ito, third baseman Koji Kashima, shortstop Yui Nakamura, and right fielder Luis Alejandrez.
* Kashima and Alejandrez were also both nominated to the Best Nine for their efforts. Kashima slashed .279/.330/.509 with 33 HRs, and Alejandrez slashed .307/.349/.451 with 12 HRs and 36 SB.
* Paul Paez earned Manager of the Year for the 6th time in 7 seasons.
* To no one's surprise, Shigejiro Matsumoto won the Eiji Sawamura award unanimously, thanks to a 16-3 record, 1.57 ERA, and 284 Ks in 184 IP. Teammate Kim Chae-bong finished a unanimous second place too.
* To everyone's surprise, Matsumoto also made a run at the PL MVP award, blocking Marines home run king Satoshi Teramoto from a unanimous win (his 4th in a row) and finishing 2nd. Kashima took 4th in voting, Kim 7th, and LF Jon Lutz, DH Yoshikuni Yokota, and Alejandrez picked up votes.

Arbitration and Free Agency
* As most expected, Arrows ace Shigejiro Matsumoto exercised his contract opt-out and will be the most eligible free agent on the market at age 29. Shizuoka management is working overtime to try and keep the best pitcher in their history with the team...
* And stay he will! On October 24, the team made it official. Matsumoto signed a 10-year extension for 54M, with an opt-out after year 4 and the last two years as options. "After hearing from Matsumoto how much he adored playing here and winning here, our hands were tied. We went right to work to preserve his services for the long-term." With the extension, Matsumoto becomes the highest-paid player in Shizuoka franchise history, and among the top-5 salaries in the league.
* The Shizuoka Arrows sent CF Akiho Sana to the Ehime Honda Comets, receiving Tomoki Yamauchi. The 27-year-old corner outfielder and first baseman has eye-popping talent at the dish, but hasn't quite realized it with the Comets. As for Sana, he's expected to improve the locker room attitude in Ehime, having lost his playtime to Tamaki and Murakami in Shizuoka.
* The Arrows have declined arbitration with RHP Katai Yokoyama, RHP Mitsumasa Saito, and LHP Kikaku Nakayama.
* The Arrows went to arbitration with two players, winning both cases. 1B Kazushige Hirao and RHP Koichi Yoshinaga could not be reached for comment.
* Two long-time Arrows hit free agency, as 1B Tomosaburo Morioka and RF Luis Alejandrez test the open waters. RF/DH Mitsuchika Saruwatari joins them.
* The Shizuoka Arrows surprised most observers with the first signing in free agency, adding 24-year-old right-handed starter Moritake Hara on a 2-year, 840K deal. Hara's got a chance to make the rotation with a good spring.
* Another early signing, another Hara. This one is Shinichi Hara, a left-handed center fielder who put up 2.4 WAR last season for the Swallows. His plus defense in CF earned him a Golden Glove last year, so he'll be complementing Tamaki nicely. His contract is one year at 270K.
* Just before the winter meetings, the Arrows purchased shortstop Andy Lunsford from the Sugar Land Skeeters of the Atlantic League. The 22-year-old may compete for a starting job in the middle infield, as none of Ito, Nakamura, or Ishizaki are doing anything with their bats.
* The Shizuoka Arrows announced that Opening Day will feature two number 7s - the 7th championship in a row, and the retirement of jersey number 7 in honour of Shizue Uchino, who called it career at age 40 this offseason.

2042 First-Year Draft
With the 16th selection, the Shizuoka Arrows drafted right-handed reliever Eishin Shibazaki from Nichinan Gakuen HS. Shibazaki's two plus pitches and sidearm motion make him a valuable component in a future bullpen.
2. Shunsho Fujiwara, a long-needed shortstop with strong defense.
3. Tetsuo Fujikawa, a balanced center fielder with a decent contact tool.
4. Koji Sakakibara, a bat-first leftie outfielder.
5. Masamune Igarashi, an intriguing leftie starting pitcher. He'll struggle with control, but his pitch mix is strong. May be tough to sign, though...
6. Naoki Sato, replenishing a somewhat depleted stock of 3Bs at the AA level. Switch hitter too!
7. Takanori Watanabe, first baseman without too much of a bat.
8. Masami Kato, the usual high-ability catcher
9. Harutomi Oshta, a groundballer reliever from college
10. Tomoki Watanabe, total flyer this late in the draft.

Winter Meetings and Deep Offseason
* The Hokkaido Nippon-Ham Fighters and Shizuoka Arrows made a trade, with 2B Shigeharu Tanaka and RHP Tooru Kubo heading to Sapporo with LHP Matsu Hitomi and LF Jian Gang Hayashi coming back the other way. Hitomi is expected to compete for a leftie bullpen spot.
* The Arrows also made a deal with their Japan Series opponents, with LF Ed Grate and LHP Toshiyuki Yamada going to the Hanshin Tigers in exchange for LF Setsuo Yamashta (#70 prospect) and CF Kenji Ono.
* The Arrows signed RHP Sumiki Takeshta after the pre-season started on a one-year, 650K deal. The feisty pitcher was used by the Fighters as a starter for the last five seasons, but he'll probably fare better as a dynamite bullpen arm.