2009 NPB Free Agents To MLB?

This is becoming a challenging topic to respond to.

It seems like everyone on both sides of the pond are in a race for NPB talent to (in the words of Monty Hall) "come on down." I'm starting to think that transfer fees for younger star players will be the next wave of signings.

Of course, this will also mean a stream of fine displaced New World players coming over to Japan IMO.

This situation has already taken place in football (soccer) for years. Only 34 English players were rostered a couple of weeks ago in the EPL on all 20 teams (16 players are kitted up by rule). It has become an international league.

Nikkan Sports (December 26, 2007 paper edition) has come through with a list of major players who may reach free agency next off-season if the time were shortened to 8 years. That would be equivalent to 2009 free agents under the current setup. (Please note, while the owners have said that they won't got less than 8 years to free agency at this time, they made it clear that such free agency would be for within Japan, not going to the Majors.)

Here is the list of prominent players:

Reached but not Declared

YOM Takahashi Yoshinobu
YOM Tani Yoshimoto
CHU Hirai Masafumi
CHU Iwase Hitoki
HAN Imaoka Makoto
NIP Kaneko Makoto
SFT Matsunaka Nobuhiko
SEI Nishiguchi Fumiya

After 2008 Season

YOM Nioka Tomohiro
YOM Uehara Koji
CHU Ibata Hirokazu
CHU Kawakami Kenshin
CHU Araki Masahiro
YOK Aikawa Ryouji
YOK Kinjoh Tatsuhiko
HIR Higashide Akihiro

After 2009 Season

YOM Takahashi Hisanori
CHU Morino Masahiko
HAN Fukuhara Shinobu
YOK Kizuka Atsushi
YAK Igarashi Ryota
YAK Ishii Hirotoshi
LOT Ono Shingo
LOT Shimizu Naoyuki
SFT Tamura Hitoshi
ORX Kawagoe Hidetaka

The time to free agency is going to be a hot topic with the players in the coming months. They want the owners to commit to something by March of 2008. Potential legal action has been brought up in the press, but no word of a potential strike.

Again, while the list of potential 2009 off season players may reach free agency after the 2008 season, it is unlikely that they'll be eligible to go to the Majors before 2009 (except by posting - which many teams frown upon).

[Name corrections on Dec 26, 2007 11:57 AM JST - Thank you name correction police.]

[Name correction police: Masafumi Hirai, and Kizuka the mound-kicker spells it that way on his uniform, not Kitzuka]

I really worry about the day that the entirety of Chunichi's infield either reaches FA (Arakibata, Morino) or falls over from old age (Tyrone, Norihiro, Tanishige), both events which seem likely in the next year or two. Combine that with Kenshin also reaching FA and there's definitely going to be some angst in Aichi.

I realize that this is an old thread, but I just need to add this.

Westbay: Thank you.