Free Agency Watch: Kenshin Kawakami

Kenshin Kawakami is poised to make a move from Chunichi, but still undecided on whether to jump over to MLB or find a new employer in Japan. Hanshin is gearing up to make the first move by offering Kawakami a 4-year, 1.8B yen ($18M) deal. Said team president Shoji Numazawa: "we don't intend to play a money game. We're just attacking to the extent that is possible to acquire players, even if they are looking to the majors." The Giants made a similar attempt to lure Kosuke Fukudome last year, but their offer was only about half what he wound up getting from the Cubs.

Unfortunately I don't really see $4.5M/year getting it done for Kawakami; maybe if they bumped it up to $7M/year he'd have something to think about. So far the Braves and Red Sox have been most frequently linked to interest in Kawakami.