The Yankees should take notice. With the inconsistencies of Joba Chamberlain and co., the departure of Kerry Wood and the eventual retirement of Mariano Rivera it might not be a bad idea to take a look at Kobayashi-san since he stated in the press that he would be willing to pitch in whatever role his potential Major League suitors envision him in.
Declaring free agency has allowed Kobayashi to bypass the posting system which requires teams "post" payments to a player's Japanese club in order to secure the rights to negotiate a contract with him. The posting system is an auction with the player going to the highest bidder. Players like Kobayashi and former Yankee Hideki Matsui have opted to declare free agency as a ways around that system so they can make more money for themselves.
This also makes the player cheaper for an Major League club to sign. When the Red Sox signed Daisuke Matsuzaka the team posted over $50,000,000 to negotiate a contract with him. He eventually signed for 6 years and $52,000,000 plus incentives. For Daisuke to make $50 million, it cost his club over $100 million. This will not be the case with Kobayashi.
On top of being a proven winner with two Japan Series titles in the last two years, Kobayashi is a solid, effective reliever. He also has a familiar back story. After years as an average starter at best, he is converted into a reliever and is lights out. In 2010 he was 3-3 with 29 saves and a 2.21 ERA with 53 strike outs in 61 innings; according to NPB online.
This is not to say the Yankees should absolutely sign him, but giving him a 2 year, 10 million deal is about right. That is exactly what they are looking to spend on the open market in a reliever. This guy will not be a repeat of Kei Igawa or Hideki Irabu. Having recently signed Japanese reliever Naoya Okamoto might ease Kobayashi's transition to playing in New York and having both players around might persuade Yu Darvish to sign with the pinstripes when he decides to cross the pond.
Two interesting notes about the championship won by Kobayashi's Chiba Lotte Marines: According to the Yomiuri Shimbun, game 6 of the series ended after 15 innings as a tie. Imagine what would happen if a World Series game ended as a tie. The country would implode.
Remember the uproar over the 2002 All-Star Game in Milwaukee being declared a tie after 11 innings? That put the wheels in motion to make the exhibition game more meaningful for a handful of teams, home field advantage in the World Series to the victorious league.
Also, according to the Mainichi Daily News, the Chiba Lotte Marines do not sign players after they declare free agency. They will not negotiate with their own free agents. Not now, not ever. It's a way to keep costs down that seems to be working for them as 2 time defending champions. In this country that would lead to litigation, finger pointing, name calling and court injunctions. In Chiba it's business as usual.
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